Brenda Miller Cooper
Encyclopedia
Brenda Miller Cooper was an American opera
tic soprano
. She studied voice at Case Western Reserve University
earning a bachelor's degree in music, after which she pursued graduate studies at the Juilliard School
where she earned a Masters in vocal performance. She made her professional opera debut with the Philadelphia Opera Company
(billed as Brenda Miller) on November 29, 1943 as Micaëla in Georges Bizet
's Carmen
with Alice Howland in the title role, Joseph Laderoute as Don José, Giovanni de Surra as Escamillo, and Sylvan Levin
conducting. Later that season she returned to that house to portray the title role in Giacomo Puccini
's Tosca
and Rosalinde in Johann Strauss II
's Die Fledermaus
.
Miller made her first recital appearance at New York City
's Town Hall
in 1945. She became a regular performer at the New York City Opera
during the late 1940s into the 1950s, making her debut with the company as Tatiana in the company's first production of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
's Eugene Onegin
with director Theodore Komisarjevsky
in 1947. Cooper is perhaps best remembered for portraying the role of Beret in the world premiere of Douglas Moore's Pulitzer Prize
-winning opera, Giants in the Earth
in 1951. She also performed several times with the CBS Orchestra
.
Cooper retired from the stage in the early 1960s after developing a spinal-cord tumor which left her paralyzed for a couple of years. She underwent surgery which enabled her to walk again and then began a second career as a voice teacher. She taught on the voice faculty of Montclair State University
for more than two decades, after which she taught voice privately out of her home up until her death in 2008. Cooper was married to Harold Cooper, an industrial machinery salesman, from 1946 until Harold's death in 1993. The couple had two sons, David and Thomas, both of whom became medical doctors.
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
tic soprano
Soprano
A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody...
. She studied voice at Case Western Reserve University
Case Western Reserve University
Case Western Reserve University is a private research university located in Cleveland, Ohio, USA...
earning a bachelor's degree in music, after which she pursued graduate studies at the Juilliard School
Juilliard School
The Juilliard School, located at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City, United States, is a performing arts conservatory which was established in 1905...
where she earned a Masters in vocal performance. She made her professional opera debut with the Philadelphia Opera Company
Philadelphia Opera Company
The Philadelphia Opera Company was the name of two different American opera companies active during the twentieth century in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The first company was founded by impresario Oscar Hammerstein I in 1908. That company disbanded only two years later as a result of financial...
(billed as Brenda Miller) on November 29, 1943 as Micaëla in Georges Bizet
Georges Bizet
Georges Bizet formally Alexandre César Léopold Bizet, was a French composer, mainly of operas. In a career cut short by his early death, he achieved few successes before his final work, Carmen, became one of the most popular and frequently performed works in the entire opera repertory.During a...
's Carmen
Carmen
Carmen is a French opéra comique by Georges Bizet. The libretto is by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée, first published in 1845, itself possibly influenced by the narrative poem The Gypsies by Alexander Pushkin...
with Alice Howland in the title role, Joseph Laderoute as Don José, Giovanni de Surra as Escamillo, and Sylvan Levin
Sylvan Levin
Sylvan Levin was an American concert pianist and conductor. He notably served as the assistant conductor of the Philadelphia Orchestra and the New York City Symphony under Leopold Stokowski for many years...
conducting. Later that season she returned to that house to portray the title role in Giacomo Puccini
Giacomo Puccini
Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini was an Italian composer whose operas, including La bohème, Tosca, Madama Butterfly, and Turandot, are among the most frequently performed in the standard repertoire...
's Tosca
Tosca
Tosca is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It premiered at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 14 January 1900...
and Rosalinde in Johann Strauss II
Johann Strauss II
Johann Strauss II , also known as Johann Baptist Strauss or Johann Strauss, Jr., the Younger, or the Son , was an Austrian composer of light music, particularly dance music and operettas. He composed over 500 waltzes, polkas, quadrilles, and other types of dance music, as well as several operettas...
's Die Fledermaus
Die Fledermaus
Die Fledermaus is an operetta composed by Johann Strauss II to a German libretto by Karl Haffner and Richard Genée.- Literary sources :...
.
Miller made her first recital appearance at New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
's Town Hall
The Town Hall
The Town Hall is a performance space, located at 123 West 43rd Street, between Sixth Avenue and Broadway, in New York City. It seats approximately 1,500 people.-History:...
in 1945. She became a regular performer at the New York City Opera
New York City Opera
The New York City Opera is an American opera company located in New York City.The company, called "the people's opera" by New York Mayor Fiorello La Guardia, was founded in 1943 with the aim of making opera financially accessible to a wide audience, producing an innovative choice of repertory, and...
during the late 1940s into the 1950s, making her debut with the company as Tatiana in the company's first production of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (Russian: Пётр Ильи́ч Чайко́вский ; often "Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky" in English. His names are also transliterated "Piotr" or "Petr"; "Ilitsch", "Il'ich" or "Illyich"; and "Tschaikowski", "Tschaikowsky", "Chajkovskij"...
's Eugene Onegin
Eugene Onegin (opera)
Eugene Onegin, Op. 24, is an opera in 3 acts , by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. The libretto was written by Konstantin Shilovsky and the composer and his brother Modest, and is based on the novel in verse by Alexander Pushkin....
with director Theodore Komisarjevsky
Theodore Komisarjevsky
Fyodor Fyodorovich Komissarzhevsky or Theodore Komisarjevsky, as he is better known in the West, was a Russian theatrical director and designer. He began his career in Moscow, but had his greatest influence in London...
in 1947. Cooper is perhaps best remembered for portraying the role of Beret in the world premiere of Douglas Moore's Pulitzer Prize
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
-winning opera, Giants in the Earth
Giants in the Earth (opera)
Giants in the Earth is a Pullitzer Prize winning opera by composer Douglas Moore. The work uses an English libretto by Arnold Sundgaard after Ole Edvart Rølvaag's novel of the same name. The work premiered on March 28, 1951 at Columbia University's Brander Matthews Theatre...
in 1951. She also performed several times with the CBS Orchestra
CBS Orchestra
The CBS Orchestra is the house band, led by Paul Shaffer, that plays for David Letterman's CBS late-night talk show, Late Show with David Letterman...
.
Cooper retired from the stage in the early 1960s after developing a spinal-cord tumor which left her paralyzed for a couple of years. She underwent surgery which enabled her to walk again and then began a second career as a voice teacher. She taught on the voice faculty of Montclair State University
Montclair State University
Montclair State University is a public research university located in the Upper Montclair section of Montclair, the Great Notch area of Little Falls, and Clifton, New Jersey. As of October 2009, there were 18,171 total enrolled students: 14,139 undergraduate students and 4,032 graduate students...
for more than two decades, after which she taught voice privately out of her home up until her death in 2008. Cooper was married to Harold Cooper, an industrial machinery salesman, from 1946 until Harold's death in 1993. The couple had two sons, David and Thomas, both of whom became medical doctors.