Stewart, Thomas (James)
Stewart, Thomas (James)
Stewart, Thomas (James), distinguished American baritone; b. San Saba, Tex., Aug. 29, 1928. He studied electrical engineering in Waco, and later went to N.Y., where he became a student of Mack Harrell at the Juilliard School of Music. He made his debut there in 1954 as La Roche in Capriccio by Richard Strauss; then sang with the N.Y.C. Opera and the Chicago Opera in bass roles. In 1957 he received a Fulbright grant and went to Berlin. He was engaged as a baritone with the Städtische Oper, where he made his debut there as the Don Fernando in Fidelio on March 28, 1958; remained on its roster until 1964, and also sang regularly at London’s Covent Garden (1960–78) and at the Bayreuth Festivals (1960–75). He made his Metropolitan Opera debut in N.Y. on March 9, 1966, as Ford in Verdi’s Falstaff; in 1981 he sang the title role in the American premiere of Reimann’s Lear with the San Francisco Opera. His other roles were Don Giovanni, Count di Luna in II Trovatore, Escamillo in Carmen, lago in Otello, and Wotan. In 1955 he married Evelyn Lear, with whom he often appeared in opera and concert settings.
—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire