Dr. Caroline O’Dwyer is a mezzo-soprano from Connecticut with a passion for both performance and pedagogy. As an active concert soloist, Caroline has performed with numerous ensembles, including the New Haven Symphony Orchestra and Greater Middletown Chorale, Orchestra New England, the Eastern Connecticut Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, and the Waterbury Chorale, the Nutmeg Symphony Orchestra, the Eastman Philharmonia, the Cordancia Chamber Orchestra, the Warwick Symphony Orchestra, the Skidmore Orchestra, and the Park Church Chamber. Orchestra. On the operatic stage, Caroline debuted the role of Miriam "Ma" Ferguson in the world premiere of Douglas Buchanan's Sackler Award-winning opera, Bessie and Ma (University of Connecticut, 2019). Other roles include: Prince Charmant (Cendrillon), Catherine (Le Mariage aux lanternes), the Abbess (Suor Angelica), Cherubino (Le nozze di Figaro), Cousin Hebe (H.M.S. Pinafore), Hansel (Hansel and Gretel), and Prince Orlofsky (Die Fledermaus), and Petra (A Little Night Music).
Equally engaged as a recitalist, Caroline made her professional European debut in 2013 with pianist Sonja Schönamsgruber. As a duo, they performed art song recitals in the Bavarian towns of Leutershausen and Dinkelsbühl, Germany. Their program garnered enthusiastic reviews from local critics: Volker Schmidt of the Fränkische Landeszeitung wrote, “Caroline O’Dwyer sang with high virtuosity and drama in an expressive, lyric mezzo-soprano voice...Highly sensitive, she sang from her heart, from her soul, with much poignancy and a warm color.” The following year, she was invited back to Germany for a second recital performance with Sonja and her husband, baritone Ronny Rickfelder. Recognized for her sensitive interpretation of art song, in 2018, Caroline was a national semi-finalist for the prestigious NATS Artist Award, and was a finalist in the 2013 Jessie Kneisel Lieder Competition.
As dedicated to pedagogy as she is to performance, Caroline has been a member of the classical voice faculty at the University of Rhode Island since 2018. There, she is a three-time recipient of the "University Artist Series" grant, which supports innovative faculty performances. In demand as a visiting clinician, Caroline served as the guest vocal instructor at the 36th Annual Ogontz Choral Workshop sponsored by the Ogontz Arts Foundation in New Hampshire (summer 2025). She has been a guest artist at Bowling Green State University (fall 2024), where she presented a solo-recital and voice master-class with pianist Heather Goldman. She has also presented her master-class entitled "Mindfulness for Musicians" for numerous organizations, in which she demonstrates how yoga-based meditation and breathing practices can help alleviate performance anxiety and improve vocal technique and musicianship. She has also lent her expertise as a judge for the Rhode Island Civic Orchestra Vocal Competition and the NATS Student auditions.
Caroline holds degrees from the University of Connecticut (B.M. and D.M.A.) and the Eastman School of Music (M.M. and is also a certified yoga instructor. She resides in Coventry, Connecticut, with her husband, Steve and their cat, Harry. While not performing or teaching voice and yoga, you can find her racing and riding bikes around New England, baking bread, and traveling.
Equally engaged as a recitalist, Caroline made her professional European debut in 2013 with pianist Sonja Schönamsgruber. As a duo, they performed art song recitals in the Bavarian towns of Leutershausen and Dinkelsbühl, Germany. Their program garnered enthusiastic reviews from local critics: Volker Schmidt of the Fränkische Landeszeitung wrote, “Caroline O’Dwyer sang with high virtuosity and drama in an expressive, lyric mezzo-soprano voice...Highly sensitive, she sang from her heart, from her soul, with much poignancy and a warm color.” The following year, she was invited back to Germany for a second recital performance with Sonja and her husband, baritone Ronny Rickfelder. Recognized for her sensitive interpretation of art song, in 2018, Caroline was a national semi-finalist for the prestigious NATS Artist Award, and was a finalist in the 2013 Jessie Kneisel Lieder Competition.
As dedicated to pedagogy as she is to performance, Caroline has been a member of the classical voice faculty at the University of Rhode Island since 2018. There, she is a three-time recipient of the "University Artist Series" grant, which supports innovative faculty performances. In demand as a visiting clinician, Caroline served as the guest vocal instructor at the 36th Annual Ogontz Choral Workshop sponsored by the Ogontz Arts Foundation in New Hampshire (summer 2025). She has been a guest artist at Bowling Green State University (fall 2024), where she presented a solo-recital and voice master-class with pianist Heather Goldman. She has also presented her master-class entitled "Mindfulness for Musicians" for numerous organizations, in which she demonstrates how yoga-based meditation and breathing practices can help alleviate performance anxiety and improve vocal technique and musicianship. She has also lent her expertise as a judge for the Rhode Island Civic Orchestra Vocal Competition and the NATS Student auditions.
Caroline holds degrees from the University of Connecticut (B.M. and D.M.A.) and the Eastman School of Music (M.M. and is also a certified yoga instructor. She resides in Coventry, Connecticut, with her husband, Steve and their cat, Harry. While not performing or teaching voice and yoga, you can find her racing and riding bikes around New England, baking bread, and traveling.