Colombian-American soprano Ella Torres performs a diverse variety of music. She is also a passionate performing arts leader and advocate for underrepresented composers in classical music.

Colombian-American soprano Ella Torres performs diverse song, choral, operatic, and early music repertoires.

She particularly enjoys interpreting off-the-beaten-path art songs, Lieder by women composers, and contemporary American works. Ella also loves to collaborate with historical instrumentalists and is particularly fond of Dowland lute songs.

Recent performances include with the Spoleto Festival USA Chorus, as Serpetta in Mozart’s La finta giardiniera (Indiana University (IU) Opera Theatre), Second Woman in Dido and Aeneas (IU Summer Chorus), Princess Dora in Lori Laitman’s The Three Feathers (Opera Steamboat), and Erste Dame in Die Zauberflöte (Chicago Summer Opera).

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Growing up in Wilmette, Illinois, Ella was immersed in music. As a young child, she sang at home, at church, in the grocery store – pretty much everywhere. At least, that is what her parents tell her. Ella’s formal music training began with the violin at age 5. She started taking voice lessons at 12. After formative experiences at Interlochen Arts Camp, ArtsBridge Summer, and the Curtis Institute of Music, she decided to pursue music in college.

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Ella earned her B.M. in voice from the Eastman School of Music at the University of Rochester, studying with Katherine Ciesinski. With Eastman Opera Theatre, she performed Polyxo in Kate Soper’s Here Be Sirens (Suite), Despina in Così fan tutte scenes, as a featured soloist in Our Voices: Ricky Ian Gordon’s Heart Melodies, and in the ensemble of Joseph Bologne’s L’amant anonyme. She also performed frequently with Collegium Musicum, Eastman’s early music ensemble.

Ella received her M.M. in voice from the Jacobs School of Music at the Indiana University (IU), studying with Carol Vaness. With IU Opera Theatre, Ella performed Serpetta in Mozart’s La finta giardiniera and the opera chorus of Ainadamar and L’Étoile. Ella also participated in many choral activities while in Bloomington, Indiana. Highlights include singing with the contemporary music vocal ensemble NOTUS (directed by Dr. Dominick DiOrio), Early Music Student Society, Voices of Concentus (dir. by Dr. Dana Marsh), Conductors’ Chorus, and Compline (dir. by Dr. Jeffrey Smith), and St. Mark’s United Methodist Church (dir. Dr. Gerry Sousa).

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In addition to voice, Ella has a passion for performing arts leadership. At Indiana University, she was the Media Specialist on the Student Leadership Team of the Office of Entrepreneurship and Career Development at the Jacobs School of Music.

While at Eastman, Ella earned an Arts Leadership Certificate through the acclaimed Institute for Music Leadership. Part of her coursework for this certificate included internship with the Fifth House Ensemble (Chicago, IL) and The Hochstein School (Rochester, NY).

Ella was a Hispanic Scholarship Fund Scholar and attended their 2021 Media and Entertainment Summit.

Ella is a proud alumna of Sigma Alpha Iota. She was the recipient of her chapter’s collegiate award and a scholarship for summer music studies. She is also a collegiate initiate of the music honor society Pi Kappa Lambda.

In her free time, Ella enjoys travel, board games, and anything to do with Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

In addition to performing, Colombian-American soprano Ella Torres has a strong passion for performing arts leadership.

During her time at Indiana University, Ella worked at the Jacobs School of Music’s Office of Entrepreneurship and Career Development as the media specialist on the Student Leadership Team. She is a board member and occasional podcast host of What is Opera, Anyway?, a non-profit focused on comprehensive opera education programming for all.

In 2022, Ella received an arts leadership certificate from Eastman’s Institute for Music Leadership. Through this certificate program, she took coursework in donor relations, grant writing, business plan development, audio recording, media, promotion, and marketing. In 2021, Ella interned with Fifth House Ensemble (Chicago, IL) and The Hochstein School of Music and Dance (Rochester, NY).

Through the Hispanic Scholarship Fund, Ella was an HSF Scholar during the 2021-22 academic year and attended their 2021 Media and Entertainment Summit. Additionally, Ella is a proud alumna of Sigma Alpha Iota. She held leadership positions in her collegiate chapter every semester. She is a current member of the alumnae association.

For more, check out Ella's administrative resume here.