Instrument/Department: Voice, Soprano
Joined Hochstein faculty in: 2023
Gwen Paker is an award-winning soprano equally at home performing onstage and teaching in the studio. While studying at the Eastman School of Music with Professor Robert Swensen, Gwen won first prize in the 2022 Friends of Eastman Opera Voice Competition and the 2019 Eastman Voice Department Concerto Competition. An avid performer of opera, Gwen made her professional operatic debut as Gertrude Stein in Thomson’s The Mother of Us All with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra in addition to starring roles in several productions with Eastman Opera Theatre.
Gwen’s passion for music extends beyond performance, and she flourishes as a voice teacher and arts administrator. Applying her voice pedagogy training from the Eastman School of Music, Gwen prioritizes the individual needs of each student in order to build their self-confidence, musicality, and singing technique and teaches lessons to students of all ages and abilities.
Gwen also uses her extensive leadership experience to pursue opportunities in arts administration, currently working as the Assistant Director of Development at Hochstein with previous positions at Finger Lakes Opera, Opera On Tap Boston, and the Eastman Institute for Music Leadership. In all of her work as a performer, teacher, and arts administrator, Gwen supports diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives and is a strong advocate for increased equity and justice in opera.
More About Gwen Paker
Hometown: Madison, Wisconsin
What inspires me: My students, and their love of singing
Favorite place to travel: Olympic National Park
What people would be surprised to know about me: I almost pursued a neuroscience degree in addition to my degrees in music