Miguel Franz Pinto

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Miguel Franz Pinto (August 25, 1940 – September 30, 2006) was a Cuban American vocal coach, conductor, and pianist. He was born in Sagua La Grande, Cuba, and studied piano at Juilliard with Adele Marcus, earning a BA and an MS. From 1975 to 1977 he was the assistant conductor of the New York Philharmonic and the orchestra’s main vocal coach, working with Leonard Bernstein. He later served as head vocal coach at the Festival de Ópera de Las Palmas in Spain (1980–1982) and at the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma summer festival in the late 1990s. Pinto also worked as an accompanist and vocal coach with Opera Australia and the Canadian Opera Company, and he was a regular juror for the Enrico Caruso International Vocal Competition at Carnegie Hall. He coached and accompanied many singers, including Michael Cousins, Eric Cutler, Gilda Cruz-Romo, Alfredo Kraus, Joan Sutherland, Anna Moffo, Carlos Montane, Licia Albanese, and Florence Quivar. In 1991 he joined the University of Northern Iowa voice faculty, teaching there until his death. He died at his home in Cedar Falls, Iowa, from accidental carbon monoxide poisoning, at age 66.