Private Voice Teachers
Irene Reising – Soprano
Irene Reising, a coloratura soprano from Cincinnati, OH, has been performing with multiple opera companies and has also been teaching private voice and piano since 2017. As a voice and piano instructor, Ms. Reising deeply believes in a healthy technique being the most important skill developed in lessons. Ms. Reising will work with her students to find appropriate repertoire to fit each student’s instrument. In her studio, the students will work on growing their confidence in performing and expressing themselves as a musician through appropriately deemed repertoire. The students will also cultivate an appreciation of music and gain a basic understanding of the fundamentals of music.
Ms. Reising graduated summa cum laude from Wittenberg University in 2017, where she received a Bachelor of Arts in Music (Voice). While attending Wittenberg University, Ms. Reising sang the roles of Marie in La fille du régiment, Zerlina in Don Giovanni, Adele in Die Fledermaus, Sophie in Werther, Yum-Yum in The Mikado, Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro, and Edith in Pirates of Penzance. Ms. Reising has also performed as the Soprano Soloist in Schubert’s Mass in G as well as Handel’s Messiah. Additionally, Ms. Reising studied piano all four years during her time at Wittenberg University under the direction of Dr. Christopher Durrenberger. Since graduation, Ms. Reising has been involved with numerous opera companies, including but not limited to Cincinnati Opera, Opera Columbus, Opera Birmingham, Toledo Opera, Peach State Opera, Opera Naples, and Opera Project Columbus. Ms. Reising has covered the role of Musetta in Puccini’s La bohème with Toledo Opera as well as Peach State Opera. In 2019, Ms. Reising performed the role of the Saloon Girl in The Ballad of Baby Doe with Toledo Opera. In 2020, Ms. Reising was previously scheduled to be performing in Opera Birmingham’s production of Massenet’s Cendrillon, performing the role of Spirit #3 and covering the role of Noémie, however, due to COVID-19, the production was canceled. Additionally, in 2021, Ms. Reising was previously scheduled to be covering the roles of Hanna Glawari and Valencienne in Toledo Opera’s production of Lehar’s The Merry Widow; however, due to COVID-19 the production was canceled. Other operas include Il Trovatore, Carmen, Suor Angelica, Roméo et Juliette, and Tosca. In 2021, Ms. Reising won first place in the Charleston International Winter Music Competition. Ms. Reising will be singing with the Cincinnati Opera in the upcoming 2022 Summer Season. |
Michael Young – Baritone
Michael Young is a native of Cortland, Ohio and a graduate of The University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music (CCM). He is a former First Prize winner of the Palm Beach Opera International Vocal Competition, The CCM Undergraduate Vocal Competition, and a two time winner of the Corbett Vocal Competition.
Mr. Young is on faculty as a Voice Instructor at Walnut Hills High School, Cincinnati Academy of Performing Arts, and Cincinnati Fusion Ensemble Institute of Music. He is a member of the National Association of Teachers of Singing and the Ohio Music Education Association. He is a member of the Cincinnati Fusion Ensemble, The Knox Presbyterian Choir, the Bach Ensemble at St. Thomas, and the Cincinnati Opera Chorus. Michael also maintains a steady performance schedule, which has included such operatic engagements as Scarpia in Puccini’s Tosca, Opera Western Reserve, Marcello in Puccini’s La Boheme, Opera Western Reserve, Alberich in Wagner’s Siegfried, Queen City Chamber Opera Belcore in Donizetti’sL’elisir d’amore, and various supporting roles at Cincinnati Opera and Dayton Opera. In the fall, Michael will make his west coast debut as Alberich in Wagner’s Siegfried at San Francisco’s Valhalla Productions. Recent concert repertoire includes the title role in Mendelssohn’s Elijah, and bass/baritone soloist in Handel’s Messiah, Orff’s Carmina Burana, and Beethoven’s 9th Symphony. |
Xan Waddell Jeffery – Soprano
Xan Waddell Jeffery is a native of Nashville, TN. She earned Master of Music and Bachelor of Music degrees (with Honors) in Vocal Performance from the College-Conservatory of Music (CCM), University of Cincinnati. Xan is Head of Voice Studies at Indian Hill Performing Arts and has a large private voice studio, with locations in Indian Hill and Anderson Township. She has performed with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Vocal Arts Ensemble, Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and the Nashville Symphony Orchestra. She is a choir section leader/soloist at St. Timothy’s Episcopal Church, a member of the Cincinnati Choral Society, Music Director of McNicholas High School Theatre and regularly serves as vocal director for community theatre groups in the Greater Cincinnati area.
Xan is Past-President of the CCM Alumni Board of Governors and member of the Friends of CCM Board. She is an active member of the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS), the Ohio Music Educators Association (OMEA) and on the Executive Board of Sigma Alpha Iota-Cincinnati Alumnae Chapter. In 2008, Xan was invited to join the Screen Actors Guild (SAG). She was very honored to receive two Orchid awards in 2014-2015 for Excellence in Vocal Direction for Cincinnati Music Theatre’s production of YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN and Footlighters’ production of LITTLE WOMEN. |
Brooke Batchelor – Soprano
Brooke Batchelor, originally from Knoxville, TN, holds both a Masters and Bachelors of Music in Vocal Performance from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music.
Ms. Batchelor was the winner of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions Northern Alabama District, and placed third in the MONC Auditions Mid-South Region that same year. Additional credits include two years with Cincinnati Opera, multiple roles during her time at CCM, a two-time semi-finalist with the Palm Beach Vocal Competition and two-time winner of the Friends of Lima Symphony Young Artist Competition. Brooke recently returned to Cincinnati and CAPA from Denver, CO. She deeply enjoys teaching voice, violin and piano students of all ages and styles. In addition to her classical training, she was raised in a bluegrass household where she and her sisters frequently performed alongside their father in his bluegrass band. She is an accomplished fiddle, guitar, mandolin, and banjo player in this genre and thoroughly enjoys using her homegrown skills. |
Cynthia Lawrence – Soprano
Cynthia has worked as a singer, musical director, vocal coach, accompanist, and arts educator for many years. Before moving to Cincinnati, Cynthia served as Musical Director for Springfield Little Theatre, Missouri’s oldest and largest civic theatre. Musical directing credits include Beauty and the Beast, Wizard of Oz, Peter Pan, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers and many other productions. As a performer, Cynthia has experience onstage in regional, community and professional theatre as well as in the studio as a jingle artist and studio musician. Her teaching credits include private studio voice and piano instruction, public school music education and community theatre education and workshops. Her focus in recent years has been on training the young musical theatre singer, arts integration and program development. Cynthia holds a BS, Vocal Performance, from Southwest Baptist University, teacher certification in music and theatre studies from Missouri State University, and a MM from the University of Cincinnati, College-Conservatory of Music, with special emphases in music education, musical theatre and arts administration.