Willard White

Sir Willard Wentworth White, OM, CBE (born 10 October 1946) is a Jamaican-born British operatic bass baritone.

Early life

White was born into a Jamaican family in Kingston and attended Excelsior High School in Kingston, the same school that produced the poet Louise Bennett-Coverly ("Miss Lou") and the actress Leonie Forbes. His father was a dockworker, his mother a housewife. White first began to learn music by listening to the radio and singing Nat King Cole songs. He was also inspired by the American bass baritone singer and civil rights activist Paul Robeson. White was a founding member of The Jamaican Folk Singers, and trained at the Jamaican School of Music.

In a visit to Jamaica, Evelyn Rothwell, the oboist and wife of conductor Sir John Barbirolli, heard him sing and suggested that he go to study in London. Instead, his father bought him a one-way ticket to New York City, because "the flight was cheaper". He won a scholarship and continued his studies with bass Giorgio Tozzi at the Juilliard School. While at Juilliard, he was selected by Maria Callas to participate in the master classes she gave there from 1971 to 1972.

Career

In May 1971, White made his debut as...

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