Lester Lynch has become recognized for his charismatic portrayals and commanding voice with rave reviews as some of opera’s most important characters. In contemporary repertoire he is known for his portrayals in pieces such as Dallapiccola’s Il Prigioniero, Busoni’s Doktor Faust and Nico Muhly’s The Glitch.
Lester made his debut at the renowned Teatro alla Scala singing the role of Crown in Porgy and Bess and at the Royal Opera House as Shylock in The Merchant of Venice. Other appearances on major stages include Lyric Opera of Chicago, Houston Grand Opera, LA Opera, Semperoper Dresden, Seattle Opera, Berliner Philharmoniker, Vienna Volksoper, English National Opera, Norway’s Bergen National Opera, Santa Fe Opera and San Francisco Opera.
Recent performances include Zemlinsky’s Symphonische Gesänge with Sir Simon Rattle and the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra. He made his film debut in November 2021 as Merrivale in Gordon Getty’s new opera, Goodbye, Mr. Chips, based on the popular 1934 novella by James Hilton.
His recording work is featured on Pentatone, including his 2017 debut solo album, On My Journey Now and his 2024 album, Full Circle. He recently joined the faculty as Professor of Voice of at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.