K A Y L E I G H   D E C K E R

Praised for her "shimmering mezzo-soprano" and a voice of "pure vocal gold," American mezzo-soprano Kayleigh Decker has quickly garnered an international reputation for her magnetic artistry and versatility in opera and on the concert platform.

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Highlights of the 2026/27 season include her house debut as Cherubino in Le Nozze di Figaro with Los Angeles Opera, as well as a return to Staatsoper Hamburg to reprise the role of Zephyrus in Christopher Rüping's experimental musical theatre project, Die große Stille— a role she created in her house debut with the company last season. On the concert stage, her season includes debuts with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra (Handel’s Messiah under John Butt), the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra (Haydn’s Nelson Mass under Carlos Miguel Prieto), the Holland Symphony Orchestra (Marx’s Verklärtes Jahr), and the BBC Symphony Orchestra (Lili Boulanger’s Faust et Helene under Yazuki Yamada,) alongside a return to Chicago’s Apollo Chorus as a soloist in Handel’s Messiah.

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Ms. Decker’s recent operatic triumphs include house and role debuts across North America and Europe as Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni) with Staatsoper Stuttgart and Florentine Opera, Dorabella (Così fan tutte) for Dallas Opera and Welsh National Opera, Ruggiero in Handel’s Alcina with Les Violons du Roy, as Wellgunde in Das Rheingold with Opéra de Monte-Carlo, and Cherubino at Lyric Opera of Chicago, alongside a cover of the role at The Metropolitan Opera. Equally at home in contemporary repertoire, she earned critical acclaim in her debut as Erika in Barber’s Vanessa at the Festival dei Due Mondi in Spoleto, and in the title role of Philip Glass’s La Belle et la Bête for Atlanta Opera. Her versatility extends further to Rossini in appearances as Isolier in Le Comte Ory at Lyric Opera of Chicago as well as a cover of Angelina in La Cenerentola for Boston Lyric Opera.

On the concert platform, Ms. Decker’s credits include Stravinsky's Les Noces with the San Francisco Symphony and Orchestre de Paris under Esa-Pekka Salonen, Handel's Messiah with the Seattle Symphony and the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Mozart’s Requiem with the Orchestra of Welsh National Opera, Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 with the Colburn Orchestra in collaboration with the LA Philharmonic, Mahler’s Symphony No. 8 with the Grant Park Music Festival, and Ethel Smyth’s Mass in D with the Cathedral Choral Society and the Baltimore Symphony.

A passionate art song performer, she was a Schwab Vocal Rising Star at Caramoor and a participant in the inaugural season of Renée Fleming’s SongStudio at Carnegie Hall. She has been a frequent guest of the Cincinnati Song Initiative and Chicago's Beyond the Aria series at the Harris Theatre. In January of 2020, she curated and performed a highly acclaimed recital with pianist Madeline Slettefahl featuring the songs of women composers and women's suffrage in celebration of the centennial of the 19th amendment for Carnegie Hall's Citywide series.

Ms. Decker is an alumna of the Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, and an alumna of the young artist programs of the Glimmerglass Festival, Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, and the Utah Festival Opera. She graduated with honors from Oberlin Conservatory studying under Marlene Rosen and Tim LeFebvre, and the University of Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music where she studied with William McGraw. Her exceptional artistry has been recognized by several awards over the years including a Sara Tucker Study Grant from the Richard Tucker Music Foundation, and a fellowship from the Luminarts Cultural Foundation. 

Kayleigh began her musical journey at the age of four in Suzuki violin lessons, and continued her instrumental studies later with the bassoon. She currently resides in California.