Forest ’85, ’86, Announces Retirement After 30 Years of Service at Shenandoah

Associate Professor of Voice (Tenor) Michael Forest ’85, ’86, M.M.Ed., has announced his retirement from Shenandoah Conservatory during the Spring 2024 semester. Forest began working at Shenandoah in 1994 and will retire after 30 years of dedicated service to its artistic and educational community.

“Over his 30 years of service to Shenandoah Conservatory, Michael Forest’s contribution as an artist-teacher allowed countless numbers of students to benefit from his passion for voice and opera,” said Shenandoah Conservatory’s Interim Dean and Professor of Music (Music Education) Jeff Marlatt, Ph.D. “A two-time graduate of Shenandoah himself, Michael always understood the value of a conservatory education. He was a staunch advocate of our vocal performance programs and his voice will certainly be missed. On behalf of Shenandoah Conservatory I offer my heartfelt thanks for his long-lasting contribution and congratulations on his well-deserved retirement.”

Forest studied at the famed Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London in 1986. He was a frequent soloist at the Kennedy Center with the Choral Arts Society of Washington and the Washington Chorus. Symphonic engagements include performances with the National Symphony Orchestra, Pittsburgh Symphony, New York Philharmonic, St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, BBC Orchestra and L’Orchestre du Montreal. He was a member of the Metropolitan Opera’s Young Artists Development Program from 1989 to 1992. Forest was also an apprentice artist with the Wolf Trap Opera Company and Santa Fe Opera Company.

In 23 seasons with the Metropolitan Opera, he has sung over 280 performances of 19 different roles. He has also appeared with the Wolf Trap Opera Company, Washington’s Concert Opera, Santa Fe Opera, Washington National Opera, Wexford Opera and Ash Lawn Opera Festival.

Recording credits include Gershwin’s “Porgy and Bess” (EMI); Mozart’s “Le Nozze di Figaro” (Deutsche Gramophone); and a Grammy Award-winning recording of John Corigliano’s “Rage and Remembrance” (BMG); as well as R. Nathaniel Dett’s “The Chariot Jubilee” (Vocalessence, Clarion Label); “Sing Noel” with the Washington Chorus (DVD); Rossini’s “Semiramide” with the Metropolitan Opera (DVD); and Puccini’s “La Fanciulla del West” with the Metropolitan Opera.