Chestnut Hill resident and SCH music teacher Meghan Mae Curry has won numerous awards for her stunning vocal performances.

by Len Lear

Meghan Mae Curry may never be a Broadway star, but she is definitely a star to her music students at Springside Chestnut Hill Academy. Also to the audiences that heard the stunning soprano perform during the last weekend in October in Opera Upper West’s production of “The Cell,” a contemporary double bill of Menotti's “The Telephone” and “La voix humaine,” by Poulenc/Menotti, at the Ruba Club in Northern Liberties and at Bryn Mawr’s Harcum College.

The 31-year-old Chestnut Hill resident who teaches at SCH has been singing “since I can remember, but I remember a pivotal moment when I first heard Whitney Houston’s ‘I Will Always Love You’ for the first time as second grader. I listened to and sang that song on repeat for three days straight. That song hit a place in my soul that made me realize I wanted to be a singer.”

Curry was born in Detroit, Michigan, and moved to Philadelphia with her family when she was in third grade. She was raised in West Mt. Airy and attended Springside School from third grade until she graduated in 2003. Meghan then graduated from Penn State with a Bachelors of Music in 2007 and from the University of Delaware with a Masters of Music in Voice Performance in 2011.

Meghan’s talent was quite obvious to all who heard her. As a result, she was awarded First Place, Advanced Upper, Delaware District NATS Student Auditions; an Opera Graduate Assistantship at the University of Delaware; and the Jury Honors Recognition Award at Penn State University.

“I am most proud of the Graduate Assistantship that I was granted at the University of Delaware,” she said. “It gave me the opportunity to teach voice to many undergraduates and led me to discover my love of teaching voice … The hardest thing I have ever had to do is to overcome my fear of performance and sing with abandon and confidence!”

Meghan, who also has been a food server and worked at a daycare center, is currently in her second year teaching choir in the middle school and high school at SCH. She also plays the piano.

What is the hardest thing about teaching music? “As a music teacher, I devote my time and energy towards helping my students to learn, progress and grow as musicians and people. The ultimate goal is to help the students find joy in an energized and passion-based performance experience. In the end, I can guide them towards success but cannot control the final result. That ‘letting go’ and trusting in the process can sometimes be difficult!”

The highly regarded Chestnut Hill soprano has performed the roles of the Young Maiden in “Mazepa” (Tchaikovsky); Susanna in “The Marriage of Figaro;” Adele in “Die Fledermaus;” Pamina in “Die Zauberflöte,” and Nella in “Gianni Schicchi.” Also in operettas as Aline in “The Sorcerer;” Patience in “Patience” and Josephine in “HMS Pinafore.”

“Out of all of the roles I have sung and prepared,” Meghan said, “my favorite opera role is Adele in Strauss’s ‘Die Fledermaus.’ She is a quirky, feisty and mischievous character and has some excellent coloratura arias as well as some very comic spoken dialogue. I have performed in ‘Die Fledermaus’ three times and greatly enjoyed each experience!”

Is Megan’s ultimate goal to be a full-time singer and performer? “My ultimate career goal is to continue teaching young people to sing and make music while maintaining an active performance schedule in the Philadelphia area.”

What is the best advice Meghan ever received? “It is to be true to myself and my voice and to always show up early, prepared and ready to work!”

In her spare time, Meghan loves to spend time with her husband and two dogs, Henry and Oliver, read historical fiction and arrange a cappella music for her choirs. But she would also “love to be able to play classical piano at an advanced level so that I could play my favorite Mozart and Debussy pieces.”

What is Meghan’s most impressive characteristic? “My positive and quirky but demanding teaching style!”

If Curry could meet and spend time with anyone on earth, who would it be? “I would love to sit down with Lin-Manuel Miranda, the writer and composer of the Tony Award-winning ‘Hamilton,’ to talk with him about his incredible work, his experience performing on Broadway and the impact his show has made on the music and theater world!”

Curry’s next performances are as a member of the Vox Amadeus Ensemble singing Handel’s “Messiah.” They are scheduled for Friday, Dec. 2, 7 p.m., at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Chestnut Hill; Sunday, Dec. 4, 6 p.m., at Daylesford Abbey in Paoli, and Sunday, Dec. 18, 4 p.m., at St. Katharine of Siena Church in Wayne.

For more information, visit www.meghancurry.com.