Praised for her “moving, involved expression,” Atlanta-born soprano Kellie Motter is becoming known as a versatile artist in repertoire ranging from baroque to contemporary. She is a recent graduate of Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music, where she held the prestigious Georgina Joshi Graduate Fellowship and served as an Associate Instructor of Voice.
Kellie's previous season included collaborations with Des Moines Metro Opera in Barrie Kosky's acclaimed production of The Magic Flute, where she covers Pamina and Second Lady, and in the role of Caroline in workshop performances of A Thousand Acres by Kristin Kuster. She debuts with Ballet Des Moines as the soprano soloist in the world premiere of Beau Kenyon's Of Gravity and Light. She also appears in concert with the Grinnell Symphony Orchestra as Ilia in selections from Mozart's Idomeneo.
Highlights of her 2020-2021 season included her return to Des Moines Metro Opera, where she covered the role of Thalie in Rameau's Platée, a concert of operatic favorites with the La Porte County Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Gary Wedow, and various recital appearances in Nashville, Tennessee. In the 2019-2020 season, Kellie performed with Opera Iowa as Queen of the Night and First Lady in their touring production of The Magic Flute, and joined the roster of Apprentice Artists at Des Moines Metro Opera for their virtual summer season.
As a young artist, Kellie has spent her summers with Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, Central City Opera, and Des Moines Metro Opera. With IU Opera Theater, Kellie has performed the roles of Marie (La fille du régiment), Despina (Così fan tutte), Galatea (Acis & Galatea), Morgana (Alcina) and Lucia (Lucia di Lammermoor). Other notable role credits include La Fée (Cendrillon) with the Siena Music Festival and Pamina (Die Zauberflöte) with Harrower Summer Opera. Her 2018-2019 season included her house debut with Opera Naples in the roles of Silvia (L'isola disabitata) and Frasquita (Carmen).
As a concert soloist, she has been featured in Carissimi’s Jepthe, Handel’s Messiah, Haydn’s Kleine Orgelmesse & Schöpfungmesse, Steve Reich’s Tehillim, the requiems of Brahms and Fauré, and in numerous works by J.S. Bach, including his solo cantata No. 51, Jauchzet Gott in allen Landen. As a prolific ensemble singer, Kellie has performed with the University of Maryland Chamber Singers on the Kennedy Center stage and on international tours to France and South Korea and as an original member of the Saint Ambrose Schola Cantorum. An enthusiastic performer of new works, Kellie recently premiered the soprano solo in John Gibson’s In Flight for choir, soloists, and electronics with NOTUS: Contemporary Vocal Ensemble, which was recently released on the album Of Radiance & Refraction under the Innova Recordings label.
Kellie is a 2018 Winner of The American Prize in Opera and a 2016 Georgia District Winner of the Metropolitan National Council Auditions. She received her Bachelor of Music from the University of Maryland and her Master of Music from Indiana University, where she studied with Carol Vaness. Previous mentors include Delores Ziegler and Edward Maclary at the University of Maryland and Elizabeth Nohe Colson of Atlanta. She is currently based in Des Moines, Iowa, where she serves on the voice faculty at Simpson College and maintains a private teaching studio.
