Amanda Leader (Mezzo-Soprano) is an Orange County-based singer/vocalist specializing in opera/classical music, sacred music, and cabaret. Currently Amanda is the full time soloist at the First Church of Christ Scientist, Laguna Beach, sings with Long Beach Opera as one of their education artists and participates with their opera outreach programs, and is an adjunct faculty member at Santa Ana College in the music department. In addition to Amanda’s music engagements, she is also a speech therapist, and works with clients and students across the age spectrum. She is currently a speech therapist with the Irvine Unified School District. Amanda has been seen in concert with the Mirror Visions Ensemble with composer/pianist, Richard Pearson Thomas, a member of the Liederabend Concert featuring guest artist and vocal coach/pianist from Dresden, Germany, Michael Schütze, participated as a soloist in a German Lieder program in Trossingen, Germany, and has been involved with several opera productions throughout Southern California in leading/supporting roles. Her favorite roles that she has performed have been Prince Orlofsky in Die Fledermaus, and the depressed/materialistic housewife, Sally in A Hand of Bridge. Amanda is the proud finalist in the 2015 Concerto/Aria Competition at CSUF School of Music, First Place winner of the NATS-LA Region Graduate Women Scholarship Competition, and the recipient of the prestigious Lotte Johnson Vocal Scholarship. In addition to her singing and speech therapy engagements, Amanda maintains her small business Crafted Voice and Speech in Orange County, as a Singing Voice Specialist where she coaches beginner to advanced voice students, and works with professional voice users on vocal health. Amanda holds a Masters of Music in Voice Performance from The Fullerton School of Music, a Bachelor of Arts in Music: Voice Performance from The Crane School of Music, a Bachelor of Arts in Communication from The State University of New York at Potsdam in Potsdam, NY, and an Associates of Science degree as a Speech Language Pathology Assistant

from Santa Ana College. Originally a native of Syracuse, NY; Amanda now resides in Irvine, CA.