"The conducting of Lucy Arner stood out…She followed, cared for and accompanied the voices, something which does not always happen with conductors." (ORBE magazine, June 2002)

Conductor Lucy Arner brings to the podium a special affinity for Italian and French opera that is enhanced by her vast experience working in some of the world’s greatest opera houses, such as the Liceo in Barcelona and the Metropolitan Opera.

Lucy Arner made her professional debut in 1996 conducting Puccini’s Suor Angelica and Menotti's The Telephone at the Teatro Mancinelli in Orvieto, Italy. Ms. Arner has conducted opera and concerts in the United States, Italy, Israel and South America. She was appointed Artistic Director of the New York Chamber Opera in November 2000, making her debut with the company conducting an exciting and controversial production of Britten’s Rape of Lucretia. Under her direction, the Chamber Opera has carved out a unique niche in New York’s operatic landscape, presenting Donizetti’s Il Campanello, Seymour Barab’s Not a Spanish Kiss and Fortune’s Favorites, and the recent sold-out run of Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas in “a novel, timely interpretation by the innovative New York Chamber Opera led by gifted conductor Lucy Arner,” as described by Time Out Magazine.

Ms. Arner made her South American debut in Lima, Perú with a new production of Puccini’s Madame Butterfly in 2001, followed by Verdi’s Il Trovatore and Puccini’s Tosca. As reviewed in Lima’s El Comercio, “Lucy Arner conducted the orchestra revealing impeccable technique as well as a profound knowledge of the style and the score.” She made her New York City Opera debut conducting scenes from Richard Danielpour’s new opera Margaret Garner for the 2004 VOX Composer’s Showcase and led what ProOpera Magazine described as “an elegant reading of Mozart’s The Magic Flute for Mexico’s Festival Internacional Tamaulipas.

Other recent engagements include Donizetti’s L’Elisir d’amore and Don Pasquale in Tel Aviv, a double bill of Pagliacci and Suor Angelica for New Zealand’s Canterbury Opera, and Puccini’s La Bohème in Castres, France. Ms. Arner made an important debut in 2006 conducting a new production of Mozart’s Die Entführung aus dem Serail, becoming the first woman to conduct an opera for Mexico City’s historic Palacio de Bellas Artes. Most recently, she returned to New York City Opera to conduct at the 2007 VOX Composer’s Showcase, and led performances of Le Nozze di Figaro in Italy for Opera Ischia.

Upcoming engagements include a recital with Dutch baritone Hans-Pieter Herrman at Hunter College featuring the world premiere of a new song cycle by composer Richard Burke. In 2008 Ms. Arner will conduct a holiday concert in Buenos Aires, Mozart’s Cosí fan tutte for Naples Opera, Poulenc’s Dialogues of the Carmelites for the New York Opera Society. During the summer of 2008, Ms. Arner will join director Ira Siff in Tanglewood where they will prepare a program of opera scenes with the young singers of the Music Center.

Lucy Arner joined the Metropolitan Opera’s company’s music staff during the 1994-1995 season. Specializing in Italian repertory, she has been featured as the recitative accompanist in recent productions of Rossini’s Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Handel’s Giulio Cesare and Donizetti’s L’Elisir d’amore as well as preparing the Met’s telecast of Giordano’s Fedora with Mirella Freni and Placido Domingo. Ms. Arner was recently quoted extensively about her experiences with Montserrat Caballé in the November 2002 Opera News cover article about the great Spanish soprano.

As a pianist and coach, Ms. Arner is in great demand as a recital accompanist in the United States and in Europe, frequently appearing in concert with soprano Aprile Millo. She was the official pianist for the Alfredo Kraus International Vocal competition. She has worked with many prominent singers in operatic productions including Alfredo Kraus, Montserrat Caballé, Joan Sutherland, Luciano Pavarotti, Aprile Millo, Marilyn Horne, Sherrill Milnes, Mignon Dunn, José Carreras, Juan Pons, Mirella Freni, Giuseppe Giacomini, Placido Domingo, Sharon Sweet, June Anderson, Jane Eaglen, Anna Netrebko, Roberto Alagna, Ben Heppner, Jennifer Larmore, Juan Diego Florez, Rockwell Blake, Paul Plishka, Olga Borodina, Dolora Zajik, Thomas Hampson and Deborah Voigt. She was the official pianist of the Alfredo Kraus International Voice Competition. Although an accomplished soloist, Ms. Arner’s special affinity for singing and vocal music attracted the attention of Larry Stayer and Joan Dornemann of the Metropolitan Opera. Her first professional position as a coach/accompanist at the MCA Opera Institute was actually the result of winning a piano competition where Mr. Stayer was a judge. Engagements at the Greater Miami Opera, the Aspen Music Festival, the Minnesota Opera and the New Israeli Opera quickly led to a position at the Gran Teatro del Liceo in Barcelona, and the Teatro de La Maestranza in Seville during Expo ’92.

Ms. Arner’s extensive experience as a coach and accompanist has lent itself to an increasingly active teaching career. She has taught master classes in such diverse locations as the Shanghai Conservatory, Mexico, the Israel Vocal Arts Institute in Tel Aviv, the Juilliard School of Music, the Manhattan School of Music, the University of Miami, Baldwin-Wallace College, Black Hills State University and Florida International University. Included in the curricula she has developed is a class devoted to the singing of recitativo in baroque and classical opera. She has been on the faculty of many prestigious summer programs for young singers in the United States, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Italy, Israel, Japan and China as conductor, coach and pianist. In addition to her own coaching and conducting duties, she was engaged to teach young coach/accompanists at the Israel Vocal Arts Institute, and some of her pupils have joined the coaching staffs of such prestigious houses as the New York City Opera, the Frankfurt Opera and the Hamburg Opera.

Born in Cuba, Lucy Arner began her musical studies at the age of twelve. She attended Baldwin-Wallace College and Indiana University, receiving Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees and continued her doctoral studies at the University of Miami.