Susan Bullock CBE

Susan Bullock’s appointment as Commander of the Order of the British Empire in June 2014 demonstrates her extraordinary level as one of the world’s most sought-after dramatic sopranos.
Among the roles she has performed, Brunhilde of Wagner stands out, with which she garnered excellent praise that led her to become the first soprano in history to sing four consecutive cycles of The Ring of the Nibelung at the Royal Opera House in London under the direction of Sir Antonio Pappano. Other performances such as in Elektra by Richard Strauss have also brought her international fame and collaborations with some of the world’s leading conductors, including Fabio Luisi, Semyon Bychkov, Seiji Ozawa, Sir Mark Elder and Edo de Waart.
In these recent seasons, Susan has explored a new repertoire by debuting as Klytaemnestra (Elektra) for the Canadian Opera Company under the direction of Johannes Debus, as Liz Stride in the world premiere of Jack the Ripper by Iain Bell for the English National Opera (ENO), and as Mother for the Scottish Opera in the work Griego by Mark Anthony-Turnage at the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM), with which she debuted at the Edinburgh International Festival and was widely acclaimed. Other premieres include the role of Kostelnička (Jenůfa) at the Grange Park Opera, those of Gertrude and The Witch (Hansel and Gretel) for Opera North and the Grange Park Opera, that of Mrs Lovett (Sweeney Todd) for the Houston Grand Opera, that of Mother in the European premiere of Missy Mazzoli’s award-winning Breaking the Waves for the Scottish Opera also within the framework of the Edinburgh International Festival, and a celebrated return to the role of Mrs Lovett with the Bergen National Opera. New roles for the 2019-20 season included Fiesta during the plague in special virtual projects and her debut as an actress in Keith Warner’s unique staging of King Lear, in which she played Goneril at the Grange Festival.
Among Susan’s wide and diverse concert activity, the Liebestod from Tristan und Isolde with Esa-Pekka Salonen and the Philharmonia Orchestra stands out, as well as with Zubin Mehta and the Bavarian State Opera Orchestra. Some of her most popular appearances include the last night of the BBC Proms in 2011 and a special appearance at the closing ceremony of the 2012 London Olympic Games. Last season Susan returned to Wigmore Hall in her series of nightly concerts with pianist Richard Sisson in an eclectic program called Songs my father taught me, which ranged from Sondheim to Noel Coward and Burt Bacharach. This season she will join the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at the Royal Albert Hall in London for a gala concert in honor of Raymond Gubbay.
Susan Bullock’s significant discography includes The Ring of the Nibelung with the Frankfurt Opera under the direction of Sebastian Weigle for OehmsClassics (also available on DVD) and the lead role of Salome with the Philharmonia Orchestra under the direction of Sir Charles Mackerras for Chandos.
Since the 2021-2022 academic year, she has been a professor of the Voice Chair “Alfredo Kraus” Fundación Ramón Areces at the Reina Sofía School of Music.