BIOGRAPHY
Donna Breitzer, mezzo-soprano, is a New York City-based performer, voice teacher, and arts leader whose career encompasses the concert stage, the voice studio, and nonprofit arts administration. An in-demand member of New York’s professional choral and ensemble community, she enjoys an active and varied schedule of concert, recital and solo performances balanced with a deep commitment to teaching and to NYC's vibrant arts scene.
An active ensemble singer, Donna performs regularly with many of New York’s leading professional vocal ensembles and orchestras, including Voices of Ascension, the Bard Festival Chorale, American Classical Orchestra, New York Virtuoso Singers, the New York Philharmonic, and the American Symphony Orchestra. She has sung with many of New York City’s premier professional church and temple choirs, and is currently a member of the choir of The Church of St. Luke in the Fields. Recent performance highlights include solo appearances with the choir of Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church, the American Classical Orchestra, the St. George's Choral Society, and the Brooklyn Conservatory Community Orchestra, as well as recurring performances in New York Festival of Song’s beloved annual holiday cabaret, A Goyishe Christmas to You! She has presented recitals for the American Society of Jewish Music and the Art Song at Old Stone House series in Brooklyn, among others.
Donna’s operatic credits include several productions as a member of the Associate Chorus (formerly Extra Chorus) of the Metropolitan Opera, which she joined in 2014. Additional highlights include solo roles with Dicapo Opera Theatre, American Lyric Theater, dell’Arte Opera Ensemble, Opera Manhattan, and other New York-based companies. She was praised by The New York Times for offering “solid work” and by Opera News for singing “strongly and with character” as Assunta in The Saint of Bleecker Street with Dicapo Opera Theatre, where she served as a Resident Artist for two seasons. Earlier in her career, she was an Apprentice Artist with Bel Canto at Caramoor, spent two summers at the International Vocal Arts Institute in Tel Aviv, and performed with organizations including Opera Providence, American Repertory Theater, and the Encore Theatre Company in Jerusalem. She is also a former member of the Handel and Haydn Society’s Educational Outreach Quartet.
Donna has maintained a private voice studio since 2001, working with singers of all ages and at every stage of their musical lives, from adults who sing for their own enjoyment to emerging and working professionals. Her evidence-based approach to vocal pedagogy is informed by current voice science, and her teaching encompasses a broad range of styles including classical, musical theater, jazz, contemporary, and sacred music. Donna earned an Advanced Certificate in Vocal Pedagogy from New York University in 2025 while serving as Adjunct Instructor of Voice.
In 2007, Donna co-founded Five Boroughs Music Festival, one of New York City’s leading chamber music presenting organizations, and served as its Executive Director through 2024. Under her leadership, 5BMF grew into a vital part of New York City’s cultural life, presenting outstanding, affordable, and accessible chamber music in all five boroughs each year. She has continued to serve on 5BMF's board since stepping down as Executive Director. Today, she works with nonprofit arts organizations as a grant writer and consultant, drawing on nearly two decades of experience in arts leadership, fundraising, organizational strategy, and program development.
Originally from Saratoga, California, Donna earned Bachelor of Music and Bachelor of Arts degrees from the University of Michigan, a Master of Music degree in Voice from the New England Conservatory of Music, and completed post-graduate studies at New York University. She lives in Park Slope, Brooklyn, with her husband, Cantor Joshua Breitzer, and their two sons.
Updated October 2026