Baritone Charles Austin Piper is from Johnstown, Ohio. He graduated from Otterbein University in the spring of 2017 with a B.M. in Vocal Performance. At Otterbein, he performed roles such as Count Robinson in Cimarosa’s Il Matrimonio Segreto, King Melchoir in Menotti’s Amahl and the Night Visitors, and Mr. Gobineau in Menotti’s The Medium; the same year, he worked with Opera Columbus and their production of Bizet’s Carmen as a member of the chorus. In 2019, he received a Master of Music in Vocal Performance at Kent State University. At Kent State, he performed the role of Dr. Falke in Strauss’s Die Fledermaus, Top in Copland’s The Tenderland, and debuted the role of Brently in Scott Little’s The Story of an Hour. In the spring of 2018, he performed in the chorus of Cleveland Opera Theatre’s professional debut of Dawn Sonntag’s Verlorene Heimat, and was the bass soloist in the Cleveland Chamber Choir’s performance of Johann Sebastian Bach’s Lobet Gott in seinen Reichen. He studied at The American Institute of Musical Studies in Graz, Austria in 2018, where he received the Harold Heiberg Liedersänger Preis for outstanding lieder performance. In 2018, he won first place in the Advanced Men category at the NATS Ohio Competition. Most recently, he has worked with The Ohio Light Opera company performing various roles.