​Edrie Means Weekly Co-Founder Contemporary Commercial Music Vocal Pedagogy Institute

 

 

 

 

"Rock star of vocal crossover” Edrie Means is an active professional singer of classical and commercial styles and is in demand as a contemporary music specialist.

Edrie is Co-Founder of the Contemporary Commercial Music (CCM) Vocal Pedagogy Institute at Shenandoah University. A recognized expert in training singers for classical repertoire and all styles of contemporary commercial music she is in demand for master classes on CCM voice and Opera performance. Her students can be heard on Grammy Award recordings, Broadway, Off –Broadway, National and International Tours, Regional Theatre, TV(including The Voice, American Idol, Kidz Star USA), Recordings, Cruise Ships, Theme Parks, Films, NYC and Regional Cabaret Venues, Concert Halls and Opera Houses worldwide.   Her sub-chapter "Making The Song Authentic: It's a Matter of Style" in Teaching Singing in the 21st Century (Landscapes: the Arts, Aesthetics, and Education) is published by Springer Publishing. Edrie has presented several papers and workshops at the Voice Foundation. She has authored several research publications in The Journal of Voice regarding the teaching of the Broadway voice. Edrie’s first publication in the The Journal of Voice (2003), led to establishing the Shenandoah University’s CCM Vocal Pedagogy Institute. She has been on faculty of Care of the Professional Voice, the ground breaking scientific conference on voice care worldwide for several years.

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Edrie has sung lead roles in the world premieres of works by Philip Glass, Dominick Argento, Jacob Druckman, and in Kaballah by Stewart Wallace, in which the role of Binah was written for her and a CD recording made with Koch Records. NPR broadcast Dominick Argento’s The Dream of Valentino, in which she created the role of Jean Aker and PBS broadcast Philip Glass’ The Making of The Representative of Planet 8, in which she created the role of Klin. Nationally and internationally, she has appeared in leading roles with the Houston Grand Opera, Washington Opera, Wolf Trap Opera, Cleveland Opera, Des Moines Metro Opera, Opera Mid-Michigan, Opera Grand Rapids, Pittsburgh Playhouse, and the State Opera of Cairo, Egypt. Her many performances have been broadcast internationally on NPR and PBS. She was last seen nationally and internationally on TV in the opera La Rondine directed by Marta Domingo which was released on DVD by Decca.

 

In addition to her operatic roles she has sung extensively in leading roles of musical and operetta production, including My Fair Lady, Carousel, Follies, The King and I, West Side Story, Show Boat, The Sound of Music, The Merry Widow, and Zorba. Recitals in the United States and Canada include a New York City debut in the New York Festival of Songs Series with pianist Michael Barrett and Guest artist with symphony orchestras of Houston, Cleveland, Corpus Christi, Victoria, and the National Symphony.

 

Edrie was standby for Patti LuPone in the title role of Regina at the Kennedy Center and was a member of the Sondheim production of Follies starring Bernadette Peters and Elaine Paige. Edrie returned to the Kennedy Center in My Fair Lady with Jonathan Pryce and Cloris Leachman. Recitals in the United States and Canada including New York Festival of Songs Series with pianist Michael Barrett and Guest artist with symphony orchestras of Houston, Cleveland, Corpus Christi, Victoria, and the National Symphony.

 

Edrie has performed principle roles with well-known artists such as Placido Domingo, Renee Fleming, Bernadette Peters, Linda Lavin, Elaine Paige, Cloris Leachman, Jonathan Pryce, Rosiland Elias, Timothy Noble, Dihann Carroll, Tony Randall, Tommy Tune, Mirella Freni, Karita Mattilla, Suzanne Mentzer, Renato Capecchi, Paige O’Hare and long time friends Eddie Bracken, Marquita Lister and Denyce Graves.

 

Edrie was invited to sing at the Birthday Party of Academy Award winner film/TV/Broadway star Celeste Holm. Edrie was also invited to sing for award Gala concerts for Film and Stage stars Dame Julie Andrews, Ben Vareen, Chita Rivera and Opera singer Martina Arroyo.

 

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