Michael Ballam has had an operatic and recital career spanning three decades and four continents. A native of Logan, Utah, Mr. Ballam has performed in the major concert halls of America, Europe, Asia, Russia and the Middle East, with command performances at the Vatican and the White House. His operatic repertoire includes more than 600 performances of over 70 major roles. He has shared the stage with the world's greatest singers, including Joan Sutherland, Kiri Te Kanawa, Birgit Nilsson, and Placido Domingo, performing regularly with such companies as the Chicago Lyric, San Francisco, Santa Fe, Dallas, Washington, Philadelphia, St. Louis and San Diego Operas.

As a recitalist, Mr. Ballam has performed with critical acclaim in some of the most important concert halls in the country, including the Kennedy Center (Washington DC), Orchestra Hall (Chicago), Jordan Hall (Boston), Jones Hall (Houston), and the Los Angeles Music Center.

At the age of 24, Mr. Ballam became the youngest recipient of the degree of Doctor of Music with Distinction in the history of the prestigious Indiana University. He is a Professor of Music at Utah State University and an accomplished pianist and oboist.

Mr. Ballam also currently serves as General Director of the Utah Festival Opera, a company he founded in 1993. It has become one of the nation's major summer festivals, with growing national critical acclaim.

With all of Mr. Ballam's professional and academic achievements, he is most comfortable at the bedside of a terminally ill patient singing a favorite melody of hope, or volunteering in the class room enlightening children to the magic and wonder of Mozart and Beethoven.