Laurel Miller, opera singer and professor of voice at the University of North Texas, died on October 25, 2014, after a long, courageous battle with Parkinson's Disease. She died comfortably in her home at Lake Forest Good Samaritan Village. She is survived by her son Matt Miller and daughter-in-law Lynnette Maria Cintron Ortiz of San Juan Puerto Rico.

Laurel Ann Mutthersbough was born March 28, 1933, to parents William Ard and Verna Ingersoll Mutthersbough in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Laurel received her BS and MS in vocal performance from The Juilliard School. After finishing her studies in 1957, Laurel remained in
New York City as a professional singer and teacher, appearing in the Metropolitan Opera, Metropolitan Opera Studio, Philadelphia Lyric Opera, Boston Opera, Dallas Opera, Houston Opera, and many smaller companies. She sang recitals in the Czech Republic, New York City, and many other American cities, specializing in performance of 20th century works, oratorio,
and chamber works. She premiered many works written specifically for her and she founded and directed the performing group "Voices of the Twentieth Century" which was active in concert and opera in New York City. She also sang regularly with Cantor David Koussevitzy in Brooklyn, New York.

Parallel to Laurel's singing career was her teaching career. Laurel began teaching as assistant to her teacher, Marion Freschl. She maintained a private studio in New York 1957-77 and in Denton, Texas from 1977-2014. She taught in Italy during the summers 1975-77 and 1997-99.

In 1957 she married Richard Miller and their son Matthew was born in 1963. The couple divorced in 1967. After years of performing and private teaching, Laurel gravitated towards academia, teaching at first part-time at C.W. Post College and Long Island University, then she took a one-year sabbatical replacement position at Ithaca College. She joined the voice faculty in the College of Music at the University of North Texas in 1977 and remained there until her retirement in 2004. During that time, she was an active member of the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS), serving as president of the Dallas-Fort Worth chapter of NATS and in many other roles within that organization. She served on the Boards of the Deep Ellum Opera Theatre and the Denton Bach Society for many years. She continued performing, taught master classes and adjudicated auditions and competitions in Texas and Oklahoma.

Many among the hundreds of singers she taught went on to busy careers with such companies as the San Francisco Opera, the Metropolitan Opera, San Diego Opera, and the Dallas Opera. Jonathan Pell and Alexander Rom of the Dallas Opera often sent her singers after auditions for the Dallas Opera Chorus, and she always had many opera chorus members as students.

To bring the most relevant information from other disciplines to her students, she collaborated teaching workshops with John Hipple, counselor at the University of North Texas, and, for many years, she co-taught a summer workshop with Alexander Technique teacher Phyllis Richmond.

Following her retirement and the diagnosis of Parkinson's Disease, Laurel moved into a cottage at Lake Forest Good Samaritan Village, where she continued her private teaching. The final decade of her life was robust, and she was surrounded by a vast and diverse group of friends.

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, November 1st at 3 PM at Trinity Presbyterian Church. In lieu of flowers, Laurel's family request memorials be made to U.N.T. School of Music.