Ramey, Samuel (Edward)

Ramey, Samuel (Edward ), outstanding American bass; b. Colby, Kans., March 28, 1942. He attended Kans. State Univ., and then studied voice with Arthur Newman at Wichita State Univ. (B.Mus., 1968). After singing with the Grass Roots Opera Co. in Raleigh, N.C. (1968–69), he continued his studies with Armen Boyajian in N.Y. On March 11, 1973, he made his professional operatic debut as Zuniga in Carmen at the N.Y.C. Opera, where he rose to prominence as its principal bass. In 1976 he made his first appearance at the Glyndebourne Festival as Mozart’s Figaro. Following debuts at the Lyric Opera in Chicago and at the San Francisco Opera as Colline in 1979, he sang for the first time at Milan’s La Scala and at the Vienna State Opera as Mozart’s Figaro in 1981. From 1981 to 1989 he appeared in various Rossini roles in Pesaro. In 1982 he made his debut at London’s Covent Garden as Mozart’s Figaro, and then portrayed Mosé at the Paris Opéra in 1983. On Jan. 19, 1984, he made a brilliant debut at the Metropolitan Opera in N.Y. as Argante in Handel’s Rinaldo. That same year, he sang the role of Mozart’s Figaro for the soundtrack recording of the award-winning film Amadeus. His first appearance at the Salzburg Festival came in 1987 when he sang Don Giovanni. He returned to the Metropolitan Opera in such roles as Bartók’s Bluebeard in 1989, Don Basilio in 1992, and Boris Godunov in 1997. He also returned to the Lyric Opera in Chicago as Boris Godunov in 1994, and as Méphistophélès at the San Francisco Opera in 1995 and at the Vienna State Opera in 1997. In 1999 he portrayed Olin Blitch at the Metropolitan Opera.

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire