As part of Mississippi State University’s annual Black History Month observance, internationally acclaimed opera star Simon Estes will perform in Lee Hall auditorium on Thursday beginning at 7 p.m.Organized by the Richard Holmes Cultural Diversity Center, the program is free.
A first-timer in Mississippi, Estes was born in the small town of Centerville, Iowa. According to his published autobiography, “Simon Estes in His Own Voice,” he was the grandson of a slave sold at auction for $500 and the son of a coal miner.
Rising above his family heritage, Estes has sung at major opera houses throughout the world and in front of popes, presidents and celebrities including Richard Nixon, Bill Clinton, Boris Yeltsin, Yassar Arafat, Desmund Tutu and Nelson Mandela.
“Based on the conversations I’ve had with him, he’s really looking forward to visiting MSU,” said Aretha Jones-Cook, director of Holmes Cultural Diversity Center. “We’re very fortunate to have an individual of this caliber celebrate Black History Month with us. I’m hoping that our students can learn more about the operatic form of music.”
Cook said that it’s highly unusual for a musician with his reputation to invite students to be part of his entertainment. Estes has asked that two MSU voice students, Valencia Pleasant and Jessica West, be featured in the performance along with the MSU gospel choir.
Estes first studied at the University of Iowa under Charles Kellis and then continued through the Juilliard School of Music in New York City. After receiving a grant to study abroad, he sang the role of Ramfis in “Aida” as his operatic debut with the Deutche Oper in Berlin. In 1966, he was named a prize-winner at the Tchaikovsky competition in Moscow.
While at Iowa, Estes began studying pre-med but later found that theology and social psychology fit him better. Chosen as “Campus King” and as the first black member of the Old Gold Singers, he earned the money to audition at the Juilliard School of Music through a campus recital at Iowa.
“Estes is primarily known for his powerful baritone voice,” Cook said. “We were drawn to him because of his international reputation and the opportunity to introduce something a little different.”
One of Estes’ significant performances was in 1985 at the Metropolitan Opera’s first production of Gershwin’s “Porgy and Bess,” where he sang the role of Porgy. Earlier in 1978, he sang the title role in “Der Fliegende Hollander” at Bayreuth, Germany, as the first male African-American to sing a major role there on stage.
Estes was also given the opportunity to sing at the opening of the Olympic Games in Munich.
In addition to his noted recitals, Estes also holds interest in youth. Many scholarship organizations hold his name: The Simon and Westella H. Estes Scholarship Fund at Centerville Community College; The Simon Estes Scholarship Fund at the University of Iowa; The Simon Estes Iowa Arts Scholarship and the Simon Estes Educational Foundation Inc.; The Simon Estes International Foundation Inc. in Zurich, Switzerland, and the Simon Estes Foundation in Cape Town, South Africa.
When Estes is not performing music, he teaches it at Iowa State University, Wartburg College and Boston University. He also conducts lectures at other universities throughout the country.
Estes will also conduct a book review at 11 a.m. Friday at Barnes & Noble, where he’ll talk about his upbringing and success.