You could say that music is a really moving experience for the Hinds sisters. When Esther Hinds ('65) was pregnant with her third daughter, she was performing one day in the renowned Robert Shaw Festival when the baby moved inside her. Suddenly, Hinds realized that the movement was in response to the singing of the coloratura soprano who was then on stage. "She also responded to my own singing when she was in the crib," she remembers. Her sister, Ruby Hinds ('75), recalls that her own daughter, Stephanie, would also noticeably follow the high notes of coloratura while still in the womb.

Such early responses to music apparently run in the family for the three sisters, Esther, Ruby, and Grace Hinds ('81), who all graduated from the opera program at The Hartt School of Music (now The Hartt School). Their musical background began with their mother, Ruby, who has perfect pitch and "would tell you if you were off-key," says Esther Hinds. Mother Ruby began to play the organ in her church at an early age and taught her husband (their father) Edmund how to play it when she was pregnant with daughter Ruby. Esther often worked the organ pedals for her mother while she played.

"I think the musical desire is in your genes," says Esther. "Our two brothers also played musical instruments."

"The influence was there for me from my sisters," says Grace Hinds. "My great love for music was apparent at an early age. I was excited in elementary school, playing in the band."

Recommendations from teachers and friends led all three to The Hartt School of Music. "I even have fond memories of Hartt when I was a child because Mother would take us there for Esther's performances," recalls Ruby. "I particularly remember a production of Dialogue of the Carmelites where the quality of it was great."

"When I was at Hartt, Moshe Paranov was there, and Miss Helen

Their repertoire includes the lieder of Schumann and Schubert, the modern classics of Barber and Menotti, operatic masterpieces by Verdi, Puccini and Bizet, and spiritual music based on African-American folk music. They recently recorded their first CD together, offering a cross-section of operatic and spiritual selections. The Hinds Sisters Trio will perform in concert at Alice Tully Hall in Lincoln Center, New York City, at 3 p.m. on Sunday, June 11, 2000. The concert is a major achievement in their career as a trio. It will be the first time they have performed together at Lincoln Center. (See Alumni Calendar )

Hubbard was the head of the voice department and my voice teacher," says Esther. "We used to sing at local schools and do children's operas." Describing her first operatic production, she said, "I got to sing as a student with the Hartford Symphony Orchestra, which was performing The Marriage of Figaro," when she substituted for the scheduled performer.

Ruby recalls William Diard as her voice teacher at Hartt. "As a student we could do major roles in costume on stage at Hartt, and I had an opportunity to grow as an artist." Hartt was a mecca for opera study in those days. The school had a relationship with the Connecticut Opera, and students could do secondary roles. We also performed 20th-century operas. It was an acquired taste, but I came to love them. You got to really develop your part. And, for the juried performances and in full recitals, the anticipation level was like auditions in the real world. On every level of preparation, we got it at Hartt."

"Jack Zei was head of the opera division when I was there," says Grace. "We learned stage deportment, and I had to write a report on operatic character development in my class with Brenda Lewis. We would go through full roles with Zei on an individual basis. Paranov directed the operas, and he did not suffer fools gladly. One opera we did, Albert Herring, was televised by CPTV, and it was really exciting. We got to work with professional cameramen. It was great to be able to take this kind of preparation to a director of a working opera company later."

All three sisters went on to successful individual singing careers following graduation from Hartt, winning vocal competitions and doing concert work. And, though they live far apart (Esther and Grace in Mt. Vernon and New York City, N.Y., respectively, and Ruby in Pasadena, Calif.) they managed to begin performing as a trio in 1981 and have continued to do so when possible.