
ABOUT//
With nearly sixty roles to his credit, baritone Jason Detwiler has become well-known for his magnetic and energizing stage performances. His voice and acting have been described as "emotionally fervid", "richly expressive" and "commanding", embodying characters ranging from the comedic Gianni Schicchi to the dramatic Renato (Un ballo in maschera).
Among his most widely acclaimed roles are Eugene Onegin,
Il conte di Luna (Il trovatore), Zurga (Les pêcheurs de perles), and Nick Carraway (The Great Gatsby).
His most recent engagements included a return to the Narnia Vocal Arts Festival debuting Aeneas in a double-bill of Dido & Aeneas and the world premiere of Jake Landau’s Aeterna, and as Manon’s Lescaut with Taconic Opera. Upcoming events include Germont (La traviata) with South Orange Performing Arts Center and soloist in Handel’s Messiah with Gemma Arts. Next year's company and role debuts include Edgar (Tell Tale Heart) and Kinsman (Annabel) in January with Opera Modesto and Eisenstein in Mississippi Opera’s spring production of Die Fledermaus.
The baritone has performed nationally with San Diego Opera, Virginia Opera, Wichita Grand Opera, Opera Santa Barbara, Opera Parallèle, Center for Contemporary Opera, Syracuse Opera, Sacramento Opera, Opera San Jose, Shreveport Opera, Festival Opera of Walnut Creek, West Bay Opera, Opera Idaho, Inland Northwest Opera, Vallejo Symphony Orchestra, the American Philharmonic Sonoma County, the Idaho State-Civic Symphony, the Boise Philharmonic & Master Chorale, Boise Baroque, and in France with the Opéra Théâtre d'Avignon.
His concert credits include: Bach's St. John Passion, Cantatas 82 & 140, Haydn's Creation, Mozart's and Faure's Requiem, Handel's Messiah, Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, Dvorak's Te Deum, Schubert's Mass in G-minor, Saint-Säens' Christmas Oratorio, Mollicone's Beatitude Mass, staged versions of Schubert's Die Winterreise, Ahab (Bernard Herrmann's Moby Dick) and Jim Cockey's premier of Shalom: a Holocaust Memorial.
Mr. Detwiler has continued to expand his repertory with the musical leads in Carousel, The King & I, Oklahoma!, and
South Pacific, and was awarded a grant through National Endowment of the Arts/Idaho Commission on the Arts in 2023.
Currently, he resides in Boise, Idaho with his wife,
mezzo-soprano Michele Detwiler, and studies with New York City's Andrea DelGiudice.
"Baritone Jason Detwiler was a suave and arrestingly musical force as Nick Carraway"
- San Francisco Chronicle
"Detwiler sings with excellent diction, seamless legato, musical intelligence & unquestionable beauty of tone; notes are attacked straight on, hurled across the footlights with commanding power."
- Opera News
"Detwiler [as Escamillo] brings a tall, compelling stage persona to the role, as well as dark, burnished, thrilling vocal texture and exciting high notes."
- Classical Sonoma
