Mezzo-Soprano Hannah Ludwig. Photo by John Matthew Myers.
Bio
The New York Times calls mezzo-soprano Hannah Ludwig “best in show” and further exclaims “Her tone chocolaty and large, yet with focus and agility, she captured the integral aspect of bel canto…expression emerging from a long, intelligently shaped musical line.” Her 2025-26 season includes her British debut, singing a program of Rossini’s Stabat Mater and Andromaca in Ermione with the Monteverdi Choir and Orchestra, as well as a return to the National Symphony Orchestra as Badessa in Suor Angelica. Her future engagements see her adding a new piece to her repertoire in yet another return to the National Symphony Orchestra. Last season, she made her Metropolitan Opera debut as the Third Servant in Die Frau ohne Schatten. She also joined the Falmouth Chorale for Dvořák’s Stabat Mater and Knoxville Opera for a concert of opera favorites.
A prolific interpreter of the repertoire of Rossini, she made her European debut as Isabella in L’italiana in Algeri with Eroica Berlin—a recording of which is released on the Pan Classics label. She is a favorite at Teatro Nuovo, having joined the company as Calbo in Maometto II, Pippo in La gazza ladra, Isaura in Tancredi, and Rosina in Il barbiere di Sviglia. She sang further performances of Rosina in Il barbiere di Siviglia with Annapolis Opera and Opera Louisiane and, also in the bel canto realm, she sang her first performances of Giovanna Seymour in Anna Bolena with Baltimore Concert Opera, Alisa in Lucia di Lammermoor with Opera Philadelphia, and excerpts of Adalgisa in Norma with the Sacramento Philharmonic. She made her Dallas Opera debut as Dritte Dame in Die Zauberflöte and returned as Floßhilde in Das Rheingold. She has sung Maddalena in Rigoletto with Utah Opera, the Page in Salome with the Houston Symphony, the District Attorney in Davis’ Central Park Five with Portland Opera, and Ljubica in Sokolović’s Svadba with Boston Lyric Opera.
On the concert stage, she has sung Handel’s Messiah with both the New York Philharmonic and National Symphony Orchestra, both with Fabio Biondi conducting. She sang Elgar’s Sea Pictures and Prokofiev’s Alexander Nevsky with the Colorado Symphony and Mozart’s Requiem with the Columbus Symphony, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with the Des Moines Symphony, and Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 with the Flint Symphony Orchestra. Her other recent concert appearances include Handel's Messiah with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra as well as Mozart's Requiem and Forrest's Requiem for the Living with MidAmerica Productions at Carnegie Hall. She presented “Songs from a Distance,” a recital featuring Schubert, Argento, Boyle, and Musto as well as a series of outdoor concerts by Opera Delaware and Baltimore Concert Opera.
Ms. Ludwig is a graduate of the prestigious Academy of Vocal Arts, at which she sang a host of roles that include Isabella in L’italiana in Algeri, Charlotte in Werther, Maddalena in Rigoletto, Fricka in Das Rheingold, Azucena in Il trovatore, Komponist in Ariadne auf Naxos, Dritte Dame in Die Zauberflöte, and the Nurse in The Demon. With the Aspen Music Festival, she performed Ursule in Béatrice et Bénédict conducted by Johannes Debus and Sesto in La clemenza di Tito led by Maestro Jane Glover. In her home state of California, she has sung Ruggiero in Alcina at the Napa Music Festival.
She recently won second place in the 2018 Loren L Zachary Society for the Performing Arts Vocal Competition. She has received encouragement awards from the James Toland Vocal Arts Competition, Jensen Foundation Vocal Competition, Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions Gulf Coast Region, and the Licia Albanese-Puccini International Vocal Competition. She is also a grant winner of the Giulio Gari Vocal competition.
Prior to attending the Academy of Vocal Arts, Hannah Ludwig received her Bachelor of Music degree in vocal performance from the University of the Pacific.
“Pride of place goes to Hannah Ludwig, a sonorous, powerful Fricka, whose strikingly colored mezzo is evenly calibrated throughout a wide range; this is truly a star voice.”
— Philadelphia Magazine
