HGO opera coach, Rice professor radiated enthusiasm
Miah Im was brimming with enthusiasm, remembers Houston Grand Opera studio director Brian Speck.
Im, who died of cancer Sept. 30 at age 47, worked closely with Speck as HGO Studio’s music director, where she coached individual artists and curated the recital series. The two met frequently last summer as the students’ digital recitals approached.
Im would often be coming from a coaching session and tell Speck such things as, “You’re not going to believe what you hear when you get the chance to hear this — it’s so exciting to see what kind of strides they’re making,” he recalls.
“Her joy in that was just incredibly encouraging and uplifting to everyone who worked with her,” he says.
A Toronto native, Im was also on the faculty of Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, where she served as professor of opera and director of opera studies. Besides overseeing two virtual Rice Opera productions, “Der Kaiser von Atlantis” in October 2020 and “L’enfant et les sortilèges” this past June, the acclaimed pianist was a trusted source of firsthand insight to her students.
“Everything that she did was geared toward knowing what the professional landscape looks like, what’s required of these young voices and young people, who are essentially Olympic athletes of the stage,” says Shepherd School dean Matthew Loden. “She knew exactly what it would take to launch careers — and if not to launch careers, to at least give people the tools that they need to be able to express themselves individually. That’s a gift.”
In a highly competitive environment, Loden says Im was the opposite of the stereotypical professor who teaches through fear and intimidation — instead, her connection with her students flowed from kindness, empathy and creating a safe environment.
“Not everybody is going to be singing at the Met, or La Scala, or pick a place; that’s just not the way the world works,” notes Loden. “But everybody who came through the program, or one way or another who was touched by Miah, they all had a sense of possibility, and they all had a sense that they were being cared for in the best possible way, with people who knew exactly what it takes to actually succeed in this business.”
“I think (students) really took her advice to heart in a big way,” offers Speck. “Very open. Warm. I think they felt that when they were working with her, (there was) a great deal of artistic freedom that came from an environment that was free from judgment and full of support.”
Im’s death from pancreatic cancer, just a few months after being diagnosed, has left both HGO and the Shepherd School reeling. However, says Loden, “We wanted to make sure that we could, in many ways, honor Miah’s work by essentially making sure that the show goes on.” (Rice Opera’s next performances are TBD.)
Before coming to Houston, Im spent five years with LA Opera as director of music staff, where she worked closely with emerging singers and pianists in the Domingo-Colburn-Stein Young Artists program. Among many others, she also held positions at the University of Toronto’s opera school, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Wolf Trap Opera and the Aspen Music Festival and School.
Additionally, Im served on the steering committee of Opera America’s Women’s Opera Network, which works to advance gender equity within the traditionally male-dominated art form.
“An incredible musician and leader within the company, she will be remembered not only for her contributions to our collective artistry but for her enthralling humanity — her friendly greetings, bright smile and the delicious baked goods she’d share just because,” LA Opera said on Twitter last week.
Im had not been with either HGO or Rice very long, joining both in mid-2020. But she left a lasting impression.
“Miah was someone who, through her encouragement and her connection and her openness, and just as a good person, she found ways to get people to actually be better than they thought they could be,” says Loden.
“She just took such joy in everything she did,” adds Speck. “She was a really vivacious person who never did anything halfhearted. She was 100 percent in.”
Rice is planning a memorial at a date to be determined. Details will be posted on music.rice.edu.