Joy Clements facts for kids

Clements in 1972.

Joy Clements (born Joyce Marie Albrecht) was an American opera singer. She was a lyric coloratura soprano, which means she had a high, flexible voice. Joy sang in many operas and concerts from 1956 to the late 1970s. She was famous for performing often at the New York City Opera and the Metropolitan Opera. These are two very important opera houses in the United States. She also sang with many other opera companies across the country.

Becoming an Opera Singer

Joy Clements was born in Dayton, Ohio. She started studying singing at the University of Miami. After finishing her studies, she began her professional opera career. Her first big role was Musetta in Puccini's opera, La bohème, in 1956. She also continued her studies at the Philadelphia Musical Academy. In 1958, she moved to New York City to study with a famous teacher, Marinka Gurewich.

Singing in New York City

In 1959, Joy Clements joined the New York City Opera (NYCO). Her first role there was Monica in The Medium. For the next ten years, she sang many different parts with the NYCO. Some of her roles included:

• Micaëla in Bizet's Carmen
• Despina in Mozart's Così fan tutte
• Susanna in Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro
• The main role in Carlisle Floyd's Susannah
• Yum-Yum in The Mikado

She also performed in the first-ever show of Robert Ward's opera, The Crucible, in 1961.

Joy Clements first sang at the Metropolitan Opera in 1963. This is one of the most famous opera houses in the world. She performed there for ten years in a row. She sang 141 times at the Met! Some of her well-known roles at the Met included:

• Adele in Die Fledermaus
• Gretel in Hänsel und Gretel
• Musetta in La bohème
• Oscar in Un ballo in maschera

Her last performance at the Met was in 1972 as Marzelline in Beethoven's Fidelio.

Performances Across the World

While singing in New York, Joy Clements also performed with many other opera companies. She sang in cities like Houston, Baltimore, Cincinnati, and San Diego. In 1963, she sang internationally for the first time. She performed with the Vancouver Opera in Canada and the Israeli Opera in Tel Aviv. Later, in 1975-1976, she also sang in Brussels, Belgium.

Some of the other roles she performed in these places were:

• Gilda in Rigoletto
• Juliette in Roméo et Juliette
• The main role in Massenet's Manon
• Mimi in La bohème
• Pamina in The Magic Flute
• Violetta in La Traviata

A special moment in her career was a concert in 1965. She sang the main role of Laurie Moss in Aaron Copland's The Tender Land with the New York Philharmonic orchestra. The composer himself conducted the performance. This concert was later recorded and released as an album.

Later Life and Passing

After she stopped performing in the late 1970s, Joy Clements became a voice teacher. She taught many students for several years. She passed away in 2005 at the age of 73. She had been living with multiple sclerosis, a health condition that affects the body.