Background
Williams grew up in Billings, Montana and appeared in operas and concerts as a boy soprano in the western United States.
Williams grew up in Billings, Montana and appeared in operas and concerts as a boy soprano in the western United States.
He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in theater from the University of Utah in Salt Lake City.
He continued his studies at the Staatliche Hochschule für Musik in Munich, Germany, studying with Ernst Haefliger, Kurt Böhme, and Kurt Moll. He began his professional career with the Trier, Germany opera, with regular engagements with the Landestheater in Kiel and the theater in Krefeld. In 1989, he became the regular bass at the Deutsche Oper am Rhein in Düsseldorf.
He has had a far-flung international career, appearing in many of the major opera houses of Europe and the United States, as well as in Japan.
His signature roles are Baron Ochs von Lerchenau in Richard Strauss"s Der Rosenkavalier (a role that he has performed in over 22 productions all over the world), Sarastro in Mozart"s The Magic Flute, and King Philip in Giuseppe Verdi"s Don Carlos, but he sings many roles that are rarely attempted by other basses because of his tremendous range. He has recently added Strauss"s Die schweigsame Frau to his repertoire, and in June 2005, he sang in a production of Strauss"s Daphne in Louisiana Fenice theater in Venice, Italy with June Anderson.
He appears on a Digital Video Disc of Rosenkavalier recorded live at the Teatro Massimo in Palermo which is in general distribution. This Civil Defense is available on the shopping channel, but is not yet in general distribution.