William Horne

William Horne (10 August 1913 – 19 April 1983) was an American operatic tenor who, after World War II, performed with the New York City Opera. He was born in Manhattan, New York.

Career Around 1928, Horne was a member of the children's chorus of the Metropolitan Opera.

Service in the United States Army In 1942, Horne was inducted into the U.S. Army as a private and assigned to Company C at Camp Upton near Yaphank in Long Island.

New York City Opera Horne made his operatic debut with the New York City Opera in 1944, singing the role of Chevalier des Grieux in Puccini's Manon Lescaut. He sang the title role of Benjamin Britten's Peter Grimes in its first United States performance in 1946, conducted by Leonard Bernstein at Tanglewood. Horne also sang Jo the Loiterer, a leading tenor role in the 1947 world premiere of Virgil Thomson's The Mother of Us All in May 1947 at Columbia University's Brander Matthews Hall.