Voice: | Soprano |
Nationality: | American |
Year of Birth: | 1925 |
Adele Addison (born July 24, 1925 in Springfield, Massachusetts) is an African-American lyric soprano who was a figure in the classical music world during the 1950s and 1960s. Although she did appear in several operas, Addison spent most of her career performing in recital and concert. Her performances spanned a wide array of literature from the Baroque period to contemporary compositions. She is best remembered today as the singing voice for Bess (played by Dorothy Dandridge) in the 1959 movie, Porgy and Bess. Known for her polished and fluent tone, Addison made a desirable Baroque vocal artist. She can be heard on numerous recordings, of which her Baroque performances are perhaps her best work. Many of her recordings were made with the New York Philharmonic under the baton of Leonard Bernstein.
Addison was born on July 24, 1925, in Springfield, Massachusetts. She was diagnosed with type two diabetes at the age of five; her doctor was unable to treat the condition, so her father became a doctor and administered treatment four years later.
Addison began dedicated vocal studies as a teenager and, following high school, she won a scholarship to study at the Westminster Choir College in Princeton, New Jersey. Further scholarships enabled her to pursue graduate studies at Princeton University and attend summer sessions at the Berkshire Music Center (now the Tanglewood Music Center), where she studied with Boris Goldovsky.