Valerie Walters

Artist-in-Residence in Voice, School of Music

Mezzo-soprano Valerie Walters joined the Kennesaw State University faculty in 1990, where she has taught vocal pedagogy and English, Italian, German and French Diction. Born in England, Ms. Walters has her graduate degree in vocal performance from the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston.

She appears as the mezzo-soprano soloist on several recordings including New England Consort of Viols (Titanic Records), Martini duets (Orion), Atlanta Opera Chorus & Orchestra CD release of the Mozart Requiem, and The Balcony with Sarah Caldwell and the Boston Opera Company. In Spring 2009, a much awaited for CD of Phillip Glass & Robert Moran's opera The Juniper Tree was released with Ms. Walters in the leading role of the Evil Stepmother. Prior to coming to Atlanta, Ms. Walters performed extensively in both opera and oratorio. Her roles included Carmen, Azucena (Il Trovatore) Amneris (Aida), Fricka (The Ring), Baba (The Rake's Progress), and Olga (Eugene Onegin).Since coming to Atlanta from Boston, she has performed roles with the Atlanta Opera Company in Albert Herring, Faust, Andrea Chenier and Cavalleria Rusticana in addition to going to Moscow to perform The Balcony at the Bolshoi and the Prioress in Dialogues of the Carmelites in Knoxville. In more recent seasons Ms. Walters has appeared as the Second Lady in Mozart's The Magic Flute and Larina in Tschaikowsky's Eugene Onegin. She has sung the Alto/ Mezzo solos in most of the significant oratorio works including the Verdi Requiem, Bach's B Minor Mass, Handel's Messiah, Beethoven's Missa Solemnis and Ninth Symphony with Choruses and Orchestras across the United States. Ms. Walters taught voice in her Boston studio from l975-90 and was on the voice faculty at the University of Massachusetts. From 1991-1995 she joined the voice faculty of Emory University and has taught at Kennesaw State University since l990. Her voice students have gone on to do graduate and undergraduate work at the Juilliard School of Music, Eastman School of Music, Oberlin Conservatory, University of Michigan, Peabody Conservatory and Florida State University School of Music.