JuliaBullock
Contact
For availability and general enquiries:
Joel Thomas
Mathieu Levan
Representation
About Julia
One of Musical America’s 2021 “Artists of the Year,” Julia Bullock is an American classical singer who “communicates intense, authentic feeling, as if she were singing right from her soul” (Opera News).
Combining versatile artistry with a probing intellect and commanding stage presence, she has headlined productions and concerts at preeminent arts institutions around the world. An innovative curator in high demand from a diverse group of organizations, she has held positions including collaborative partner of Esa-Pekka Salonen and 2019-20 Artist-in-Residence at the San Francisco Symphony, 2020–22 Artist-in-Residence of London’s Guildhall School, and 2018-19 Artist-in-Residence at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Bullock’s opera debuts include San Francisco Opera in the world premiere of Girls of the Golden West; Santa Fe Opera in Doctor Atomic; Festival d’Aix-en-Provence and Dutch National Opera in The Rake’s Progress; the English National Opera, Teatro Real and Bolshoi Theatre in the title role
of The Indian Queen; and Dutch National Opera, Bregenzer Festspiele and Park Avenue Armory in the premiere of Michel van der Aa’s Upload. In concert, she has collaborated with the New York Philharmonic, Boston Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, NHK Symphony, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester and London’s Philharmonia and London Symphony Orchestras, while her recital highlights include appearances at New York’s Carnegie Hall, Boston’s Celebrity Series, Washington’s Kennedy Center, London’s Wigmore Hall, and the Mostly Mozart and Ojai Music festivals.
Released by Nonesuch, Bullock’s solo album debut, Walking in the Dark, was featured in the New York Times’s “Best Classical Music Tracks of 2022” and named one of the “Ten Best Classical Albums of 2022” by NPR. Her growing discography also includes Grammy-nominated accounts of West Side Story and Doctor Atomic, as well as the soundtrack of Amazon Prime Video’s 2021 The Underground Railroad, composed by Nicholas Britell.
Committed to integrating community activism with her musical life, Bullock is also a prominent voice for social consciousness and change.
Representation
Season Highlights
Video
Julia Bullock - One By One (Official Audio)
Julia Bullock performs "One by One," written by Connie Converse, from Bullock's album 'Walking in the Dark,' out now on Nonesuch: https://JuliaBullock.lnk.to/WalkingIn... Julia Bullock, classical singer Christian Reif, pianist ONE BY ONE (first recorded 1954, rearranged 2017) Poetry and Music by Connie Converse (b. 1924, disappeared 1974) Arr. by Jeremy Siskind We go walking in the dark. We go walking out at night. And it’s not as lovers go, Two by two, to and fro; But it’s one by one— One by one in the dark. We go walking out at night. As we wander through the grass We can hear each other pass, But we’re far apart— Far apart in the dark. We go walking out at night. With the grass so dark and tall We are lost past recall If the moon is down— And the moon is down. We are walking in the dark. If I had your hand in mine I could shine, I could shine Like the morning sun— Like the sun. Published by Heroic Cities (BMI) Credit: Nonesuch Records
PlayingJulia Bullock: Tiny Desk (Home) Concert
The Tiny Desk is working from home for the foreseeable future. Introducing NPR Music's Tiny Desk (home) concerts, bringing you performances from across the country and the world. It's the same spirit — stripped-down sets, an intimate setting — just a different space. Tom Huizenga | December 1, 2020 Soprano Julia Bullock prefers to be called a "classical singer." It's a rather humble, even vague, appellation for one of today's smartest, most arresting vocalists in any genre. She was just named Artist of the Year by Musical America, who labeled her an "agent of change." Bullock, who also considers herself an activist, has shaken up the classical music world recently with provocative programming and expressive performances. You can witness just that in this extraordinary Tiny Desk (home) concert from Munich, Germany with pianist and conductor Christian Reif, whose sensitive playing seems to anticipate and enhance Bullock's every phrase. He also happens to be her husband. Carefully choosing songs in German and English, Bullock begins with something bittersweet and introspective by Franz Schubert that cautions patience when looking for inner peace. She follows with "Wie lange noch" (How Much Longer), a World War II-era song by Kurt Weill. Written after Weill emigrated to the United States, the song contained coded messages for Germans back home. But Bullock has no time for secrets in these days fraught with uncertainty. The meaning behind her insistent cries of "How much longer?" as she stares straight through the camera, couldn't be more transparent. The next two songs are a gut-punch of clear-eyed observation, struggle and hope. The spiritual "City of Heaven" finds a determined protagonist facing down sorrow, while Billy Taylor's "I Wish I Knew How it Would Feel to be Free," written at the height of the civil rights movement, speaks truth to power. At the very end, Bullock spins out a long flowing line on the word "free." It's among the most transcendent musical moments I've experienced this year. SET LIST Franz Schubert: "Wanderers Nachtlied II" Kurt Weill: "Wie lange noch" Traditional: "City Called Heaven" (arr. by Hall Johnson) Billy Taylor: "I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free" (arr. by Jeremy Siskind) MUSICIANS Julia Bullock: vocals Christian Reif: piano CREDITS Video and Audio: Julia Bullock, Christian Reif TINY DESK TEAM Producer: Tom Huizenga Video Producer: Maia Stern Audio Mastering: Josh Rogosin Associate Producer: Bobby Carter Tiny Production Team: Bob Boilen, Kara Frame, Morgan Noelle Smith Executive Producer: Lauren Onkey Senior VP, Programming: Anya Grundmann Credit: NPR Music
PlayingPerle Noire: Meditations for Joséphine - Julia Bullock | Dutch National Opera
She was an exceptionally popular artist, a civilrights activist as well as a heroine of the French resistance. And now, after a life of fighting for freedom, Josephine Baker has become the first Black woman to enter the Panthéon, a mausoleum in Paris built to honour France’s most revered figures. In Perle Noire, singer Julia Bullock explores the life and struggles of this icon from a present-day perspective. SUBSCRIBE to our channel for new video's every week: http://bit.ly/YoutubeNOB This performance is part of Opera Forward Festival Texts: Claudia Rankine Stage direction: Peter Sellars Movement coach: Michael Schumacher Costume design: Carlos Soto Lighting design: James F. Ingalls Audio: Marc Urselli Joséphine Baker: Julia Bullock International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE) Tyshawn Sorey, composition, piano and percussion Jennifer Curtis, violin Alice Teyssier, flute Travis Laplante, saxophone Rebekah Heller, bassoon Daniel Lippel, electric guitar Original production by Théatre du Châtelet (Parijs) Credit: Dutch National Opera
Playing
Photos
Selected Repertoire
| Mahler | Symphony No. 4 |
|---|
Projects
Julia Bullock & AMOC Harawi
The American Modern Opera Company (AMOC) is thrilled to present a new staging of Harawi, Olivier Messiaen’s deeply affecting, hour-long song cycle for soprano and piano. Messiaen’s musical explorations of love and death will take on a newly physicalised and theatrical dimension through the choreographic work of Bobbi Jene Smith and Or Schraiber direction by Zack Winokur and with lighting design by John Torres.
Learn about this projectProjects
Julia Bullock & AMOC Harawi
The American Modern Opera Company (AMOC) is thrilled to present a new staging of Harawi, Olivier Messiaen’s deeply affecting, hour-long song cycle for soprano and piano. Messiaen’s musical explorations of love and death will take on a newly physicalised and theatrical dimension through the choreographic work of Bobbi Jene Smith and Or Schraiber direction by Zack Winokur and with lighting design by John Torres.
Learn about this projectProjects
Julia Bullock - History's Persistent Voice
History’s Persistent Voice is Julia's Bullock mixed-media performance piece, bringing together the experiences, words and music of Black American artists. In this collaborative project, with each new city in which it is performed, a new commission by a local composer is added to the programme. The performance is then accompanied by video installations designed by visual artist Hana S. Kim alongside readings from Black American poets and writers.
Learn about this project
News
Julia Bullock, Joyce DiDonato and Iestyn Davies open in Theodora at Teatro Real Madrid
Julia Bullock brings Harawi to North America with AMOC
18 Askonas Holt artists to appear at The Metropolitan Opera in 2024/25
Grammy Awards for Yannick Nézet-Séguin and Julia Bullock
Debuts for Julia Bullock and Adriana Bignagni Lesca at Liceu Barcelona in Antony and Cleopatra
Opus Klassik Award winners: Asmik Grigorian, Julia Bullock, Nathalie Stutzmann and Lars Vogt
ON TOUR: Julia Bullock with the American Modern Opera Company
Julia Bullock in 'Theodora' at the Royal Opera House
Julia Bullock signs to Askonas Holt
Press
Anthony & Cleopatra
Liceu BarcelonaOct 2023Y es en la fragilidad de los personajes donde afloran los momentos más emocionantes gracias a la íntima conexión de texto y música que el barítono Gerald Finley y la soprano Julia Bullock aprovechan para mostrar un amplio abanico de matices y colores vocales. Ha tenido suerte el Liceu con Bullock; Adams escribió el papel de Cleopatra específicamente para esta gran cantante y actriz, pero no pudo asumirlo en el estreno en San Francisco por su reciente maternidad, así que lo ha interpretado por primera vez en el coliseo de la Rambla y, la verdad, es un grandísimo papel, agotador y exigente, que culmina con un último encuentro con su amante y una escena del suicidio de gran impacto. [TRANSLATED] it is in the fragility of the characters where the most exciting moments emerge thanks to the intimate connection of text and music that the baritone Gerald Finley and the soprano Julia Bullock take advantage of to show a wide range of nuances and vocal colors. The Liceu has been lucky with Bullock; Adams wrote the role of Cleopatra specifically for this great singer and actress, but she could not take it on at the premiere in San Francisco due to her recent motherhood, so she performed it for the first time at the Rambla Coliseum and, the truth is, it is a great role, exhausting and demanding, which culminates with a last meeting with his lover and a suicide scene of great impact.
- Scherzo
- 30 October 2023
Attribuons en définitive le relatif succès de la soirée à la qualité des voix. Julia Bullock interprète Cleopatra avec conviction et franchise. Sauf au cours de la scène d’amour, au début de la pièce, et des dialogues avec ses servantes, elle obscurcit sa voix, donnant ainsi la distance nécessaire entre une reine et le monde extérieur. [TRANSLATED] Ultimately, we attribute the relative success of the evening to the quality of the voices. Julia Bullock plays Cleopatra with conviction and frankness. Except during the love scene, at the beginning of the play, and the dialogues with her servants, she obscures her voice, thus giving the necessary distance between a queen and the outside world.
- WebTheatre
- 11 November 2023
Adams avait écrit le rôle de Cléopâtre en pensant à Julia Bullock, dont la maternité ne lui permit pas de participer à la création à San Francisco. Elle a dû donc arriver à Barcelone pour marquer le rôle de son enivrante personnalité. Sa voix possède toute la volupté que l’on pourrait imaginer pour un personnage aussi légendaire, sa figure est également idéale pour le rôle et son jeu fait preuve d’une aisance corporelle sans bornes. [TRANSLATED] Adams had written the role of Cleopatra with Julia Bullock in mind, but she was unable to take part in the San Francisco premiere due to maternity leave. So she had to come to Barcelona to stamp her intoxicating personality on the role. Her voice has all the voluptuousness one could imagine for such a legendary character, her figure is equally ideal for the role and her acting displays boundless physical ease.
- Crescendo
- 30 October 2023
