Amy S. Johnson

Professor Amy Johnson brings a comprehensive knowledge of vocal and operatic artistry to her new position of J. Ralph Corbett Distinguished Chair of Opera at CCM. She has earned recognition as a performer, voice professor, director, producer, mind-body skills facilitator and a certified Michael Chekhov Technique acting teacher.

Critics have praised soprano Ms. Johnson as one of America’s finest singing actresses, known for her believability and versatility. Ms. Johnson’s repertoire encompasses over two dozen roles ranging from Donna Anna in Don Giovanni to Salome. She has earned special praise for her portrayal of Tosca in productions worldwide, notably with New York City Opera on PBS’ Live from Lincoln Center. She has performed leading and title roles alongside major international artists with Vlaamse Opera Antwerp, Glimmerglass, the BBC Proms, Spier Festival South Africa, Indianapolis, Portland, Palm Beach, Detroit, Arizona, Kentucky and Santa Barbara, among others.

Ms. Johnson has been sought out for numerous premieres. She is known for her work with renowned composer Thea Musgrave, who tailored the leading soprano role in Simón Bolívar for Ms. Johnson, and later asked her to debut her orchestral work Three Women: Queen, Mistress, Slave. (Women’s Philharmonia, San Francisco) Ms. Johnson has commissioned works by Judith Shatin and Evan Mack. In 2021, Ms. Johnson was honored with the American Prize as a Distinguished Vocal Artist, in recognition of a career of sustained artistic and pedagogical excellence. Her solo recording, Amy Johnson – Portrait of an Artist contains never-before recorded arias by Stephen Schwartz, Robert Aldridge, Thea Musgrave and Anton Coppola. Throughout her career, Ms. Johnson has been honored to collaborate with such luminaries as conductors Silvio Varviso, Steven Mercurio, Joseph Rescigno, Steven White, George Manahan, Stuart Robertson and the aforementioned Anton Coppola, as well as renowned singers Marcello Giordani, Greer Grimsley, Richard Paul Fink, Barbara Dever, Allan Glassman, Timothy Noble and Badri Maisuradze, to name a few.

Ms. Johnson's studio attracts singers of all voice categories. Her students are appearing on Broadway as well as with the Metropolitan Opera, Deutsche Oper Berlin, the Glyndebourne Festival and major young artist programs (Santa Fe, Wolf Trap, Des Moines, St. Louis, Chautauqua). Students have been awarded international study grants, placement in prestigious Young Artists’ Programs, and have been winners of the Corbett, Lotte Lenya and Metropolitan Opera competitions. Ms. Johnson has been a regular faculty/artist member the Dramatic Voice Symposium in New Orleans.

In addition to her studio teaching, Ms. Johnson has co-directed CCM’s award-winning undergraduate opera curriculum. She is active in the National Opera Association, where she has served as a board member and Chair of the Carolyn and Dominick Argento Vocal Competition. Ms. Johnson is Co-director of the Integrative Health and Wellness for Artists Program at CCM and has coordinated the CCM Mind Body classes.

As a producer, Ms Johnson was co-principal of Impresario Productions, LLC, a production company which helped organizations produce opera affordably. Unique among her projects was Twisted Sisters, an interactive video presentation of three "mad scenes" performed live with orchestra. Ms. Johnson co-founded a summer program in the Marche region of Italy, which provided artists and educators the opportunity to perform full operas with orchestra, led by artistic faculty in hiring positions throughout the industry. At CCM she was Co-Director of Summer Opera Bootcamp for four years.

BA: Grinnell College Grinnell, IA,

MM: Manhattan School of Music New York, NY,