About Monica

Mezzo-soprano, Monica Isomura, has established herself as one of the leading voice teachers in Houston. As a student herself, she trained extensively with many of the most renowned master teachers and coaches in the field, obtaining her doctorate in voice performance from Stony Brook University in 2015. As a professional singer, Monica has performed a great deal on the opera and concert stage, recognized for her uniquely rich voice, musicality, and captivating stage presence. She has sung several roles with Opera in the Heights including Paquette in Candide, Jo March in Little Women, Tisbe in La Cenerentola, and Mrs. Nolan in The Medium. In concert, she most recently performed Respighi’s Il Tramonto with the Westheimer String Quartet, and has sung the mezzo-soprano solos in Dan Forest’s Jubilate Deo, the Durufle Requiem, Bach’s Christmas Oratorio, and the Mozart Requiem with numerous highly-regarded church choirs and orchestras.

From 2014-2017, she was a member of, and frequent soloist with, the Grammy Award winning Houston Chamber Choir. She has appeared in productions and concerts with Da Camera, Lake Charles Summer Music Festival, Lone Star Lyric Opera, Houston Heights Orchestra, and Memorial Classical Music Series. Monica has previously sung with Michigan Opera Theater, The Castleton Festival, Opera in the Ozarks, Opera New Jersey’s Emerging Artist Program, and Toledo Opera’s Opera-on-Wheels. She sang as an alto staff singer and soloist at Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church for four years and is now music director and mezzo-soprano soloist at the Houston Congregation for Reform Judaism.  

She holds a bachelor’s degree from Northwestern University, a master’s degree from the University of Michigan, and a doctorate in voice from Stony Brook University.

A passionate educator, Monica has taught at renowned Houston institutions including The Emery/Weiner School, The Kinkaid School, The Woodlands High School, TUTS Humphrey’s School of Musical Theater, HGOco, Young Audiences of Houston, Lone Star College-Cyfair, and The High School for Performing and Vocal Arts (HSPVA). Monica also served as the Education Coordinator for Opera in the Heights from 2016-2020. She maintains a thriving private voice studio. Monica’s students are highly accomplished young singers who are regularly accepted into the most prestigious programs, awarded honors in competitions, and cast not only in leading roles in their school shows, but in professional productions at the local, national, and international level.