Mary Johnston Letellier, Soprano and Vocal Coach

There is an energy around people who are in the moment living their art. Mary Johnston Letellier seems to always be in the zone. A true artist of her craft and an amazing singer and it was a pleasure photographing portraits for her artistic endeavors.

Mary was born in Maine and left to further her studies in voice and now has returned. Recently appointed as an adjunct member of the University of Southern Maine School of Music voice faculty, she is devoted to sharing the art of singing with everyone. Especially opera. As a lyric coloratura soprano, she performs on a regular basis and is one of the founders of the Opera On Tap Maine chapter. I can attest that her voice is absolutely magical and her expression is simply enthralling, even when singing opera in a bar for Opera On Tap.

We sat down after our photoshoot to talk about her connection to music and what drives her. The passion of getting everyone to sing and embracing their own voice, no matter how flawed it might be, is the underlying force. Mary mentions having an epiphany while taking a break from music and listening to a lot of pop music on the radio. She says it was the fact that these people are famous for their unique, flawed, voice. It helped her embrace and love her voice even though it wasn’t perfect. That is what made it perfect. This mentality is one that she looks to share with her students while giving them the tools to train their voices. She also has a very active voice studio, aside from her university duties, The Mary Johnston Letellier Voice Studio.

I firmly believe in balancing the science and art of singing together to form a cohesive, healthy and beautiful singing voice.

Mary Johnston Letellier