Chris Reynolds

Pianist

Ryan Opera Center Ensemble

Chris Reynolds is sponsored by Nancy Dehmlow, the Julian Family Foundation, and Philip G. Lumpkin.

Third-year Ryan Opera Center pianist Chris Reynolds has rapidly made a name for himself as both a soloist and a collaborator. Reynolds is currently a doctoral candidate at The Juilliard School. He recently performed at Lincoln Center Theater for previews of the world premiere of Ricky Ian Gordon and Lynn Nottage’s chamber opera Intimate Apparel. Other performance venues include Bayreuth, Carnegie Hall, Tanglewood, WQXR, the Kyoto Summer Music Festival, and National Sawdust. A two-time winner of the Juilliard Vocal Arts Honors Recital auditions, Reynolds has been a fellow at SongFest and Aspen, as well as a Schwab Rising Star at Caramoor as part of the New York Festival of Song Emerging Artist Series. He has worked at the Metropolitan Opera and Lincoln Center Theater as an opera coach/répétiteur and has served on the faculties of the Internationale Meistersinger Akademie, William Paterson University, and the Mostly Modern Festival. Reynolds holds Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from The Juilliard School.

For Lyric’s 2020/21 virtual programming, Reynolds, as pianist, appeared in Lawrence Brownlee and Friends: The Next Chapter, Master Classes with Sir Andrew Davis, Pasión Latina, Sole e Amore, Magical Music Around the World, and Rising Stars in Concert.

In the company’s 2021/22 season, Reynolds appeared in Sunday in the Park with Lyric’s Rising Stars in addition to preparing Macbeth as a member of Lyric’s music staff.

During the 2022/23 Lyric season, he will serve on Lyric’s music staff for Proximity, the triple bill of new American operas (world premiere).

Featured videos

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Ryan Opera Center At Work: “Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy”

This time of year, many of us have visions of sugar plums dancing in our heads. Whether you’re dreaming of a sweet treat or a beautiful ballet, celebrate the holiday season with Ensemble pianist Chris Reynolds as he performs Tchaikovsky’s “Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy” from The Nutcracker.

Ryan Opera Center At Work: “Deck the Halls"

‘Tis the season to be jolly, and this video from our Ryan Opera Center At Work series is sure to put you in the holiday spirit. Here, Ensemble members Mathilda Edge (soprano), Katherine DeYoung (mezzo-soprano), Martin Luther Clark (tenor), and Rivers Hawkins (bass) perform the classic carol with Chris Reynolds on piano.

“E l’uccellino” with Leroy Davis

In this clip from "Sole e Amore," first-year baritone Leroy Davis performs Puccini's buoyant lullaby "E l'uccellino" ("And the little bird") with fellow Ryan Opera Center Ensemble member Chris Reynolds on piano.

Ryan Opera Center At Work: “April Showers”

“Though April showers may come your way, they bring the flowers that bloom in May” An American standard made popular by Al Jolson, “April Showers” reminds us that even the gloomiest clouds have a silver lining. In this installment of our Ryan Opera Center At Work series, first-year baritone Leroy Davis performs the timeless song with fellow Ensemble member Chris Reynolds on piano.

Sole e Amore (Sun and Love)

Revel in the sounds of Italy with Sole e Amore (Sun and Love), the latest concert from Lyric Opera of Chicago and The Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center.

“Carceleras” with Denis Vélez

In this clip from "Pasión Latina," first-year soprano Denis Vélez performs the rapid-fire "Carceleras" ("The Prisoners' Song") from Ruperto Chapí's zarzuela Las hijas del Zebedeo with fellow Ryan Opera Center Ensemble member Chris Reynolds on piano

Ryan Opera Center at Work: "A Son of a Gambolier"

In the latest installment of our Ryan Opera Center At Work series, third-year bass-baritone David Weigel performs "A Son of a Gambolier" with Ensemble pianist Chris Reynolds. Part of Charles Ives's "Five Street Songs" song cycle, this humble ditty is a rolicking good time for friends both far and near.

Ryan Opera Center At Work: "Whither Must I Wander"

Continuing our Ryan Opera Center At Work series, bass Anthony Reed and pianist Chris Reynolds perform the melancholy song "Whither Must I Wander" from Ralph Vaughan Williams's song cycle "Songs of Travel," based on the poems of Robert Louis Stevenson.

Ryan Opera Center At Work: “How Can I Keep From Singing”

In this video from our Ryan Opera Center At Work series, mezzo-soprano Katherine Beck and pianist Chris Reynolds perform Alan Louis Smith's beautiful arrangement of "How Can I Keep From Singing," a popular American folksong originally composed as a Christian hymn by Robert Wadsworth Lowry.

Featured photos

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