Bio
Born in Wisconsin (USA), Taryn Knerr became enthralled with opera after her first encounter with Mozart’s The Magic Flute in the role of the First Spirit. Thirteen years later, she made her German debut at Theater Altenburg/Gera in the same opera. Since then, her opera engagements have taken her to theatres such as Oper Köln, Oper Leipzig, the Apollo Theater in Greece and the Goetheanum in Switzerland to sing roles including Despina in Mozart’s Così fan tutte, a Flowermaiden and Squire in Wagner’s Parsifal, and Nancy in Britten’s Albert Herring.
On stage and in the concert hall, she has performed with the Philharmonie Baden-Baden, the Sinfonieorchester Wuppertal, the Camerata Salzburg, the Orchester der Musikalischen Komödie and the Staatskapelle Halle. Her concert repertoire includes Bach’s Passions, Mass in B minor, Christmas Oratorio and cantatas, Handel’s Alexander’s Feast, Mendelssohn’s Elias and Lobgesang, Duruflé’s Requiem and Rutter’s Magnificat.
In addition to opera and concert repertoire, Taryn enjoys creating recital programmes with flautist Emma Pohlers, pianists Samuel Waffler and Pietro Bonfiglio, and conductor Howard Arman. She has sung at the Innsbruck Early Music Festival, Bachfest Leipzig, the Morellino Classica Festival and the Heinrich Schütz Musikfest, and her performances have been broadcast on MDR Klassik and ORF 1.
After completing her degrees in mathematics and German, Taryn graduated with a degree in vocal performance from the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Leipzig as a soprano. In the summer of 2026, she switched to mezzo-soprano under the careful guidance of Neil Semer.