Dr. Dana Lynne Varga holds the Doctor of Musical Arts degree (DMA) in Vocal Performance from Boston University and the Master of Music degree in Voice Performance from the New England Conservatory. A highly sought-after teacher, she runs a thriving private voice studio of over sixty professional singers across the US, UK and China. She has served on the faculties of the Longy School of Music of Bard College, the University of Massachusetts Amherst, the Boston University Tanglewood Institute, Framingham State University and the New England Conservatory Preparatory School. Committed to staying completely up-to-date as a pedagogue, Dr. Varga has attended the Naked Voice institute (levels 1 and 2) with mentor W. Stephen Smith, the Acoustic Vocal Pedagogy seminar with Ian Howell and Ken Bozeman, the vocal pedagogy summit at the Aspen Music Festival and the Foundations in Manual Therapy training course with Walt Fritz, PT.
Dr. Varga has presented for the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) National and New England chapters as well as the Pan-American Vocology Association and the Classical Singer Convention. She's given talks and master classes at Juilliard, New England Conservatory, Boston Conservatory, Boston Univeristy, Cincinnati College-Conservatory, University of Illinois, San Diego State, Converse College, UC Boulder and many more. She will be one of the two NATS New England mentor teachers for 2026-2027.
Dr. Varga studied conducting with Dr. Wayne Abercrombie during my undergrad degree at UMass Amherst, during which time she served as the assistant conductor of the Springfield Children's chorus. She later went on to direct a children's chorus in a Roxbury elementary school through the Metropolitan Opera Guild and two children's choirs at the First Parish Church in Weston, MA. Dr. Varga has also served as the Assistant Conductor and resident “vocal technician” for the Metropolitan Chorale in Brookline. She regularly visits choruses throughout the northeast to provide vocal technique workshops. Her popular online course Vocal Pedagogy for Choral Directors had over 100 participants in 2026. It will run again in January, June and August of 2027.
As a classical soprano, Dr. Varga regularly performs a wide variety of repertoire on the opera and concert stages. Upcoming engagements include the roles of Jemmy in William Tell and La Contessa in Le Nozze di Figaro with Boston Lyric Opera. Dr. Varga recently appeared as the soloist in the Brahms, Mozart and Fauré Requiems as well as Haydn's Lord Nelson Mass at Carnegie Hall. She sang the role of Clorinda in Rossini's La Cenerentola with Boston Lyric Opera in 2023 and created the role of Magistra in new opera The Onion at the Huntington Theatre Maso Studio in 2025. The Boston Globe praised both of her 2019 appearances: as the soprano soloist in Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis with the prestigious Cantata Singers and in the role of Pallas Athene in Paride ed Elena with Odyssey Opera. Dr. Varga was the first place winner of the 2016 Classical Singer National Vocal Competition.
Also an accomplished career coach and lecturer, Dr. Varga is a fierce advocate for musicians, devoted to progressive change in the classical music industry. She helps musicians forge their own unique path and thrive financially. Visit www.theempoweredmusician.com
