Music Department Faculty

Timothy W. Sparks
Adjunct Faculty

Office: 208 Hill Hall
Email: tws810@nc.rr.com
Phone: 919-843-2044

Timothy W. Sparks Tenor Timothy W. Sparks, a North Carolina native, has appeared with The Israel Vocal Arts Institute, Operafestival di Roma, The Opera Company of North Carolina, The Greensboro Opera Company, The Triangle Opera, The National Opera Company (A. J. Fletcher Opera Institute), The Brevard Music Center, Capital Opera Raleigh, and The Durham Savoyards, Limited. His representative operatic roles include Rodolfo, Nemorino, Don Ottavio, Jaquino, Alfred, Don Basilio, Goro, Remendado, Spoletta, Borsa, Kaspar, Ralph Rackstraw, and Enoch Snow. With a commitment to contemporary music, Mr. Sparks has participated in the premiere of several new stage works by Joel Feigin, Benton Hess, Tom Lohr and Zachary Wadsworth. As a part of The Opera Company of North Carolina’s 2002 performances of Starbird a children’s opera by Henry Mollicone, the production was videotaped and rebroadcast on PBS in April of 2005. In October of 2005, Mr. Sparks performed the role of Sebastian in Long Leaf Opera’s world premiere production of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, by Joel Feigin. In October of 2006, Mr. Sparks sang the role of Anatol in Long Leaf Opera’s production of Vanessa by Samuel Barber. This fall, Mr. Sparks will record the Arnold Schönberg chamber transcription of Gustav Mahler's final symphonic work, Das Lied von der Erde, on the Centaur Records label.

In concert, Mr. Sparks has appeared with the Hochschule der Künste in Berlin, The Canton Symphony Orchestra, The Statesboro-Georgia Southern Symphony, The North Carolina Symphony, The Breckenridge Music Institute and Festival, The University of Notre Dame, The Duke Artists Concert Series, The Smedes Parlor Concert Series at St. Mary's School, The North Carolina Bach Festival, The North Carolina Master Chorale, The Concert Singers of Cary, The Chapel Hill-Carrboro Community Chorus, The Choral Society of Greensboro, The Greensboro Oratorio Society, The Chamber Orchestra of the Triangle, The Tar River Orchestra and Chorus, The Coastal Carolina Community Chorus, and The Hillyer Community Chorus. Mr. Sparks has performed the tenor solos in many oratorio and concert works by Bach, Beethoven, Britten, Handel, Hayden, Mahler, Mendelssohn, Mozart, Alice Parker, Puccini, Respighi, Rossini, Saint-Saëns, and Schubert. Equally comfortable in operatic roles, oratorio, or as a recitalist, Mr. Sparks is active as a soloist throughout North Carolina and the United States, with representation by Sonia Lewis of RCAM Artist Management. In April of 2006, Mr. Sparks returned to Ohio as the tenor soloist for the Canton Symphony Orchestra’s 25th Anniversary celebration performance of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony.

Mr. Sparks received his BM in Vocal Performance from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and MM with the Performer's Certificate in Voice from the Eastman School of Music. He is also a member of the Pi Kappa Lambda Music Honor Society. Mr. Sparks currently serves as an Instructor of Voice at UNC-Chapel Hill and was an Instructor of Voice and Diction at Meredith College for ten years. Furthermore, Mr. Sparks is an active adjudicator, a member of N.A.T.S., having served as a state district officer and as the Mid-Atlantic Regional Governor (2003-2005). His teachers include Joel R.
Adams, Fredric Moses, Dr. Terry Rhodes, and John Maloy. Mr. Sparks lives in Raleigh, N.C. with his wife Amy, and two sons, Jason and Dylan.

Personal website

Reviews:

Venus and Adonis/Adonis/Long Leaf Opera

“Tim Sparks’ firmly produced tenor easily negotiated Adonis’ unusual lines and lengthy vocalise.” Roy C. Dicks/The News and Observer



Vanessa/Anatol/Long Leaf Opera

“The most solid performance Sunday afternoon at UNC’s Memorial Hall came
from tenor Timothy Sparks as the young lover who seduces Erika and then
courts Vanessa. Anatol is completely lacking in either malice or scruples;
his goal is simply to marry one of these women. Vocally and dramatically
the part calls for the singer to project a sense of ease, even carelessness
(if the way you earn money is to marry it, you can’t afford to let anyone
see you working hard), and Sparks nailed it with a combination of power and
control, with a lovely head voice in the highest notes.” Barbara
Norton/Independent Weekly



Starbird/Dog/Opera Company of North Carolina

“Musically, the opera is in the best of hands. Timothy Sparks turns in one
of his best portrayals as the dog, combining charming physicality with
clear, pliant vocalism.” Roy C. Dicks/The News and Observer



Carousel/Enoch Snow/Brevard Music Center

“Timothy W. Sparks, as the comic second lead…Enoch Snow, almost walked off
with the show with…expertise in character projection and splendid singing.”
John Bridges/Asheville Citizen Times



Madama Butterfly/Goro/Greensboro Opera Company

“The marriage broker Goro was vigorously sung by Timothy Sparks. His
singing added a dimension not always found in this character.” Tim
Linderman/News and Record