Katherine Petersen is an engaging Soprano specializing in the performance of 21st Century repertoire for Voice/Saxophone and Russian Art Song. Her recent collaborations with Decho Saxophone Ensemble include performances at the International Congress of Voice Teachers in Vienna (2022), Cleveland Uncommon Sound Project (2022), Women Composers Festival of Hartford (2022), International Saxophone Symposium (2020) and an ensemble residency at the Lionel Hampton School of Music at the University of Idaho. Her doctoral dissertation “Russian Repertoire: Developmental Perspectives” investigates the paucity of Russian Song Repertoire in the American Voice studio and recital hall.
Based in Chicago, Katherine performs regularly with Folks Operetta, the Gilbert and Sullivan Opera Company, Chicago Opera Theater, and Transgressive Theatre-Opera. Recent roles include Margot in Die Kathrin, Bessie Throckmorton in Merrie England, Brigitta in Iolanta, Contessa in Marriage of Figaro, Counsel to the Plaintiff in Trial by Jury, Lady of the Lake in Masque at Kenilworth, and Sylva Varescu in Csardas Princess. Previous regional performances include appearances with Opera Columbus, Bay View Music Festival, and the Russian Opera Workshop. Highlights of previous roles include Musetta in La bohème, Valencienne in The Merry Widow, Francesca in Rachmaninoff’s Francesca di Rimini, and Micaëla in Carmen. Concert repertoire highlights include soprano soloist in Dona Nobis Pacem by Ralph Vaughan Williams, Barber’s Knoxville: Summer 1915, Villa-Lobos’s Bachianas brasileiras No.5, and Handel’s Messiah.
Dr. Petersen is also Assistant Professor of Voice at Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago where she teaches Pedagogy, Song Literature, Studio Voice and Diction for Singers. She holds a DMA in Voice Performance from Ohio State University, a MM in Pedagogy and Performance from Westminster Choir College. During her time at OSU, Katherine was head of the Swank Voice Lab for Research and Pedagogy and taught several courses including Voice Pedagogy and Advanced Measurement Techniques for Voice. She was a participant in the 2018 Voice Pedagogy Summit II at the University of Southern California and the 2017 NATS Intern Program in Toronto; she was co-host of the International Voice Pedagogy Summit I at Ohio State University in 2015, as well as co-host of the NATS Summer Intern Program in 2014. She has presented research at several conferences including those hosted by the Central Region NATS (2020 and 2021), the Hawaii International Conference for Arts and Humanities (2019), the Chicago Chapter of NATS (2018), the International Congress of Voice Teachers (2017), and the Pan American Vocology Association (2017). Katherine has been a board member with the Chicago Chapter of NATS for four years and currently serves as the Director of Auditions.