Chicago Fringe Opera

SOUNDS of PRIDE 2026! featured composer, MATTHEW RECIO, has collaborated with poets, writers, and artists across the globe to bring text to life in the concert hall and on the theatrical stage. He was a Vanguard Emerging Opera Composer with Chicago Opera Theater where he wrote his one-act, The Puppy Episode with esteemed librettist Royce Vavrek, winning Recio the American Prize Award for Opera. As a G. Schirmer/Hal Leonard Artist, Recio has collaborated with many of the vocal groups and organizations in Chicago such as the LYNX Project, Ear Taxi Festival, Rush Hour Concert Series, Stare at the Sun, Chicago Fringe Opera, Fourth Coast Ensemble, Ravinia, the STEANS Institute, Chicago Art Song, Chicago Opera Theater, and WFMT. Recio’s works have been recorded by Luminous Records for Ryan Strand’s vocal album Dear Mrs. Kennedy, Klavier Records for William Stowman’s album A Timeless Place, Decameron Opera Coalition’s
album DOC the halls, and BCM&D Records for Kathryn Leemhuis’s newest vocal album, to be released in 2026. While having strong roots in the Chicago arts scene, his works have also been heard in concert
halls and institutions across the world. Recio is currently on faculty at DePaul School of Music as a professor of musicianship. https://www.matthewrecio.com/