Billie Daniel

Billie Lynn Daniel (May 21, 1932 – 2002) was an American operatic soprano and composer born in New York City. She is recognized for her portrayal of Clara in Porgy and Bess and for championing American art song throughout her career.

Daniel made her Broadway debut in the 1952 revival of Virgil Thomson's Four Saints in Three Acts, in which she appeared as one of the Female Saints alongside Leontyne Price. A graduate of the Juilliard School, she went on to establish herself as a recitalist, making her professional recital debut at Carnegie Hall in 1959. The New York Times noted on that occasion that she was "a vocalist who has something to say in song repertory, and the voice and the technique with which to say it." She returned to Carnegie Hall for a second recital in 1970.

The year 1961 brought Daniel significant recognition when she won both the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions and the Town Hall Recital Award. That same year she took on the role of Clara in the New York City Center revival of George Gershwin's Porgy and Bess, with William Warfield and Martha Flowers in the title roles. In 1963 she received the Marian Anderson Award in Philadelphia.

Daniel was also an interpreter of newly composed works. In 1962 she performed the world premieres of Claude Debussy's Les papillons and William Flanagan's Moss, both with pianist Lowell Farr at Town Hall in New York City. In 1972 composer Richard Hundley wrote the song cycle Birds, U.S.A., with text by James Purdy, specifically for Daniel. In 1975 she appeared in recital at Alice Tully Hall alongside her husband, baritone Andrew Frierson. She reprised the role of Clara in a 1981 concert performance featuring Thomas Carey as Porgy, Cab Calloway as Sportin' Life, and the Oklahoma City Philharmonic. In 1993 she composed music for Margaret Yuen and the Red Silk Dancers' adaptation of J. E. Franklin's play Black Girl.

Daniel and Frierson had a daughter, actress Andrea Frierson, who married actor Jesse D. Goins in 1977 and later married actor David Toney. Daniel died in 2002.