Jackson County Voice Instructor Byron Johnson
Jackson County Voice Instructor Byron Johnson will give a recital on April 22, 7 p.m. in the Fine Arts Auditorium. Johnson will collaborate with guitarist David Histing and pianist Alessandra Feris, both music instructors at Jackson County for this performance. The recital will feature songs and arias by John Dowland, Beethoven, Bellini, Mendelssohn and Poulenc. Of interest are the pieces composed by Caribbean musicians Samuel Felsted, Peter Ashbourne and Clophas Adderley.
Johnson has appeared in various operas with The University of Southern Mississippi’s (USM) Southern Opera and Musical Theatre Company, playing the roles of Tamino in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte, Elder Gleaton in Carlisle Floyd’s Susanna. He has also prepared the roles of Gaston (Cover) and Alfredo (Cover) in collaboration with Mississippi Opera and USM in their production of Verdi’s La Traviata as well as covering the role of Don Jose for Georges Bizet’s Carmen. Other performances include singing the roles of Monostatos, 1st Armed Man and 1st priest in Die Zauberflöte with the Rome Festival in Rome, Italy in 2000 and singing with Opera Birmingham in that company’s production of Carmen.
As a soloist, Johnson has performed with the Triumph Chorale on their successful 15 city concert tour of Spain. He has also performed as a soloist in many oratorios and cantatas including Christmas Cantata by J.S. Bach, Hiawatha’s Wedding Feast by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, Paukenmesse and Elijah by Felix Mendelssohn, Messiah by G. F. Handel, and the Requiem in D Minor by Mozart. His oratorio performances include appearances with The National Chorale of Jamaica, the Glebe Singers of Ottawa, Canada, the Diocesan Festival Choir and the Meistersingers of Hattiesburg.
A native of Jamaica, Johnson is currently a doctoral candidate in voice at USM where he studies with Dr. J. Taylor Hightower.
