Britten’s Serenade for Tenor, Horn, and Strings
“Guest tenor John Matthew Myers and the Jacksonville Symphony’s own Principal Horn, Kevin Reid, met the challenges of this formidable score brilliantly. Both displayed remarkable range and control. Myers in particular is to be commended for such a convincing and uncompromising performance in spite of blatant hurdles. He had to sing not only while wearing a mask, but while also standing behind glass barriers! To be able to render such a successful performance would be difficult in the best of times, but accomplished in spite of such obvious disadvantages, it was truly remarkable.” TIMOTHY TULLER - Florida Times-Union
Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis
“Yet even with the extracurricular distractions, Carlos Kalmar, four superb soloists, and the Grant Park Orchestra and Chorus delivered a powerful, keenly dramatic and deeply felt performance of Beethoven’s epic mass on this rainy night—one that embraced both the public and intimate qualities of this vast and extraordinary work….An uncommonly well-balanced quartet had much to do with the evening’s success… tenor John Matthew Myers displayed a heroic timbre and ardent singing.” LAWRENCE A. JOHNSON - Chicago Classical Review
”carefully shaped phrases from tenor John Matthew Myers.” HOWARD REICH - Chicago Tribune
“While Beethoven opted to weave the four solo voices into the larger musical fabric rather than spotlighting any of them in a featured role, his music for the quartet is radiant, exposed and formidable. It’s all too easy to sink a production of the Missa Solemnis by assigning the quartet duties to singers who can’t handle the deceptive workload. Kalmar brought together a sterling matched set of strong young voices in soprano Maeve Höglund, mezzo-soprano Siena Licht Miller, tenor John Matthew Myers and bass-baritone Michael Sumuel.” LAWRENCE A. JOHNSON - Chicago On The Aisle
Dvorak’s Rusalka
“Let’s start with the positives—especially, two really terrific assumptions: Alice Chung as Jezibaba and John Matthew Myers as the Prince….Myers possesses a plangent, substantial tenor, appealingly vibrant and with a sense of considerable power in reserve, and an ardent stage presence. Expect Walther von Stolzings, Siegmunds, and similar heroic roles in his future.” DAVID FOX - Parterre/RecliningStandards.org
“Tenor John Matthew Myers brings virile energy to the prince Rusalka loves, with ringing top notes and not a trace of strain.” CAMERON KELSALL - Broad Street Review
“Not so surprising was the excellence of tenor John Matthew Myers as the Prince who loves and then betrays Rusalka. He has progressed nicely in his three years at AVA, as we witnessed when he was a superb Bacchus in Ariadne auf Naxos. He has heldentenor quality, and also an exceptionally warm intimacy and vulnerability. In the final scene, as he dies in Rusalka’s arms, we heard a lovely crooning delivery which reminded me of his sound as Eisenstein in Fledermaus by Concert Operetta Theater in 2015 when I first saw him perform.” STEVE COHEN - The Cultural Critic
“Tenor John Matthews Myers sang beautifully as the Prince who is the object of Rusalka’s romantic aspirations. His voice rang out with clarion brilliance, yet he, too, was able to sustain his soft singing with admirable lyricism.” MICHAEL CARUSO - Chestnut Hill Local
Strauss' Ariadne auf Naxos
"Bacchus is a famously difficult role, nearly impossible to make graceful either vocally or theatrically—but John Matthew Myers brought considerable power and ring to the line, coped with its fearsomely high attacks, and found more dynamic variety than many famous tenors have." DAVID FOX - Philadelphia Magazine
"Vocally, the production shows the strengths of AVA’s current crop of resident artists....John Matthew Myers brings an impressive amount of lyricism to the short but punishing role of Bacchus. In the Prologue, both act with appropriate hauteur as the opera company’s tempestuous prima donna and star tenor." CAMERON KELSHALL - Broad Street Review
“John Matthew Myers coped manfully and better than many established Heldentenors with its impossible tessitura, finding some lyricism in the mix. “ DAVID SHENGOLD - Opera News
Concert of Arias
"Myers also possesses a voice of vocal grandeur. He really soared in “Odio solo” from Verdi’s “I Due Foscari,” mixing strength and tenderness, and with the uncanny ability to sing softly without losing a trace of clarity. Federico’s Lament from Cilea’s “L’Arlesiana,” rarely heard these days, was an absolute joy, sung with purity and conviction." STEVE SIEGEL - The Morning Call
Britten's War Requiem
"His tenor was considerably more plangent and less austere than that of Peter Pears, the role's creator, or Pears's latter-day avatar Ian Bostridge, and he was especiallly effective in soft singing." FRED COHN - Opera News
Adams' Nixon in China
"Vocally, Nixon in China was a resounding success. All of the principals flourished...the magnificent John Matthew Myers, a late replacement to the production, was impressively nonchalant about his ridiculous range as Mao." TONY FRANKEL - Stage and Cinema
"Tenor John Matthew Myers’ Mao Tse-tung was brightly lighted to match his declaiming voice." RICHARD S. GINELL - Los Angeles Times
Rubinstein's The Demon
"John Matthew Myers unfurled a lovely, warm tenor of considerable promise in Sinodal’s sometime melismatic music." DAVID SHENGOLD - Opera News
"John Matthew Myers played Tamara’s betrothed sympathetically, with a strong yet tender voice." STEVE COHEN - Broad Street Review
Strauss's Capriccio
"This amusing servant’s octet was performed with distinction by Santa Fe Opera Apprentice Artists Tennessee baritone Nicholas Davis, Pennsylvania tenor Peter Scott Drackley, Iowa baritone Thaddeus Ennen, New Hampshire bass James Harrington, Utah tenor Andrew Marks Maughan, California tenor John Matthew Myers, Virginia baritone Andrew Paulson and Pennsylvania tenor Benjamin Werley."
WILLIAM BURNETT - Opera Warhorses
New Year's Eve Concert
"She had the same effect on the crowd after intermission, causing quite a stir during "Sempre libera" from La Traviata. Her tenor husband, John Myers, was planted in the audience and surprised everyone when he began to sing in the middle of her performance. It was truly a remarkable moment."
BRYAN BUTTLER - Philly Mag
Apprentice Showcase Scenes
"On a more serious note was the famous duet from Bizet's Les pêcheurs de perles in which Nadir and Zurga express their rivalry. Tenor John Myers gave a well-modulated performance that harmonized beautifully with baritone Jorell Williams, from whom we have never heard a performance less than first-rate. The French diction was truly excellent. A real audience-pleaser that "Au fond du temple saint"! Never fails--two gorgeous male voices and the audience swoons. As we did."
MECHE KROOP - Voce di meche
Picker's Therese Raquin
"Suzanne's hapless police officer husband, Olivier, and the family friend Grivet supplied the evening's fleeting moments of amusement, thanks, respectively to Zeffin Quinn Hollis and John Matthew Myers." MARK SWED - Los Angeles Times
"The voices of the cast were all uniformly excellent as well, un-miked and left to be heard with their natural resonances, unquestionably the proper choice for this space and production. In fact, I was greatly surprised by how few times I had to check in with the super titles as the casts' excellent diction and projection greatly paid off." JONATHAN ROSS - Long Beach Post
"John Matthew Myers lends his polished tenor to the role of Monsieur Grivet, Camille’s office supervisor and an occasional suitor to Mme. Lisette. He and Olivier enliven the opera with its only bit of lighthearted silliness, as they bounce on the wedding bed together and scheme to scatter nettles in it, to tease the newlyweds on their wedding night." CORIL PROCHNOW - Lauraslist.com
Hagen's Amass
"The three excellent soloists were Jennifer Zetlan, John Matthew Myers and Mischa Bouvier." ARLO McKINNON - OperaNews
Verdi's La Traviata
"As Alfredo, John Matthew Myers’ tenor was as smooth and rich as butter, a good fit for a romantic lead." REBECCA SEDLAK - Coast Weekend
Kálmán's The Gypsy Princess
"Almost equal in stage time was another tenor, John Matthew Myers, as Edwin's fun-loving best friend. His genial presence and strong voice were unexpected pleasures..." STEVE COHN - The Opera Critic
"In the two male leads, Jeffrey Halili and John Matthew Myers proved that two tenors can occupy the same stage and convince the audience they're good friends. In addition to their technical vocal prowess, both created believable characters, Halili as the prince and Myers as the kind of sensible humorist a woman like Countess Stasi would find attractive." TOM PURDOM - Broad Street Review
Gordon's Van Gogh/Copeland's Tell Tale Heart
"gorgeous-voiced tenor John Matthew Myers...the letter-singing/reciting trio of Ashley Knight, John Matthew Myers, and Jason Switzer brought great pleasure musically" DAVID GREGSON - Opera West
"For Van Gogh, he assembled three compelling singers in soprano Ashley Knight, tenor John Matthew Myers and bass Jason Switzer" MARK SWED - Los Angeles Times
"John Matthew Myers, the tenor in the group, was equally strong as a singer, as well as an actor. The pain of a tortured mind was clear across his face, as well as in his voice....Myers also returned, playing both a skittish, nerdy neighbor and one of the police officers who show up to investigate the victim’s screams. This time, we get to see more of his comedic side as he fends off the party girls as the neighbor and nonchalantly chomps donuts as the cop." BRENNA SMITH - Edge Los Angeles
"The singers, three of whom performed in both operas, were uniformly strong and committed...John Matthew Myers’ sweetly ringing tenor was luxury casting for his roles." MICHAEL VAN DUZER - Stage Happenings
"Additionally, John Matthew Myer’s clear tenor voice is a pleasing respite to the unnerving displays to which we are treated" BEN MILES - Beach Comber
“Myers….with his cherub-like voice…” BONDO WYSZPOLSKI – Easy Reader
"Ashley Knight, Danielle Bond, John Matthew Myers and Jason Switzer formed a quartet of distinct personalities, convincing acting and terrific voices." JIM RUGGIRELLO - Gazettes
Britten's War Requiem
"The Owen poems were sung with a blend of poignancy and grim honesty by the warm lyric tenor John Matthew Myers..." ANTHONY TOMMASINI - New York Times
"Tenor John Matthew Myers sang with a plaintive, clear and warm timbre" - Oberon's Grove
Ortiz's Camelia La Tejana
"John Matthew Myers, as El Periodista, put his gorgeous, well-supported lyrical tenor in service to his character’s obsession with the figure of Camelia" - Singerpreneur/Lauraslist
"As the various media folks and academics, John Atkins, John Matthew Myers, Adam Meza, Nova Safo, Maria Cristina Navarro, Susan Kotses and David A. Blair contribute to a compelling overall performance." MARK SWED - Los Angeles Times
"John Matthew Myers is earnest as can be as the inquiring reporter for la Jornada." GEORGE M. WALLACE - A Fool In The Forest
"The main singers were also superb...tenor John Matthew Myers were also among the stand-outs." TED AYALA - Bachtrack
Beethoven's The Muir
"And there is, as always with Mr. Morris and as so rarely elsewhere in modern dance, live music: three singers, five instrumentalists.....The words of the tenor, John Matthew Myers, were exemplary, especially in “Sally in Our Alley.” (How did Beethoven come to treat “Sally” as a Scottish song? Its words are in English dialect, and were also arranged — with different final stanzas and a funnier punch line — by Benjamin Britten.) The immediacy of the music making is a perfect match for the freshness of the dancers." ALASTAIR MACAULAY - New York Times
"All tactics are on view in the charming sextet, The Muir, which is set to a selection of Beethoven’s arrangements of Scottish and Irish folk songs (for this the three above-mentioned instrumentalists are joined by excellent singers: mezzo-soprano Irene Snyder, tenor John Matthew Myers, and baritone Jorell Williams)." DEBORAH JOWITT - The Village Voice
Mercadante's Virginia
"American tenor John Myers (Valerio) completed the strong line up." CLAIRE SEYMOUR - Opera Today
"Marcella Walsh and John Myers are stalwart Virginia confidantes." PAT O'KELLY - Irish Independent
Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro
"Fine performances by all concerned, including Stephen Lord, the conductor of members of the SLSO. Hat’s off in particular to Maria Kanyova (Susanna), Christopher Feigum (Figaro), Amana Majeski (Countess), Edward Parks (Count), Jamie Barton (Marcellina) and John Matthew Myers (lawyer)." BILL TOWNSEND - St. Louis Classical Music Examiner
"Three Gerdine Young Artists impressed: bass Bradley Smoak as Antonio, soprano Elizabeth Zharoff as Barbarina and tenor John Matthew Myers as Don Curzio." SARAH BRYAN MILLER - St. Louis Post-Dispatch
"John Matthew Myers delivered one of the evening’s best punchlines as a deadpan Don Curzio." ALISON MORITZ - Opera Today
"Three Gerdine Young Artists to watch are bass Bradley Smoak (a sturdy Antonio), tenor John Matthew Myers (Curzio) and the opulent-voiced soprano Elizabeth Zharoff (a fascinating Barbarina)" JUDITH MALAFRONTE - Opera News
"The vocal work and much of the acting was outstanding...John Matthew Myers as the lawyer, his character and actions unchanged in more than two centuries." JOE POLLACK - St. Louis Eats and Drinks With Joe and Ann Pollack
An Evening with Ricky Ian Gordon
"On Monday, Ricky Ian Gordon, another exciting American composer, presented his recent songs at Cliburn at the Modern. The pieces were exquisitely performed by four marvelous college-age singers -- soprano Elizabeth Zharoff; mezzo Naomi O'Connell; tenor John Myers and baritone Geoffrey Sirett. Each gave insightful and beautifully nuanced performances.
On Pont Mirabeau, Myers' expansive tenor expressed pathos and hope. O'Connell sang the intense poems of Late Afternoon with a silky voice and phrases ripe with color." CHRIS SHULL - Star-Telegram
Faure's Penelope
"Among the suitors, John Myers brought a mellow, Hylas-worthy tenor to the (relatively) sensitive Antinoiis" DAVID SHENGOLD - Opera Magazine
"Fastidious preparation seems to have paid off handsomely, even in the supporting roles, which were delivered with expressive confidence and solid vocal skill. Victoria Vargas as the nurse Euryclée, Robert E. Mellon (Eumée), John Myers (Antinoüs) and Joo Won Kang (Eurymaque) were especially fine. There were no weak links." DAVID J. BAKER - Opera News