Chinese-American Bass, Colin Ramsey, has become known for his “majestic, rotund, ravishing bass” (Opera Today). This year, he returns to Opera Santa Barbara for his role debut as Escamillo in Carmen, joins Amarillo Opera as Angelotti in Tosca, and Opera NEO for the US premiere of Nicola Porpora’s 1735 masterpiece, Polifemo. He makes his debut with the Amarillo Symphony for Beethoven’s 9th Symphony and will sing in a gala of operatic arias at the University of California at Santa Barbara.

Mr. Ramsey has been a soloist at many renown opera houses including the Santa Fe Opera, San Diego Opera, Festival Lyrique en Mer in Belle-ile, Opera San Jose, Seattle Opera, Austin Opera, Sarasota Opera, Pensacola Opera, and Opera Idaho. His repertoire encompasses many roles including Capulet in Gounod’s Romeo and Juliet, Cadmus/Somnus in Handel’s Semele, Colline in La bohème, Fafner in Das Rheingold, Hunding in Die Walküre, Guglielmo in Così Fan Tutte, Leporello in Don Giovanni, Figaro in Le Nozze di Figaro, Don Basilio in Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Alidoro in La Cenerentola, and Reverend Hale in Robert Ward’s The Crucible.

Mr Ramsey’s concert performances include solo engagements with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Pacific Symphony, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, and La Jolla Symphony. Performing as soloist in Verdi’s Requiem, Dvorâk’s Stabat Mater, Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, Rossini’s Petite Messe Solennelle, Handel’s Messiah, Faurè’s Requiem, and Brahms Requiem.

Mr. Ramsey has completed residencies with Santa Fe Opera, Wolf Trap Opera, Des Moines Metro Opera, and others. He is a winner of the Pasadena Opera Guild Competition, a Regional winner in the Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition and an Encouragement Award winner in the George London Foundation Competition. 

Mr. Ramsey currently resides in Santa Barbara, CA.