William Pell

William R. Pell (August 16, 1947 – July 26, 2003) was an American opera singer who had a major international career during the 1980s and 1990s. He began his career as a baritone in the early 1970s before transitioning into the dramatic tenor repertoire in 1975. He was particularly admired for his interpretations of the works of Richard Wagner.

Early years Born in Denver, Colorado, Pell attended high school in Indianapolis, Indiana, where the youth played basketball while taking voice lessons at the urging of his mother, Helen Pell. He then studied at the Peabody Conservatory (1965–1967) and the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University Bloomington (1967–1970). While at IU he performed in student productions of Andrea Chénier (Roucher), Deidamia (Fenice), L'italiana in Algeri (Haly), and Love on Trial (Count Asdrubale). After graduation, Pell was drafted into the U.S. Army, where he sang with an Army ensemble and band.

Career in opera Pell began performing in professional operas with mostly secondary houses throughout North America during the early 1970s as a baritone. He notably sang Figaro in Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro with the Canadian Opera Company and Germont in Verdi's La Traviata in San Francisco. In 1975 he made his first foray into the tenor repertoire with a portrayal of Rodolfo in Puccini's La bohème. In 1977 he became an Affiliate Artist at San Francisco Opera where he sang the role of the officer in Ariadne auf Naxos by Richard Strauss and Procolo in Donizetti's Le convenienze ed inconvenienze teatrali. He also performed with the company in performances of Rudolf Kelterborn's Ophelia at the Schwetzingen Festival. He had two major triumphs with the company in 1988 as Siegfried in Wagner's Ring Cycle and Váňa Kudrjáš in Janáček's Káťa Kabanová. Pell also made several guest appearances at the De Nederlandse Opera, Staatsoper Stuttgart, La Fenice, and the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma during his career. His remains are interred in the columbarium of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City, where he often sang. He is survived by his ex-wife, Andrea, a professional ballerina, and a son, Christopher, who is principal clarinetist of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, as of . Pell's voice is preserved on a complete opera recording of Tannhäuser made in 1988 under the direction of Giuseppe Sinopoli and on Messe für Soli, Chor und Orchester by Wolfgang von Schweinitz. Some of Pell's solos sung at Riverside Church in the mid-1970s can still be heard on the Sacred Classics radio program, such as his rendition of The Palms by Jean-Baptiste Faure. Pell's performance of Wolfgang Rihm's Oedipus, televised in 1987, was released by Arthaus on DVD in 2013.