"The tenor Brian Vu easily held the stage as Danny with his focused, transparent voice, unstrained even in the high notes that express the extremity of the character’s situation. His performance was sympathetic but unsentimental; Vu made clear Danny’s teenage braggadocio alongside his abundant charm, as well as his quietly mounting desperation." - "An American Soldier" at PAC NYC, Zachary Woolfe, The New York Times, May 2024

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Described by The New York Times for having an “ample and pleasing tone” and "gripping" by the Wall Street Journal, tenor Brian Vu is an exciting performer recognized for his vocal and dramatic abilities. The upcoming 2023-2024 season sees Brian sing his first Tenor solos in Handel’s Messiah with the Phoenix Symphony Orchestra, Alfredo in La traviata with Opera Omaha, a return to Opera in the Heights to debut Rodolfo in La bohème, Pvt. Danny Chen in An American Soldier at PAC NYC, and Jonas in Le Prophète at Bard SummerScape. The 2022-2023 season saw Brian return to Minnesota Opera as Bryce to mount the world premiere of Edward Tulane, a return to the Metropolitan Opera as Sergio in a new production of Fedora, and debuts with Sarasota Opera as Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni, Hawaii Opera Theater as Rinuccio in Gianni Schicchi, and a return to the Glimmerglass Festival as the title role in Candide.  During the 20-21 season, Mr. Vu made his tenor debut with The Atlanta Opera as Soldier in Der Kaiser von Atlantis and in a concert of Kurt Weill repertoire and joined Opera Omaha/LA Opera for their new recording of David Hertzberg’s The Rose Elf as The Beloved/Horus. Mr. Vu has debuted the role of Manrico in Il trovatore at Opera in the Heights, starred in a short film entitled QUANDO co-produced by Long Beach Opera and Heartbeat Opera which will celebrate Verdi’s music, and made two company and role debuts at Opera Columbus singing Timothy Laughlin in Fellow Travelers and Madison Opera singing Pluto in Orpheus in the Underworld. 

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Equally at home on the concert stage and recording studio, Mr. Vu made his Carnegie Hall debut singing Mitch Leigh’s Impossible Dream with the composer in attendance.  Mr. Vu made a return to Carnegie Hall performing songs from the Frederich R. Koch Collection of Yale's Beinecke Library.  Additionally, Mr. Vu has lent his singing voice for the HBO television series "Watchmen."

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Mr. Vu has participated as a Vocal Fellow at Ravinia Steans Music Institute, an Apprentice with the Santa Fe Opera, Young Artist at the Glimmerglass Festival, Vocal Fellow in Marilyn Horne’s Music Academy of the West and is a former member of the Wolf Trap Opera Studio. A First Place Winner of the Lotte Lenya Competition, he is a Grand Finalist in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions/Laffont Competition and recipient of the Sullivan Foundation Award, among others.

 

Mr. Vu is a graduate of the Yale School of Music and UCLA. When not working, Brian enjoys spending time with loved ones, eating any and all kinds of foods, going to the beach, and dancing at the disco.