Matthew Newlin, recent winner of the Opera Birmingham Competition, returns to the The Santa Fe Opera Apprentice Program where he will perform Condulmiero in Rossini’s Maometto II and cover Matteo in Strauss’ Arabella.  He has also been accepted into Florida Grand Opera’s Young Artist Studio for the 2012-13 season where he will perform 1st Priest and Armored Guard (Tamino cover) in Die Zauberflöte and The Notary (Elvino cover) in Bellini’s La Sonnambula.  Last season Matthew performed The English Tailor in Menotti’s The Last Savage and covered The Captain in Wozzeck at Santa Fe and performed Tamino while completing a Professional Diploma in Opera at the Chicago College of Performing Arts.

Among Matthew’s other successes in Chicago were his performances in Chicago Opera Vanguard’s production of Andy Vores’ No Exit, which garnered him this favorable review from Chicago Classical Review:  “Matthew Newlin displayed a pleasing, pliant tenor and easy stage manner... singing his solo opportunities with warmth and notably clear diction.”  He is also a winner of the American Opera Society’s Scholarship Competition and a 3rd place winner of The Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions Regional Finals.

Other operatic roles include le Mari in Poulenc’s Les mamelles de Tirésias, Frederick in The Pirates of Penzance, The Teapot in Ravel’s L’enfant et les Sortilèges, Satyavan in Holst’s Sāvitri, and the leads in Stravinsky’s Mavra and Janáček’s The Diary of One Who Disappeared, which he also covered at Chicago Opera Theater.  His concert appearances with orchestra include Vaughan-Williams’ On Wenlock Edge, Mozart’s Requiem, and Messiah.

Matthew is from Georgetown, IL and currently studies with soprano Judith Haddon.