Marissa Lake

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That Marissa Lake’s future would involve music has never been questioned. Throughout her childhood, Lake’s growing musical finesse easily transferred from piano, to violin, to viola.

It also was no surprise when Lake found her voice. Singing, she says, allows her to express emotion in a more satisfying way than playing an instrument could, and so that is her talent of focus.

“Coming from Kenosha, there probably are not a lot of classical singers. It’s definitely a genre that a lot of people don’t gravitate towards. People want to sing musical theater, pop or country. But I like to think I am pushing classical music forward into the next generation to make sure it doesn’t die out. I fell in love with the classical genre.”

That love affair began to flourish when Lake attended Shoreland Lutheran High School in Somers. From the onset, Lake got involved in all that the music department had to offer. The Festival Choir, which at the time was directed by Pastor Tom Bauer, stirred her love of classical music and an appreciation of being a member of an ensemble.

“Pastor Bauer gave me plenty of performance opportunities, and he taught me how to sing and work with others,” she says, adding that his influence also helped her develop an appreciation for sacred music. Singing in church was one of the ways Lake put her talent into service.

Having the chance to work one-on-one with a voice coach at Shoreland also awakened Lake to new possibilities. “My voice teacher, Ben Jeske, had me perform in a competition called Diva Quest in Kenosha. I auditioned and made the top 10, which meant I could perform for a live audience.”

That experience solidified her resolve to seek a career in vocal music.

“It was my sophomore year, and I performed ‘Memory’ from the musical ‘Cats,’” Lake recalls. “I wasn’t expecting to place, and I ended up winning the competition. I remember the feeling. That was the first time I won. As I was crying, I decided this is what I want to do.”

After graduation, Lake’s love of classical music burgeoned at Lawrence University in Appleton. The program was challenging and intensive. But Lake says she was well prepared for it by Shoreland Lutheran High School. In fact, it was a high school guidance counselor who planted the seed in her freshman year.

“It was my first year in high school, and Mr. (Jeff) Dorn handed me a pamphlet to Lawrence and said I might be interested,” Lake says. “At the time, I was just a freshman. I wasn’t even considering college yet. But then, in my junior or senior year, as I was doing auditions, I found the pamphlet. I decided to check it out.”

The fit was perfect, she says. “I went from a small high school with personal attention to a small university with a conservatory and a condensed vocal program where I can aim my concentration.”

Currently residing in Montreal, QC. Lake has been featured in many performances during her time at McGill’s Schulich School of Music. Lake has been in Dean Burry’s newest opera Il guidizio di Pigmalione as Galatea (Cover), Hänsel und Gretel as the Dew Fairy and Gretel (Cover), and featured in scenes as Violetta from Il Traviata and Donna Elvira from Don Giovanni.

This past summer, Lake performed with the Kenosha Opera Festival as Amor in Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice. She was also scheduled to perform Susanna from Le nozze di Figaro with the International Belcanto Academy in Bilthoven, Netherlands, but the performance was canceled due to COVID-19 concerns. Lake has also performed with Chicago Summer Opera as Oberto from Handel’s Alcina and in various scenes as Sofie from Der Rosenkavalier and Gretel from Hänsel und Gretel. With the Lawrence University Opera Department Lake has performed Barbarina in The Marriage of Figaro, Prima Cercatrice and Prima Conversa in Suor Angelica and has been featured in scenes as Laetitia in The Old Maid and the Thief, Adele from Die Fledermaus and Juliette from Gounod’s Romeo et Juliette.

Since Lake was young she has been performing in voice competitions and has won multiple awards. In 2016 she won the Diva Quest Scholarship Competition at 15 years old, and this solidified her love for music and performance. In 2018, she was invited to travel Europe with the Wisconsin Ambassadors of Music as their lead soprano soloist, performing in cities such as London, Paris, Venice and over 6 countries. She was awarded second place in the Wisconsin National Association of Teachers of Singing Competition for classical treble voices in 2019 based on her performance of pieces by Samuel Barber and Franz Schubert. Recently, Lake performed a short recital of art song and aria selections, earning her second place in Sigma Alpha Iota’s Graduate Scholarship Competition.

Lake is currently completing her Master of Music degree at McGill’s Schulich School of Music studying under Dominique Labelle.

“I just have to have singing in my life,” she says. “If I can do that and get paid for it, too, that would be a win!”

Visit: marissalake.com to follow Marissa on her journey!