Mary Whitman has always been driven by her love for performance and music ever since she was a small child. She has been singing practically her whole life. Ever since she was able to speak and walk she began singing and dancing. She started performing as young as six-years-old. For as long as she can remember, she wanted to perform and sing on the stage.
Mary Whitman is a native of Virginia, even though her vocal training eventually led her to live in Los Angeles, California, where she currently resides. She spent some of her childhood years in Germany as well, where she first began developing her ear for foreign languages.
When she was first exposed to voices such as Joan Sutherland, Kiri Te Kanawa, Carol Neblett, Renée Fleming, and many other beautiful operatic and classical singers, Mary was in amazement. Hearing voices such as these had broadened her horizon to the seemingly-unlimited potential of the human voice; she was hooked. Mary loved and was inspired by the challenge, discipline, and hard work that she realized it took to become an operatic or classical singer, as well as the eventual growth that came out of this study. Mary became determined to work as hard as she could at developing her own vocal talents, so as to one day reach the best of her own potential and vocal abilities.
Even though Mary had participated in choirs and other types of performances long beforehand, she began her formal studies as a singer with a private vocal coach during her Middle School years in Fairfax, Virginia. She went on to receive a full scholarship for her voice from Hollins University in Roanoke, Virginia, where she earned her Bachelors Degree in Music. Following her university study, and after performing in the chorus of Don Giovanni -- her first abroad opera in Rome, Italy -- the summer prior to graduation, Mary returned to Rome to sing the role of Barbarina in Le Nozze di Figaro. Afterwards, her performance ventures would lead her to move to Los Angeles, California to continue her vocal studies for the next year with a world-renowned retired operatic singer.
Although a trained classical and operatic singer, Mary never wanted to give herself vocal limitations to only sing in those genres. She has extensive experience performing in many genres of music including classic & modern jazz as well as Pop and Rock ‘N Roll standards. She has also performed in numerous Celtic Céilidhs and festivals, singing some of her favorite Gaelic songs. Mary has given and participated in many concert performances all over, including in Germany and Rome, Italy. She has performed roles in several musicals too, such as Ruth in Pirates of Penzance, Hope in Anything Goes, and Audrey in Little Shop of Horrors to name just a few.
Even more diversely, Mary does studio work where she records different solo and back-up vocals with various artists and bands in a variety of genres: rock, hard rock, heavy metal, and electronic dance music (E.D.M.). She has worked with world-renowned artists, such as the heavy metal band, DevilDriver, on their 2013 album, Winter Kills, with whom she recorded the female vocals of their cover song, Sail (original by Awolnation). The album made the Top Ten Hard Rock & Heavy Metal Albums of 2013 (to hear a preview of Sail or to purchase the album Click Here). More recently, Mary has performed as a guest solosit and musician with hard rock artist Patrick Kennison of the band Lita Ford and formerly of The Union Underground (Sony/Columbia) and his band Heaven Below on their recently released album, Good Morning Apocalypse (October 2016).
Mary Whitman is a native of Virginia, even though her vocal training eventually led her to live in Los Angeles, California, where she currently resides. She spent some of her childhood years in Germany as well, where she first began developing her ear for foreign languages.
When she was first exposed to voices such as Joan Sutherland, Kiri Te Kanawa, Carol Neblett, Renée Fleming, and many other beautiful operatic and classical singers, Mary was in amazement. Hearing voices such as these had broadened her horizon to the seemingly-unlimited potential of the human voice; she was hooked. Mary loved and was inspired by the challenge, discipline, and hard work that she realized it took to become an operatic or classical singer, as well as the eventual growth that came out of this study. Mary became determined to work as hard as she could at developing her own vocal talents, so as to one day reach the best of her own potential and vocal abilities.
Even though Mary had participated in choirs and other types of performances long beforehand, she began her formal studies as a singer with a private vocal coach during her Middle School years in Fairfax, Virginia. She went on to receive a full scholarship for her voice from Hollins University in Roanoke, Virginia, where she earned her Bachelors Degree in Music. Following her university study, and after performing in the chorus of Don Giovanni -- her first abroad opera in Rome, Italy -- the summer prior to graduation, Mary returned to Rome to sing the role of Barbarina in Le Nozze di Figaro. Afterwards, her performance ventures would lead her to move to Los Angeles, California to continue her vocal studies for the next year with a world-renowned retired operatic singer.
Although a trained classical and operatic singer, Mary never wanted to give herself vocal limitations to only sing in those genres. She has extensive experience performing in many genres of music including classic & modern jazz as well as Pop and Rock ‘N Roll standards. She has also performed in numerous Celtic Céilidhs and festivals, singing some of her favorite Gaelic songs. Mary has given and participated in many concert performances all over, including in Germany and Rome, Italy. She has performed roles in several musicals too, such as Ruth in Pirates of Penzance, Hope in Anything Goes, and Audrey in Little Shop of Horrors to name just a few.
Even more diversely, Mary does studio work where she records different solo and back-up vocals with various artists and bands in a variety of genres: rock, hard rock, heavy metal, and electronic dance music (E.D.M.). She has worked with world-renowned artists, such as the heavy metal band, DevilDriver, on their 2013 album, Winter Kills, with whom she recorded the female vocals of their cover song, Sail (original by Awolnation). The album made the Top Ten Hard Rock & Heavy Metal Albums of 2013 (to hear a preview of Sail or to purchase the album Click Here). More recently, Mary has performed as a guest solosit and musician with hard rock artist Patrick Kennison of the band Lita Ford and formerly of The Union Underground (Sony/Columbia) and his band Heaven Below on their recently released album, Good Morning Apocalypse (October 2016).