About

Hans Grunwald is a 21-year-old Baritone studying under J. Patrick Raftery at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. In his time at UBC, Hans has received name and lead roles in operas directed by professor Nancy Hermiston, and has been a bass in the prestigious University Singers led by conductor Graeme Langager. 

Hailing from Santa Cruz in Northern California, Hans was raised in the highly competitive Bay Area. Throughout high school he regularly placed first in NATS competitions and was awarded second overall in Schmidt Vocal Arts’ California high school competition in 2020. Hans studied with Wendy Hillhouse of Stanford University and Mark Bruce up until his graduation. Until his senior year was cut short by COVID-19, Hans was a core member of the Santa Cruz Chorale led by renowned conductor Christian Grube.

In 2022, Hans was a lower division national finalist in the Schmidt Vocal Arts Undergraduate Competition. Later that year, he was awarded a Schubert Fellowship to attend Songfest at the San Francisco Conservatory. Hans studied with professor Cesar Ulloa and performed in masterclasses with Graham Johnson, Martin Katz and several others at Songfest. 

Hans’ performance experience includes name roles in Rossini’s Il Viaggio a Reims, Mozart’s le Nozze di Figaro, as well as Giuseppe in Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Gondoliers. These roles were performed without academic credit during his first two years of undergraduate education at UBC. Hans changed his specialization from Opera Performance in the middle of his undergraduate degree in favor of focusing on song repertoire and recital programming. While pursuing a Voice Performance degree, Hans gives recitals and regularly works with renowned coaches Rena Sharon and Andrea Grant. 

In his free time, Hans enjoys cooking, surfing, and hiking in beautiful Northern California, and is planning on completing a math minor alongside his music degree at the University of British Columbia. Hans will be attending the Lehrer Vocal Institute as a fellow during the summer of 2023. At the Lehrer Institute, Hans is looking forward to furthering his training as a recitalist as well as taking on the role of Schaunard in Puccini’s La Bohème.