Soprano Kristen Watson, hailed by critics for her "blithe and silvery tone", recently made solo debuts at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, Ravinia, and Tanglewood with Boston Baroque, in their Grammy-nominated performance of Monteverdi’s Vespers of 1610. She performed with Opera Boston last season in Osvaldo Golijov’s acclaimed new opera Ainadamar (Voice of the Fountain), directed by Peter Sellars; and made her New York City debut last April with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, in a program of Bach cantatas at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Anticipated to “become a valuable presence in the early-music world” (Richard Dyer, Boston Globe), Ms. Watson has garnered acclaim for additional performances with Boston Baroque as the soprano soloist in Handel’s Messiah and Purcell’s Fairy Queen and King Arthur. She has also appeared as a soloist on numerous occasions with the Handel and Haydn Society, including Bach’s Christmas Oratorio, Handel’s Gloria and Laudate pueri Dominum; and has been featured on two of their commercial recordings: "All is Bright", a holiday album, and "Peace", which debuted at #5 on Billboard Magazine's Top Classical Charts. Ms. Watson has also made regular appearances with Emmanuel Music on their weekly Bach cantata series, in Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas in collaboration with the Mark Morris Dance Group, and was awarded a prestigious Lorraine Hunt Lieberson Fellowship for their 2007-2008 season. Other awards include the Oratorio Society of NY Solo Competition (Semi-Finalist) and the American Bach Society Vocal Competition (Finalist).

Opera audiences have heard Ms. Watson in productions with Boston Lyric Opera (Hansel and Gretel/Sandman & Dewfairy; Thais/Actress & Nun), Opera Boston (The Crucible/Sarah Good), the Boston University Opera Institute (A Midsummer Night's Dream/Tytania; Die Fledermaus/Adele; The Medium/Monica), Intermezzo Opera (The Old Maid and the Thief/Laetitia), and the Opera Theater of Pittsburgh (The Cunning Little Vixen/Frog & Spirit of the Vixen). She also recently sang in the North American premiere of Peter Eötvös’ opera, Angels in America, with the Boston Modern Orchestra Project.

Equally at home as a crossover artist, Ms. Watson was featured as the headlining artist with the Boston Pops on their "Mozart's Greatest Hits" program as well as their "Holiday Pops" series, both at Symphony Hall under conductor Keith Lockhart. Her regional music theater performances include Carousel (Carrie) with the Reagle Players starring Shirley Jones, Nat Chandler, and Sarah Pfisterer; The King and I (Tuptim) with East Carolina Summer Theater starring Justin Deas; Titanic (Eleanor Widener) with the Merry-Go-Round Playhouse; Into the Woods (Witch) with Carnegie Mellon University; and How to Succeed in Business... (Miss Jones) with Topeka Civic Theatre. Other favorite roles performed include Annie (Grace), The Boy Friend (Dulcie), Barnum (Joice Heth), and Hello, Dolly! (Minnie). Additionally, Kristen has performed as the headlining artist for the July 4th celebration concert in Salem, MA, and has sung back-up for Barry Manilow in a concert at Boston's Tweeter Center.

Other solo performances include the Carmel Bach Festival, the Aston Magna Festival, the Cactus Pear Music Festival, and the White Mountain Bach Festival, as well as the Rhode Island Philharmonic, Evansville Philharmonic, New Bedford Symphony, Topeka Symphony, Pittsburgh Camerata, and the Columbus Bach Ensemble. An enthusiastic supporter of new music/contemporary classical music, Kristen can also be found frequently premiering works of new composers, such as the members of Altavoz, a Latin-American consortium of composers living in various cities around North America and Europe.

Kristen Watson is originally from Topeka, Kansas, and holds degrees from Carnegie Mellon University and Boston University.