Baritone Andrew D. Whitfield enjoys a vibrant career as a performer, teacher, and stage director. In addition to appearances with Des Moines Metro Opera, Opera Southwest, and Pensacola Opera, Andrew was a resident artist with Portland Opera Works and toured with outreach programs for Opera Kansas and Opera Birmingham. Other performance highlights include engagements with the Dubuque Symphony Orchestra, the Cedar Rapids Opera Theatre, and the Peoria Bach Festival. He has been a featured soloist in the Brahms Requiem (Grinnell College) and in Haydn's Lord Nelson Mass (with the Luther College Symphony Orchestra at Orchestra Hall in Minneapolis, MN.) He performed as the baritone soloist in the world premier of Mohammed Fairouz's Anything Can Happen with the Grinnell College Singers at Fourth Presbyterian Church in Chicago, Illinois. Along with his colleague Jessica Paul, he has presented Schubert's Winterreise numerous times in recital in Iowa, Wisconsin, Colorado, and Texas. Also, his recording of Brooke Joyce’s Three Iowa Ballads, released on the Innova label, has received notable praise. Recent appearances include performances of Handel's Messiah, as well as chamber music recitals at The Baroque Room in St. Paul, MN and as part the Second City Chamber Series in Tacoma, WA.
Originally from Shelbyville, Indiana, Andrew received the Bachelor of Music degree from Butler University, the Master of Music degree from Wichita State University, and the Doctor of Musical Arts degree from Louisiana State University. He currently serves as Professor of Music and Coordinator of Opera at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa, where he teaches applied voice and opera workshop. He is also a founder and director of the International Music Festival of the Adriatic, a summer chamber music festival for piano, strings, voice, and composition in Duino, Italy.
To see and hear excerpts of Andrew's performances, please visit his YouTube channel.