Simon Estes

Simon Estes (born March 2, 1938) is an operatic bass-baritone of African-American descent who had a major international opera career beginning in the 1960s.

He has sung at most of the world's major opera houses as well as in front of presidents, popes and internationally renowned figures and celebrities including Bill Clinton, Richard Nixon, Boris Yeltsin, Yasser Arafat, Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu.

He changed his major to psychology and then religion before finally deciding to switch to vocal music through the influence of faculty member Charles Kellis.

After finishing his undergraduate studies, Estes pursued further education at the Juilliard School in 1964, a pursuit which was made possible through funds raised in Iowa.

In 1965 he made his professional opera debut as Ramfis in Giuseppe Verdi's Aida at the Deutsche Oper Berlin to a warm reception.

The Metropolitan Opera did not even attempt to engage him in the 1960s; in 1976 he sang a single tour performance of Bellini's Norma with the Met at Wolf Trap.

More favorable to him was the San Francisco Opera (SFO) with whom he sang several good roles in 1967, including the 4 villains in The Tales of Hoffmann and Carter Jones in the United States premiere of Gunther Schuller's The Visitation.

He accepted, but at the time was cautioned by Leontyne Price, the first African-American to become a leading prima donna at the Met, about the difficult road ahead.

However, the Met audience and critics responded favourably to Simon's house debut on January 4, 1982 as Hermann in Wagner's Tannhäuser with Richard Cassilly in the title role and Leonie Rysanek as Elisabeth.

Estes went on to sing in the next six consecutive seasons at the Met, portraying such roles as Amfortas in Wagner's Parsifal and Orest in Richard Strauss's Elektra.

Perhaps his greatest Met moment was singing the role of Amonasro to Price's Aida for her farewell opera performance which was telecast live on national television on January 3, 1985.

[2] In 2017, Estes donated a public performance for a nonprofit organization, the Foundation for the Revival of Classical Culture, at Carnegie Hall in a June 29, 2017 event entitled "Tribute to Sylvia Olden Lee."