"The devil gets the best lines in many circumstances, but rarely so definitively as when he's portrayed by a singer like bass Kirk Eichelberger. His performance as Mephistopheles combined tonal suavity and power with a dark, sardonic edge that bespoke all sorts of demonic undercurrents; the duet with Marguerite in the cathedral scene was a tour de force of fiery bravado."
— Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle
"The star here was bass Kirk Eichelberger, who added yet another item to his list of local triumphs with an uproarious and commandingly sung turn as Bottom. From his stage-hogging introductory scene, in which he insists on playing every role in the upcoming theatrical presentation, to his lazy romantic interlude with Tytania, Eichelberger endowed every episode with grandeur and controlled temperament."
— Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle
“The orchestra...began tentatively, then found their footing and smoked as bass Kirk Eichelberger entered with burnished-black notes and a cutting delivery. It was the sound of doom; Eichelberger was a scary delight all night.”
— Richard Scheinin, San Jose Mercury News
“Bass Kirk Eichelberger was the very embodiment of Elijah, by turns pleading, scolding, reassuring, triumphing, despairing. He is a gifted actor — sensitive both to large emotions and to details of language — and a gifted singer, varying the colors in his voice for maximum effect.”
— Anna Karen Dudley, San Francisco Classical Voice
Mr. Eichelberger was recently seen as The Emperor in Tan Dun's Tea: A Mirror of Soul with the Opera Company of Philadelphia. This summer, he will sing the role of Raimondo in Lucia di Lammermoor for The Festival Opera of Walnut Creek. Following that he will perform the role of Antonin Karenin in Opera San Jose's production of Anna Karenina.
This past summer Mr. Eichelberger sang the role of Timur in Turandot and Mephistopheles in Faust. Both productions were performed with The Festical Opera of Walnut Creek
Mr. Eichelberger has performed numerous roles with Opera San Jose including Frere Laurent in Romeo and Juliette, Leporello in Don Giovanni, Rev John Hale in The Crucible, Daland in The Flying Dutchman, Méphistophélès in Faust, Don Magnifico in La Cenerentola, Guglielmo in Così fan tutte and Colline in La bohéme.
Other opera highlights have included Alaska Wolf Joe in Aufstieg und Fall der Stadt Mahagonny with Spoleto Festival USA, Grandpa Moss in The Tender Land with Trinity Lyric Opera, Bottom in A Midsummer Night's Dream with Festival Opera, Sparafucile in Rigoletto with Vancouver Opera, the title role in Le Nozze di Figaro for Opera Memphis, Sarastro in Die Zauberflöte with Virginia Opera, Alidoro in La Cenerentola for Sacramento Opera and the title role in West Bay Opera’s production of Don Giovanni.
On the concert stage, Mr. Eichelberger has performed the title role in Mendelssohn’s Elijah with Oakland East Bay Symphony and San Francisco Choral Society and has performed as a principal soloist in presentations of Verdi's Requiem, Mozart’s Requiem, Beethoven's 9th Symphony, Handel’s Messiah, Brahms' Ein Deutsches Requiem, Bach’s B-minor Mass, Haydn’s Creation, Pärt’s Litany, Kodály’s Budavári Te Deum and Einhorn’s Voices of Light.
Mr. Eichelberger was a national finalist in the 1999 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions and the 1999 MacAllister Awards for Opera Singers. He holds a Master of Music degree in Vocal Performance from the University of Cincinnati-College Conservatory of Music in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he received the Italo Tajo and Norman Treigle opera scholarships. He also holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Vocal Performance from Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, Illinois.
Management
Zemsky/Green Artists Management, 104 W. 73rd St., Suite 1, New York, NY 10023; Phone: (212) 579-6700; E-mail: agreen@zemskygreen.com or bzemsky@zemskygreen.com
Contact
Kirk Eichelberger, bass
408-772-8444
kirk@kirkeichelberger.com
