Jeffrey HessFaculty

Tenor Jeffrey Hess is active in the Twin Cities community and across the Midwest, both as an educator and an adjudicator. He has sung with the Minnesota Opera, appearing in productions of Lucrezia Borgia, Die Zauberflöte, and in the American premiere of Orazi e Curiazi. Along with solo performances with the Minnesota Orchestra, Southeast Iowa Symphony Orchestra, Drake University, University of Minnesota Bach Festival, Paramount Arts Center in St. Cloud, and the Minnesota Center Chorale, previous opera appearances include roles as Scaramuccio in Ariadne auf Naxos, Mayor Upfold in Albert Herring, Rinuccio in Gianni Schicchi, Sam Kaplan in Street Scene, and the title role in Les Contes d’Hoffmann. Dr. Hess sang the cantor part for the European premiere of the Stephen Paulus holocaust memorial oratorio To Be Certain of the Dawn, a role he has reprised several times since.

He served as tenor section leader with both Unity Church―Unitarian in St. Paul, Minnesota and the Minnesota Chorale for fourteen years, and has taught music at all grade levels, from elementary to college, in the Midwest and in Europe. He began teaching at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minnesota in Fall of 2012.

Dr. Hess received a Master of Music from the University of Minnesota, where he also earned his DMA in Vocal Performance in the studio of Glenda Maurice.

Courses Taught