Dr. Troy Castle has been recognized for his 鈥渞obust鈥 bass-baritone voice (The Greenville News), the regional and national success of his voice students, and the quality of his original research. He has covered and performed leading stage roles, including Mr. Laurence in Little Women: The Broadway Musical, Capulet in Gounod鈥檚 Rome虂o et Juliette, Melchior in Menotti鈥檚 Amahl and the Night Visitors, the title role in Puccini鈥檚 Gianni Schicchi, and Bartolo in Rossini鈥檚 Il Barbiere di Siviglia. His major concert credits include featured solo performances in Zelenka鈥檚 Litaniae Omnium Sanctorum, Brahms鈥檚 Requiem,&苍产蝉辫;贬补苍诲别濒鈥檚 Messiah, Mendelssohn鈥檚 Elijah and St. Paul, Mozart鈥檚 Requiem, and Handel鈥檚 Chandos Anthem No. 9. He has collaborated with regional and university ensembles for concert performances that include excerpts from many selections in the operatic, musical theatre and song canons. His performance output also includes numerous collaborative and solo recitals encompassing a broad range of literature, and in 2011 he participated in a Lieder seminar and concert under the direction of world-renowned performer and pedagogue John O鈥機onor.
In 2023, Dr. Castle was the national second-place winner in the American Prize in Vocal Performance Friedrich and Virginia Schorr Memorial Award (men鈥檚 division). He was a finalist in the 鈥淢en in Opera鈥 category of the 2020 American Prize award and was a 2019 finalist for the 鈥淢en in Oratorio/Art Song鈥 category and the Chicago Oratorio Award of the same. In 2017, he was a finalist in the artist division of the National Opera Association鈥檚 Carolyn Bailey and Dominick Argento vocal competition. He was twice a regional runner-up in the highly competitive (NATS) Artist Award competition (2010 & 2012). During his graduate and postgraduate studies, he was the Shenandoah Conservatory soloist competition winner and received the Grace Levinson and Richard Veale awards for his performances.
Named an 鈥淓merging Leader鈥 by NATS in 2020, Dr. Castle was also the co-recipient of the 2015 Shenandoah Conservatory 鈥淒ean鈥檚 Graduate Scholar Award鈥 which recognizes exceptional aptitude for research and scholarship, and his research on the elite operatic baritone voice has been presented at the annual symposium of The Voice Foundation and at national and regional NATS conferences. He is a Level III trained instructor in Somatic Voicework鈩⑩擳he LoVetri Method and has completed post-certification training in pop/rock singing styles. In addition to the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in voice pedagogy from Shenandoah Conservatory, he also holds a master鈥檚 degree in voice performance and an undergraduate degree in church music.
Dr. Castle is an active member of NATS and the (PAVA), and his engagement with current trends in voice research and the emerging field of vocology informs his instruction. He was actively involved in PAVA鈥檚 recent effort to establish a 鈥淩ecognized Vocologist鈥 credential while earning the distinction of becoming one of the first Recognized Vocologists in the PAVA-RV cohort. He is also a past Vice President of the Central Illinois NATS chapter. His students have enjoyed success in their performance endeavors, winning and placing in regional and national competitions, being accepted into competitive graduate programs and performing in a variety of regional, national and international venues.
A frequent adjudicator of voice competitions, Dr. Castle has also presented numerous masterclasses, workshops and lectures, with a particular focus on the resonance strategies of the operatic baritone voice. He has served as the Coordinator of Vocal Studies at Millikin University since 2020 and continues to perform regularly in addition to his teaching and research pursuits.