Philip Kraus

Philip Kraus (born November 17, 1950) is an American operatic baritone and stage director known for his performances with the Lyric Opera of Chicago, starting in 1991, and for his co-founding of Light Opera Works, a professional light opera company in Chicago, in 1980.

Kraus was born in New York City where he received early musical training. As a child, he developed a keen interest in the works of Gilbert and Sullivan. In addition to singing, he also composed music and conducted choirs.

Kraus studied music education at Northwestern University and eventually earned a Doctor of Music in Applied Voice from that institution in 1986. He studied voice with tenor Walter Carringer, choral music with Margaret Hillis, and opera with Robert Gay, a disciple of Boris Goldovsky. He participated in the 1974 American premiere of Sir Michael Tippett's The Knot Garden at Northwestern, singing the role of Mangus.

In 1979, Kraus made his professional debut singing the role of the Vicar in Benjamin Britten's Albert Herring with the Chicago Opera Theater. He later played the title role in Gianni Schicchi with the company. With the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, in 1979, he sang in Handel's Dettingen Te Deum and the Chicago premiere of American composer Russell Woollen's In Martyrium Memoriam. Also in 1979, he recorded the role of Zweiter Gefangene in Beethoven's Fidelio with the CSO, conducted by Sir Georg Solti.