Role and House Debuts
We are delighted to learn that Louise Alder will make her New York Metropolitan Opera debut later this year and with a role debut as Zdenka in the Met’s classic Otto Schenk staging of Richard Strauss’s Arabella
metopera.org/season/2025-26-season/arabella/
Claire Barnett-Jones makes her house debut at Bayerische Staatsoper in March as the Forester’s Wife in Barrie Kosky’s production of The Cunning Little Vixen. The cast also includes Milan Siljanov as Harašta.
Helen Sherman made her role debut as Rosina Il barbiere di Sivilgia with Opera Australia at Sydney Opera House.
Opera News
Daniel Barrett and Emma Roberts join Garsington Opera this summeras Alvarez Emerging Artists.
garsingtonopera.org/2025-emerging-artists-announced/
One of the biggest opera hits of the year so far has undoubtedly been Mark-Anthony Turnage’s new work Festen, a reworking of the cult 1998 film by Thomas Vinterberg. Kitty Whately and Miranda Westcott are part of a starry cast and it will be broadcast by BBC Radio 3 on Opera on 3 on Saturday 22 March.
Welsh National Opera have announced their 2025/26 season, which inclues Andrés Presno as Cavaradossi in Tosca and Ed Lyon in the title role in Candide.
wno.org.uk/news/our-2025-2026-season-announcement
Samling Artists in the North East
A reminder for our local supporters that you can see Jessica Cale and Samantha Price as Giulietta and Romeo in I Capuleti e i Montecchi with English Touring Opera at Gala Durham on 19 March. Reviewing for Bachtrack, David Karlin writes ‘[Cale’s] ‘Oh! Quante volte’ lit up the Hackney Empire with the sweet timbre of the long-breathed notes, the poise of her phrasing and her glittering decoration. When she was joined by Price’s Romeo for their big duet “Si fuggire: a noi non resta”… the result was blissful, the two voices perfectly matched.
englishtouringopera.org.uk/productions/the-capulets-the-montagues
Awards
Paul Grant and Olivia Warburton have been named Associates of the Royal Academy of Music in this year’s RAM Honours list.
ram.ac.uk/news/the-royal-academy-of-music-announces-its-associate-honours-2024-2025
Michael Lafferty was awarded the inaugural Audrey Strange Memorial Prize at the singers’ final of the Royal Over-Seas League Music Competition.
rosl.org.uk/art/rosl-annual-music-competition/
Redmond Sanders is a finalist in this year’s Guildhall School of Music and Drama Gold Medal – the final will take place at the Barbican on 8 May.
gsmd.ac.uk/about-guildhall/news/guildhall-school-announces-2025-gold-medal-finalists
Congratulations to all!
Recordings and other news
Benjamin Appl marks the centenary of his mentor Dieter Fischer-Dieskau with a series of concerts across the UK with James Baillieu, beginning at Queen Elizabeth Hall on 2 March. Alongside songs associated with Fischer-Dieskau, Benjamin’s programme includes readings from Fischer-Dieskau’s letters and his own memories of working with the great German baritone. Read more in Benjamin’s article for the Guardian here.
Benjamin and James have also released an album marking the 99th birthday of composer György Kurtág. The album includes the composer’s Hölderlin-Gesänge, a work which Benjamin was selected by Kurtág to perform and record.
prestomusic.com
Lucy Crowe is the soprano soloist on Sir Simon Rattle’s new recording of The Creation, made from his inaugural concerts as Chief Conductor of the Bavarian Symphony Orchestra.
Lana Bode joins tenor Thomas Elwin for an album of French and Italian song titled ‘Le vase brisé’ . Alongside favourites by Reynaldo Hahn, Franz Liszt and Henri Duparc, the album includes three world premiere recordings of songs by Augusta Holmès, Pauline Viardot and Clemence de Grandval.
Derek Welton appears on an album of ballets by Stravinsky with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra.
Natalie Burch is the pianist on James Way’s new recording of Benjamin Britten’s canticles with Ross Ramgobin joining them as one of the singers for The Journey of the Magi.
