Mezzo-Soprano VANESSA CARIDDI made her professional operatic debut at the METROPOLITAN OPERA at the age of 26, in a new production of Salome, starring Karita Mattila and Bryn Terfel. Since that time, Ms. Cariddi has continued singing at the Met (Rusalka, American Tragedy, Die Walküre) and was with the Met as the company toured Japan in June 2006 singing the role of Waltraute (Die Walküre) in a stellar cast that included Placido Domingo, Deborah Voigt, Rene Pape, and James Morris, among others.

In Spring of 2008, Vanessa will be making her role debut of Dorabella in Cosi fan Tutte with Sarasota Opera, where her portrayal of Suzuki in 2007 earned her rave reviews in the local, national, and international press, and for which she was awarded the Kern Award for Artist of the Year.

Recent roles include Carmen for both New York City Opera and Opera Grand Rapids, Suzuki with Sarasota Opera (Madama Butterfly), Maddalena (Rigoletto), and Nicklausse (Tales of Hoffman). She also recently sang the lead role in the workshop of Prima Donna, the latest opera commission from the Met by singer-songwriter Rufus Wainwright.

Vanessa was twice a vocal fellow at the Tanglewood Music Center, which focuses heavily on art song. She recitals with collaborator Ben Binder, whom she met while the two performed in Mahler's Des Knaben Wunderhorn at Tanglewood. They perform the music of Sibelius, Granados, Debussy, Barber, and Strauss, among others, and will be performing in several cities in the upcoming season.

A native of Maine, she is a graduate of the Manhattan School of Music, and New York University. She lives in New York City where she studies with Ms. Joan Caplan.