A A R O N S H O R T
B i o g r a p h y
Hailed by The New York Times as “simultaneously subtle and shattering” and praised by Opera News for his “robust, mature tenor that has the flexibility to be tender and plaintive one minute, then ringing and vibrant the next,” Aaron Short is a dynamic tenor with an impressive career spanning opera, concert, and teaching.
As a performer, Aaron has sung leading and featured roles with national and international opera companies and symphonies. His recent and upcoming engagements include Farmer Bunce in Fantastic Mr. Fox with Opera Omaha, the tenor soloist in Verdi’s Requiem with the Knoxville Symphony, Piquillo in Songbird with the Florentine Opera, and the Narrator in A Christmas Carol with Chicago Fringe Opera. He also covered the role of Jason in Jason and the Argonauts with Lyric Opera of Chicago’s Lyric Unlimited.
In Spring 2022, Aaron made his debut with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra as the Servant to Amelia in Un ballo in maschera under the baton of Maestro Riccardo Muti. Other notable engagements include Edgardo in Lucia di Lammermoor with Knoxville Opera, a role he later reprised for his European debut at the Festival Lyrique-en-Mer. He debuted with the Dallas Opera in 2019 as the First Armored Man in Die Zauberflöte. Additional credits include Sam in Susannah with Nashville Opera, Alméric in the Chicago premiere of Iolanta and Flask in Moby-Dick with Chicago Opera Theater, and Dr. Osborn in Rhoda and the Fossil Hunt with Lyric Opera of Chicago’s Lyric Unlimited.
A former resident artist with Portland Opera (2016–2017), Aaron received critical acclaim for his portrayal of Lensky in Eugene Onegin. He also performed Ferrando in Così fan tutte and covered lead roles, such as Tamino in The Magic Flute and Rodolfo in La bohème. As an Apprentice Artist with Santa Fe Opera during the summers of 2014 and 2015, Aaron performed the First Prisoner in Fidelio and the Fourth Jew in Salome. Between 2013 and 2015, he fulfilled a Studio Artist residency with Florentine Opera, performing the Steuermann in Der fliegende Holländer and Lockwood in Carlisle Floyd's Wuthering Heights, a production which the company documented on the opera's first-ever commercial recording. Additional young artist residencies include Chautauqua Opera, Wolf Trap Opera, and Opera in the Ozarks.
Aaron is featured in several professional recordings, including three Grammy-nominated recordings: Cold Mountain (Santa Fe Opera), Cavalleria Rusticana (Chicago Symphony Orchestra), and Wuthering Heights (Florentine Opera). He is the recipient of several awards, most notably a 2018 George London Foundation Award, Grant Award from the Santa Fe Opera, the Singer of the Year Award at the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) West-Central Regional Competition, and Second Place at the Upper Midwest Regional Round of Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions.
Beyond performance, Aaron is an accomplished educator. He is currently a voice instructor at North Central College, having previously taught private voice lessons and “History of Opera” at Northwestern University. He also teaches voice at Senn High School and Solorio Academy High School through Michael Fabiano’s mentorship program ArtSmart. He has been a guest voice teacher at Northwestern’s Intensive Vocal Performance Seminar for four summers and led masterclasses at Northwestern University, North Central College, the Hainan International Music Festival in China, and Festival Lyrique-en-Mer in France.
A native of Kansas City, Aaron holds a Doctor of Musical Arts (D.M.A.) in Voice and Opera Performance from Northwestern University, where he also pursued a cognate in Music Education, studying with Pamela Hinchman. He completed his Master of Music in Voice Performance at Manhattan School of Music, where he performed roles such as Captain Bégearss (The Ghosts of Versailles), Nicias (Thaïs), and Jimmy Mahoney (Aufstieg und Fall der Stadt Mahagonny) and Bachelor of Music in Voice Performance at Wichita State University. He currently resides in Chicago with his wife and dog, Shakira.