ERRIN DUANE BROOKS
TENOR
BIOGRAPHY
Grammy Award-winner Errin Duane Brooks is becoming one of the most sought-after tenors in the industry. Last season, Mr. Brooks returned to The Metropolitan Opera to sing the First Priest/Armored Man in Simon McBurney’s Die Zauberflöte; he sang Pinkerton in Divaria Productions’ Madama Butterfly; he joined the Minnesota Orchestra to sing Altoum in Turandot; the University of Michigan for Scenes from the Life of a Martyr; and the Philadelphia Orchestra to cover the title role in Tristan und Isolde under the baton of Yannick Nézet-Séguin.
This summer, Mr. Brooks heads to Opera på Skäret in Sweden to sing Calaf in Turandot, and he begins this season with his French début in a reprisal of his acclaimed Otello with Opéra national du Rhin in Strasbourg. Mr. Brooks will also make a highly anticipated return to The Metropolitan Opera to reprise the role of Mingo in Porgy and Bess.
Mr. Brooks’ is a frequent guest artist with The Metropolitan Opera having covered the title role in Verdi's Otello, Calaf in Puccini's Turandot, as well as sung the First Armored Man in Mozart's Die Zauberflöte, the First Noble in Wagner’s Lohengrin, the High Priest in Mozart's Idomeneo, Normanno in Lucia di Lammermoor, and Adult Nathan in Terrence Blanchard's Fire Shut Up in My Bones both in the premiere as well as the reprisal.
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He also made several débuts, his role début as Bacchus in Strauss' Ariadne auf Naxos in house débuts with both Vashon Opera and Lakes Area Music Festival; his role début as Otello with Vashon Opera; his company début with Des Moines Metro Opera as Robbins in Porgy and Bess; and his off-Broadway début as Mr. Charles in Ricky Ian Gordon and Lynn Nottage's Intimate Apparel at Lincoln Center Theater. He also joined Hudson Valley International Festival of the Voice to sing Canio in Pagliacci, Rodolfo in Puccini's La bohème with Port Angeles Symphony, and Connecticut Lyric Opera to sing Tristan in Tristan und Isolde.
An avid fan of new music and great music that is rarely done, Mr. Brooks was part of The Mile-Long Opera: a biography of 7 o'clock by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer David Lang and acclaimed poets Anne Carson and Claudia Rankine, performed on New York’s High Line. He made his much-anticipated return to New Amsterdam Opera as Jean de Baptîste in Massenet's Hérodiade, and that same month, he made his début with American Opera Projects in their world premiere of The Stonewall Operas, celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall riots.
Mr. Brooks is also becoming well versed in concert repertoire, performing in such works as the Schoenberg arrangement of Mahler's Das Lied von der Erde with Washington Heights Chamber Orchestra; Brahms’ Liebeslieder Waltzes with the National Chorale at David Geffen Hall; Haydn's Lord Nelson Mass, Vaughan-Williams’ Serenade to Music, and Bernstein's Chichester Psalms at Carnegie Hall; Mozart’s Symphony No. 23 in D Major with Orchestra Society New Jersey; and Verdi’s Requiem with Utah Festival Opera. Competition successes for Mr. Brooks include The Sullivan Foundation Awards, the Wagner Society of New York, the Giulio Gari Foundation International Voice Competition, and most notably, earning the George London-Kirsten Flagstad Grand Prize Award for promising Wagnerian Singer in the George and Nora London Foundation Competition.
Graduating with honors, Errin Duane received his Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance with a minor in Business from Madonna University, his Master of Music in Vocal Performance from Bowling Green State University, and an Artist Diploma in Opera from Roosevelt University.
Current as of June 17, 2025
CRITICAL ACCLAIM
"...His is a truly powerful dramatic tenor that has tremendous volume and stability..." – OperaWire
Hérodiade – Tenor Errin Duane Brooks also put in a truly mesmerizing turn as the prophet Jean. While there were a few moments where he seemed overly fixated on his score instead of his scene partners, the tenor shone vocally the entire night. His is a truly powerful dramatic tenor that has tremendous volume and stability. From his first cries of “Jézebal” at the start of the opera, it was clear that his instrument was a truly special one and he never once relented in delivering with the same level of power and precision.
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"...muscular musical portrayals that stood out..." – OperaWire
Die Zauberflöte – Richard Bernstein and Errin Duane Brooks were excellent as the Priests and the Armed Men, both delivering muscular musical portrayals that stood out from amidst the cast; they also found a nice balance when singing together.
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"...Brooks’ Alvaro was all passion as his voice boomed fully..." – OperaWire
La Forza del destino – A showstopping tenor... From his first entrance, it was obvious that Brooks’ Alvaro was all passion as his voice boomed fully with all the ardor as Alvaro declared his love for his Leonora. Even in the slower section of the first duet with Leonora, Brooks’ had no qualms in letting out his full voice. And that was even more evident in his aria “Oh! tu che in seno agl’angelli.” Where more tenors would begin quietly with mezza voce, Brooks sang each line with a mezzo forte sound that would eventually rise to a fortissimo on his final high B flat at the end of the aria. The effect was magnificent... And the B flat at the end was sustained, giving the aria a showstopping quality. In the second duet “Ne Gustare m’e dato un’ora di quiete” the voice was heroic allowing it to project throughout the auditorium... that desperation was heard as he phrased each note with forceful and accented sound.