Deborah Lifton, opera singer, teacher and Massapequa Park native, dies at 48
Ever since she was a little girl, Deborah Lifton knew she wanted to be on stage, her mother said.
“Debbie was very bubbly and happy as a child, and she loved growing up surrounded by music,” said Lifton’s mother, Elaine Lifton of Bloomfield, Connecticut. “She was in chorus and did all the high school performances.”
The opera singer and Massapequa Park native died of pancreatic cancer on Jan. 5, 2025, after being diagnosed in June 2023. She was 48.
Deborah Lifton was born in Manhasset on Jan. 8, 1976. She grew up in Massapequa Park and graduated from Massapequa High School. She graduated from the University of Michigan in 1998 with a bachelor’s in vocal performance, before completing her master’s of music at the Manhattan School of Music in 2000. After graduation, Lifton spent the next 25 years as a musical educator, teaching at New York University, Ithaca College, Western Connecticut State University, and the Hartt School at the University of Hartford, where she also served as vocal division director.
“She had a smile that lit up a room and was an incredible mentor to generations of students,” said her husband, Daniel Gurvich of West Hartford, Connecticut, whom she met in 2001, at the Ash Lawn-Highland Festival in Charlottesville, Virginia. The couple married on Oct. 31, 2004, and welcomed their daughter, Maria, in February 2009.
“She had a soft beauty that suffused her, bright beautiful eyes, and a radiant smile. It was an odd feeling of familiarity, a powerful instant connection with her right away,” said Gurvich of his first impression of Lifton.
Lifton enjoyed reading, baking, and traveling, especially to tropical beaches, to Europe, and to the National Parks of the American Southwest. She loved spending time with her family, especially her 15-year-old daughter, Maria. According to her husband, Lifton’s most important role was that of a mother.
“As much as she loved me and her students and her singing, nothing came before Maria. She was everything to her, and Debbie poured this strong and fiercely protective energy into Maria,” said Gurvich of his daughter, who, like her mother, is a talented performer.
In addition to being an exceptional vocal teacher, Lifton maintained an active performing career as a coloratura soprano, which took her all over the world, her husband said. She enjoyed performing music from living contemporary composers and loved the ability to marry words and music to create art. In 2007, Lifton won the Joy in Singing competition and performed a sold-out art song recital at Manhattan’s Merkin Hall.
“In opera, she loved bringing a character to life in as honest a way as possible, but in song, that was the form of music that was dearest to her heart,” said Gurvich, who added that Lifton was still singing beautifully even while undergoing chemo. “One of her favorites was Morgen! by Richard Strauss, which means ‘tomorrow’ and is about a blissful reunion with your loved one. Debbie believed that souls closely bound on Earth would be reunited after death, which spoke to who she was as a person.”
Jessica Astrof, of Durham, North Carolina, grew up around the block from Lifton and was her childhood best friend. Of Lifton’s loss, Astrof said, “the world is not the same without her.”
“Debbie was the most warm, caring, kind soul and made such an impact on so many people’s lives … including her friends, family and students,” said Astrof. “She will leave a lasting impression on our hearts forever.”
According to her mother, Lifton was “a fighter who never complained” throughout her entire cancer battle. “She was always hopeful and always kept up a smile right to the end, and even then, she was worried about everybody else,” her mother said.
“Debbie’s legacy was her commitment to honest, vulnerable communication. True to her roots in musical theater, for Debbie, her voice was a tool to be used in service of character and text,” said Gurvich. “And as a teacher, her legacy was that she was able to see potential in a student that the student couldn’t even necessarily see in themselves yet.”
In addition to her husband and mother, Lifton is survived by her father, Arthur; daughter, Maria; brother, Jason (Catherine Ho); nephews Harrison and Niko Lifton; her father-in-law and mother-in-law Mark and Nadia Gurvich; sister-in-law Rachel Gurvich (Ken Chu); and niece and nephew Hannah and Nathan Chu.
A memorial service took place on Jan. 9 at Carmon Funeral Home in Windsor, Connecticut, followed by a burial at Beth El Temple in Avon, Connecticut. Donations were made to the Deborah Lifton Art Song Fund.
Ever since she was a little girl, Deborah Lifton knew she wanted to be on stage, her mother said.
“Debbie was very bubbly and happy as a child, and she loved growing up surrounded by music,” said Lifton’s mother, Elaine Lifton of Bloomfield, Connecticut. “She was in chorus and did all the high school performances.”
The opera singer and Massapequa Park native died of pancreatic cancer on Jan. 5, 2025, after being diagnosed in June 2023. She was 48.
Deborah Lifton was born in Manhasset on Jan. 8, 1976. She grew up in Massapequa Park and graduated from Massapequa High School. She graduated from the University of Michigan in 1998 with a bachelor’s in vocal performance, before completing her master’s of music at the Manhattan School of Music in 2000. After graduation, Lifton spent the next 25 years as a musical educator, teaching at New York University, Ithaca College, Western Connecticut State University, and the Hartt School at the University of Hartford, where she also served as vocal division director.
“She had a smile that lit up a room and was an incredible mentor to generations of students,” said her husband, Daniel Gurvich of West Hartford, Connecticut, whom she met in 2001, at the Ash Lawn-Highland Festival in Charlottesville, Virginia. The couple married on Oct. 31, 2004, and welcomed their daughter, Maria, in February 2009.
“She had a soft beauty that suffused her, bright beautiful eyes, and a radiant smile. It was an odd feeling of familiarity, a powerful instant connection with her right away,” said Gurvich of his first impression of Lifton.
Lifton enjoyed reading, baking, and traveling, especially to tropical beaches, to Europe, and to the National Parks of the American Southwest. She loved spending time with her family, especially her 15-year-old daughter, Maria. According to her husband, Lifton’s most important role was that of a mother.
“As much as she loved me and her students and her singing, nothing came before Maria. She was everything to her, and Debbie poured this strong and fiercely protective energy into Maria,” said Gurvich of his daughter, who, like her mother, is a talented performer.
In addition to being an exceptional vocal teacher, Lifton maintained an active performing career as a coloratura soprano, which took her all over the world, her husband said. She enjoyed performing music from living contemporary composers and loved the ability to marry words and music to create art. In 2007, Lifton won the Joy in Singing competition and performed a sold-out art song recital at Manhattan’s Merkin Hall.
“In opera, she loved bringing a character to life in as honest a way as possible, but in song, that was the form of music that was dearest to her heart,” said Gurvich, who added that Lifton was still singing beautifully even while undergoing chemo. “One of her favorites was Morgen! by Richard Strauss, which means ‘tomorrow’ and is about a blissful reunion with your loved one. Debbie believed that souls closely bound on Earth would be reunited after death, which spoke to who she was as a person.”
Jessica Astrof, of Durham, North Carolina, grew up around the block from Lifton and was her childhood best friend. Of Lifton’s loss, Astrof said, “the world is not the same without her.”
“Debbie was the most warm, caring, kind soul and made such an impact on so many people’s lives … including her friends, family and students,” said Astrof. “She will leave a lasting impression on our hearts forever.”
According to her mother, Lifton was “a fighter who never complained” throughout her entire cancer battle. “She was always hopeful and always kept up a smile right to the end, and even then, she was worried about everybody else,” her mother said.
“Debbie’s legacy was her commitment to honest, vulnerable communication. True to her roots in musical theater, for Debbie, her voice was a tool to be used in service of character and text,” said Gurvich. “And as a teacher, her legacy was that she was able to see potential in a student that the student couldn’t even necessarily see in themselves yet.”
In addition to her husband and mother, Lifton is survived by her father, Arthur; daughter, Maria; brother, Jason (Catherine Ho); nephews Harrison and Niko Lifton; her father-in-law and mother-in-law Mark and Nadia Gurvich; sister-in-law Rachel Gurvich (Ken Chu); and niece and nephew Hannah and Nathan Chu.
A memorial service took place on Jan. 9 at Carmon Funeral Home in Windsor, Connecticut, followed by a burial at Beth El Temple in Avon, Connecticut. Donations were made to the Deborah Lifton Art Song Fund.
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