+++
date = "2017-09-29T19:24:00-04:00"
discipline = "Soprano"
lastmod = "2017-09-29T19:24:00-04:00"
primary_image = "https://res.cloudinary.com/schmopera/image/upload/v1545409169/media/webhook-uploads/1506727307700/%24"
primary_image_credit = "K.C. Alfred"
publishDate = "2017-09-29T19:24:00-04:00"
related_companies = ["scene/companies/english-national-opera.md","scene/companies/palm-beach-opera.md","scene/companies/the-metropolitan-opera.md"]
slug = "latonia-moore"
title = "Latonia Moore"
+++

Latonia Moore is an American soprano of African-American ancestry. She grew up with Black music, and at age 8 began to sing in the church choir of the New Sunrise Baptist Church, where her grandfather Cranford Moore was a pastor. In her youth, she sang in the Texas All-State Choir.

Moore first studied gospel and jazz, until one of her teachers at the University of North Texas convinced her to study classical music. Moore made her debut in 1998 at the Palm Beach Opera in West Palm Beach, and was engaged as a student in the same year at the Houston Ebony Opera. She continued as a student of Bill Schuman at the Academy of Vocal Arts, in Philadelphia, where she graduated in 2005. In 2000 she won the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions.

In New York City, Moore attracted critical praise for her 2008 performance with the Opera Orchestra of New York in Puccini’s *Edgar*. In March 2012, she made her Metropolitan Opera debut as a late replacement for Violeta Urmana on short notice as *Aïda* in a live broadcast.

Moore is featured on commercial recordings of the Mahler Symphony No 2 (Deutsche Grammophon 0289 474 5942 2) and of Verdi’s *Macbeth* (sung in English, Chandos CHAN 3180.

In January 2016, Moore performed for the newly revived New York City Opera in Puccini’s *Tosca* at the Rose Theater in Lincoln Center.

In April 2016, she sang the lead role of Cio-Cio San in the San Diego Opera’s performance of Puccini’s *Madama Butterfly*, garnering critical recognition for her acting, her “rich, supple and multi-octave soprano voice” and vocal interpretation.

While still very young Latonia Moore had won a lot of awards (selection): Richard Tucker Foundation Grant (2005), first prize and audience award at “Concours International d’Opéra” in Marseille (2003), special prize “Kammeroper der Internationalen Hans Gabor Belvedere Gesangswettbewerbe” (2003), first prize and audience award “Internationalen Gesangswettbewerbs der italienischen Oper Dresden” (2002), Metropolitan Opera’s National Council Auditions (2000), only to mention a few.

She had her much acclaimed debut at the Met (Metropolitan Opera, New York) in the title role of *Aida* on the 03. March 2012 when she replaced Violeta Urmana on a 36-hours advance notice. Her debut was broadcasted live and world wide.
