Irgens, Heidi (1960-) | University of Illinois Archives

Name: Irgens, Heidi (1960-)

Historical Note: Heidi Irgens was born in Champaign, Illinois. The daughter of Dr. Roar Irgens and Barbara Southwell, Irgens grew up in Minnesota, Washington, and Missouri, following her father's career as a microbiologist. She learned piano and vocal performance from her father, who had studied to become a professional pianist and sang in opera choirs before becoming a microbiologist in the mid 1950s. In 1974, Irgens was accepted as a violin and vocal student at the National Academy of Music in Champaign, Illinois. After graduating in 1978, she attended the University of Maryland, where she received her bachelor's degree in vocal performance. Following this, she earned a masters degree in musicology from the University of Iowa. She has since performed in several workshops including the Baroque Performance Institute (OH), the Ringve International Summer Academy (Trondheim, Norway), and the Historic Performance Academy (Montreal). Irgens currently teaches musicology at Texas Christian University.

Sources: Obituary for Roar Irgens: https://asm.org/obituaries/in-memoriam-irgens,-roar

Note Author: Nolan Vallier