Faculty

Carol Castel
General Manager
Ms. Castel’s career has taken her through the theater world from musical theater to opera; from actress and singer to singing actress; from arts administrator to opera stage director. Her directing career has included over 55 opera productions in the U.S., Canada and Europe. In addition to a studio of private voice students, Ms. Castel coaches and teaches classes in acting, artistry and performance practices for the classical singer. She is currently on the faculty of OperaNUOVA in Edmonton, Canada and is founder of the New York Opera Studio. For more information about Ms. Castel visit her web site at www.castelopera.com.

Nico Castel
Artistic Director and Language Master
A multi-talented artist and scholar, Nico Castel has been a member of the Metropolitan Opera Company as staff diction coach and artist for the past 37 years. Mr. Castel is the undisputed and internationally acclaimed expert on language, diction and style for singers. Currently on the faculty of The Juilliard School of Music, he teaches master classes in diction and style for singers at universities and opera companies throughout the world. Mr. Castel has authored 20 volumes of Opera Libretti translations as well as the "Manual for Spanish Lyric Diction". For more information about Mr. Castel visit his web site at www.castelopera.com.

Violetta Zabbi
Music Director
Dr. Zabbi, accomplished pianist and coach is Chairman of the Piano Department of the long Island Conservatory (SUNY Old Westbury). She received a BM degree at Odessa State Music College, her MM degree from Odessa State Conservatory in the Ukraine and her doctorate at Odessa Academy of Music. In addition to her piano work, she also coaches Russian diction for singers and other coaches. Born in the Ukraine, she and her husband have recently become US citizens. Ms. Zabbi is Musical Director of the NYOS 2010 Summer Program.

Kristi Spessard
Choreographer
Kristi Spessard is a dance performer, teacher and choreographer based in New York City. She is artistic director of Kristi Spesssard Dance Projects, a collaborative dance performing internationally, throughout Eastern US, and widely in New York City. In 2007/08, she was a Mabou Mines Suite Resident Artist, the cover artist of Ballet Tanz Magazine 2007 Yearbook, and the director of Connecting Landscapes - Berlin/NY Movement Choir in Berlin, Germany. Spessard has performed with Guta Hedewig Dance Company since 1998 and also with Amy Sue Rosen and Company Amy Cox, among many other experimental dance choreographers.

Spessard has been a guest artist at University of Western Michigan, Alfred University, and University of Southern Florida. She has also been on faculty at Marymount Manhattan College, Virginia School of the Arts, Laban/Bartenieff Institute of Movement Studies, American Academy of Dramatic Arts, Rudgers University and University of the Americas, Mexico. She has an MFA in Dance from Ohio State University and is a Certified Movement Analyst. Ms. Spessard is on the faculty of the NYOS 2010 Summer Program.

Joshua Greene
Special Guest Conductor and Coach
Joshua Greene, Assistant Conductor at the Metropolitan Opera Company in New York City, has assisted James Levine in the MET's productions of Falstaff, The Magic Flute and is currently assisting in the production of Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg.  Prior to arriving at the MET, Mr. Greene was Music Director of the touring production of La Traviata for  the New York City Opera National Company. He has been guest conductor for such opera companies as the Sarasota Opera, Augusta Opera, Westchester Opera, Aspen Festival Opera and prepared singers for the productions of Britten's Curlew River and  The Prodigal Son at Venice's famed Teatro la Fenice.

In addition to his conducting career Mr. Greene is also an esteemed accompanist for song recitals, partnering such noted singers as Jerry Hadley, Franco Farina, Jane Bunnel, Joyce Guyer, Carolyn James, Amy Johnson, James Morris and Marc Embree, at such distinguished venues as New York's Merkin Concert Hall and Carnegie-Weill Recital Hall and the Ambassador Auditorium in Pasadena.

In great demand as a coach, Mr. Greene maintains a busy studio in Manhattan which includes leading soloists of the Metropolitan Opera and New York City Opera. He also teaches piano and conducting privately.  As a visiting artist, Mr. Greene has given master classes at schools throughout the country including Grinnel College at the University of Northern Iowa, The Mannes College of Music, The Hartt School of Music, University of Rochester and the Eastman School of Music. Mr. Greene is on the faculty of NYOS 2010 Summer Program as special guest artist.

Carol Kirkpatrick
Career Trainer and Certified NLP Consultant
An accomplished singer, Ms. Kirkpatrick enjoyed a successful career from the San Francisco Opera Co. to Europe. She sang both opera and concert repertoire singing under the batons of prestigious conductors including Christopher Keene and James Levine. In addition to teaching voice she is in demand for her workshops based on her newly published book, “Aria Ready – The Business of Singing”, which explores the concepts and skills needed for the emerging professional singer to establish and maintain the personal and business aspects of a successful singing career. Ms. Kirkpatrick is on the faculty of the NYOS 2010 Summer Program. Find out more at www.ariaready.net.

Barbara Conrad
International Vocal Artist
Her luscious, mezzo-soprano voice has captivated audiences in opera houses and concert halls throughout Europe and the US, including the Metropolitan Opera Co., NY City Opera, Weiner Staatsoper, Carnegie Hall, NY Philharmonic and the London Symphony. A recipient of the University of Texas Distinguished Alumnus Award, she has been honored with the founding of the Barbara Conrad Endowed Scholarship in Fine Arts. Ms. Conrad is on the faculty of the NYOS 2010 Summer Program as special guest artist.

Louis Menendez
Coach, Conductor
Louis Menendez was a long time faculty member at the Curtis Institute of Music and Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia. He has been the music director of the NYOS since its inception. As assistant conductor, he has musically prepared over 130 opera productions with companies in Bremem, Germany; Spoleto, Italy; Washing D.C., and throughout the U.S. He has worked with Placido Domingo, Max Rudolf, Luciano Pavarotti, Jerome Hines, Louis Quilico and Sherill Milnes among others. As founder of Philadelphia Concert Opera, he conducted Rigoletto and Die Entfuhrung. Recently, he was guest conductor for Idomeno and Die Zauberflote with the California Music Festival. Classical Singer magazine featured his article on artistry, 'Time Stands Still', in the October, '05 issue. Louis Menendez has recorded for the Centaur label.

Kenneth Cooper
Harpsichordist, Pianist, Musicologist and Conductor
Mr. Cooper is one of the world's leading specialists in the music of the 18th century and one of America's most exciting and versatile performers. Renowned for his improvisations and his expertise in ornamentation and long-lost 18th century arts, he has revived countless musical works, lending them extraordinary authenticity as well as great vitality. The possessor of a PhD in musicology from Columbia University, Kenneth Cooper is on the faculty there as well as at the Manhattan School of Music, where he is Chair of the Harpsichord Department and Director of the Baroque Aria Ensemble.

Elizabeth Hastings
Conductor and Pianist
An active conductor and accompanist, Ms. Hastings has conducted orchestras throughout the country including the New York City Opera National Company. A highly regarded coach, her credits include the Boston Lyric Opera, Central City Opera, Wolf Trap, Sarasota Opera where for three years she was head of their apprentice program and an assistantship at the Casals Festival in Puerto Rico for four seasons. Ms. Hastings is a member of the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra as harpsichordist and performs regularly at Carnegie Hall with Mid-America Productions. She maintains a busy studio as a vocal coach in New York City where she resides.

Catherine Burnett
Choreographer
An international dancer, choreographer and teacher, Ms. Burnett’s varied career has brought her acclaim in the work of body movement and dance for actors and singers. She began her dancing career in New York with the American Dance Machine eventually becoming artistic director for the Montage Dance Theatre. Her credits also include choreography and writing of theatrical productions. She has been on the faculty of the University of Alberta and is currently on the faculties of OperaNUOVA in Edmonton and the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada where she resides.