PRESS KIT

Collaborative pianist and vocal coach Arlene Shrut is heralded as both a steward for the artistic traditions of classical music as well as a visionary for its future. Hailed by The New York Times as a “strong and sensitive pianist,” she performs with the elite performers of today while training the musicians of tomorrow.  Classical Singer Magazine named Arlene its inaugural “Coach of the Year.” 

Since 2020, Arlene has served as official pianist for the Metropolitan Opera’s Laffont Competition Southeast Regional Auditions in Atlanta.  She has often played for the MET Laffont NC District Auditions and played for both the FLA and SC  District Auditions in 2024.    

Arlene regularly serves as official pianist and judge for international opera competitions sponsored by The Gerda Lissner Foundation, The Licia Albanese Puccini Foundation, The Giulio Gari Foundation, The Loren Zachary Society, The Marcello Giordani Foundation, and the Fritz and Lavinia Jensen Foundation. After a long association with the organization and its artistic initiatives, in July 2023, Arlene was invited to join the Board of Trustees of the Gerda Lissner Foundation. 

At The Juilliard School, Arlene served as Senior Vocal Coaching Faculty for 27 years. In January 2018 Arlene was appointed as Faculty Vocal Coach to the School of Music at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Prior to relocating, she also coached singer/pianist duos for over 20 years at the Manhattan School of Music. 

Arlene has been a member of the artist faculty at Source Song Festival since 2015, where she coaches and mentors singer/pianist duos and composers. Having served in the past as head coach and pianist for the Atlantic Music Festival, she was chosen to create and chair the new Collaborative Piano Program beginning in summer 2018. Arlene was also selected as Collaborative Piano Master Teacher at the 2018 NATS Intern Program in Boulder, Colorado. In February 2020, Arlene debuted as Master Teacher and Artist- in- Residence of Opera San Miguel.   

The Sorel Organization presented Arlene with its first Sorel Legacy Medallion in 2016. This award recognizes the work of female artists whose careers reflect lifetime achievement in music through performance, training, or service. To date this Legacy Medallion Award has supported the commission of “Facets; from amass” featured in the premiere performance of “​Requiem of Solace: Brahms’ Human Requiem” ​ at The University of North Carolina at Charlotte in partnership with Steinway Gallery of Charlotte. 

In December 2017 Arlene also premiered the piano-only version of “​Defiant Requiem: Verdi at Terezín” , a concert-drama conceived and created by Maestro Murry Sidlin, at UNC Charlotte, and has subsequently performed the work under the auspices of the Defiant Requiem Foundation.   

Arlene has enjoyed collaborations with vocal artists including Renée Fleming, Thomas Hampson, Angela Meade, Isabel Leonard, Carla Rae Cook, Michael Fabiano, Anton Belov, Alissa Deeter, and Takaoki Onishi. While many of Arlene's professional activities focus on collaborations with singers, she has also performed with various instrumentalists and ensembles: including her NYC debut with the Yoav Chamber Ensemble, tours with the Grand'Arte Trio, and as a finalist in the Munich International Competition in the violin-piano duo category with violinist, Julie Rosenfeld. 

Arlene also won the outstanding pianist award at the Music Academy of the West. In January 2014 Arlene teamed with pianist Anna Shelest in a 4-hand version of the Brahms Requiem with Voices of Ascension, under the baton of Dennis Keene, featuring soloists Martha Guth and Richard Zeller. Arlene has recorded for Dorian, Albany, Summit, Centaur, and Orion labels. Her discography includes works from the classical canon and recording premieres by contemporary composers.  

While on the faculty of the Aspen Music Festival, she taught classes and coached productions featuring Mozart and German operas. Arlene also coached Wagner’s Ring Cycle for Arizona Opera. She was head of the Accompanying Department at Syracuse University and on the Evening Division Faculties of The Juilliard School and Mannes College.   Other festivals that have recently featured Arlene as pianist, vocal coach and teacher for collaborative pianists include the Vancouver International Song Institute, Opera Experience Southeast, Greensboro Light Opera and Song, Operafest on Martha's Vineyard and in NJ, Resonanz Festival and Songfest in Malibu.  

As a musical visionary, Arlene has been at the forefront of music's changing landscape to advance training, generate opportunities, and create innovative solutions to promote classical music. As Founder and Artistic Director of New Triad for Collaborative Arts (2003-2014), Arlene created a curriculum dedicated to developing skills including visual engagement, comfort speaking with audiences, and individuality in performance. New Triad's Opera Master Class Series was presented at National Opera Association Conventions and at The University of Tennessee in Knoxville. Arlene continues to develop ground-breaking performance and educational projects that are moving and sustainable for our times.