Ragin, Derek Lee (1958- )

US countertenor. He studied at the Oberlin Conservatory, Ohio and made his operatic debut in Cesti's Tito at the 1983 Innsbruck Festival, appearing in recital the following year at Aldburgh. He made his debut at the Metropolitan Opera House, New York in 1988, as Nirenus in Giulio Cesare. In 1990 he appeared at the Salzburg Festival, as Gluck's Orfeo, and in 1992 in St Louis as Britten's Oberon. He often appears in recital and has recorded Handel's Tamerlano, Flavio, Tolomeo (Giulio Cesare) and Saul, as well as Vivaldi cantatas and Hasse's Cleofide.