The first project to be supported by a Samling and Song residency receives its premiere at the Royal Over-seas League on Monday 11 November. Developed and performed by Kieran Rayner and Gamal Khamis, ‘What if?’ is a play and song cycle combined, and with a twist. At pivotal moments in the story, the audience vote to decide what the characters will do – changing the story and the music, making each performance unique. The story is set in 1914 and explores friendship, loyalty and love at the outbreak of the First World War, with songs in German and English.
Photo credit: Jan Capinski.
rosl.org.uk/product/armistice-day-concert-what-if/
Recordings
Nardus Williams has released her debut recital disc of Handel arias, recorded with John Butt and the Dunedin Consort. In a five-star review for The Guardian, Erica Jeal writes that ‘Nardus Williams sounds heart-stoppingly lovely’
linnrecords.com/recording-handel-rome
William Vann directs the Chapel Choir of the Royal Hospital Chelsea in ‘ A Christmas Fantasia’ centred on music by Ralph Vaughan Williams, his friends and pupils. The album also includes the first commercial recording of one of William’s own compositions, setting a poem by Ivor Guerney. This is the first of two Christmas recordings – the second will be released next month.
Nick Pritchard appears with The Queen’s College Choir as tenor soloist in the first recording of Veris gratia, a cantata written by Kenneth Leighton whilst he was a student at Queen’s which sets poems from the medieval Carmina Burana.
Samling Artists in the North East
Opera North come to Newcastle’s Theatre Royal from Wednesday 6 November to Saturday 9 November. Claire Lees is Pamina Die Zauberflöte, alongside Andri Björn Róbertsson as Speaker.
In The Guardian, Sarah Noble writes that Claire Lees ‘is precisely the steely-willed, silvery-voiced kind of Pamina required to make Tamino’s instant infatuation plausible … and Andri Björn Róbertsson’s imposing Speaker is a standout’
In Opera North’s other productions, you can see Dominic Sedgwick as Robin Oaskapple and Amy Freston as Rose Maybud in Ruddigore and in Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, James Newby is Demetrius and Andri Björn Róbertsson is Theseus.
Nicky Spence is the tenor soloist for Michael Tippett’s oratorio A Child of Our Time with Royal Northern Sinfonia and a chorus of local singers at The Glasshouse International Centre for Music on Sunday 24 November.
theglasshouseicm.org/whats-on/a-child-of-our-time/
Sam Hird is the baritone soloist with Cleveland Philharmonic Choir on Saturday 16 November in the chamber version of Brahms’s German Requiem.
clevelandphilharmonicchoir.com/concerts
Competitions
Congratulations to Annabel Kennedy who received second prize at the IVC Opera & Oratorio Competition in ’s-Hertogenbosch. Annabel also received third prize for best female voice from viewers of OperaVision who voted in a poll across three major European competitions that were streamed on the platform.
ivc.nu/en/winnaars-57ste-ivc-opera-oratorio-2024/
Opera News
Madeline Boreham made an impressive role and house debut at English National Opera as Mimi La bohème covering for Nadine Benjamin who was unable to perform. Writing on social media, Madeline said she first discovered opera when she came across La bohème on YouTube as a teenager, so going on as Mimi was a dream come true for her.
Bethany Horak-Hallett will make her debut at Royal Swedish Opera debut in January as Cherubino.
Kiandra Howarth made her role debut this month singing the title role in Arabella at Bühnen Bern. Her Strauss debuts continue next year when she sings her first Marschallin in Der Rosenkavalier with Staatsoper Hannover.
buehnenbern.ch/spielplan/programm/arabella/
Alexandra Lowe made her role debut as Contessa Le nozze di Figaro with The Mozartists in concert performances at Cadogan Hall and Sicily, alongside Ellie Laugharne as Susanna.
Garsington Opera have announced their 2025 festival season. Lucy Crowe sings the title role in Rodelinda alongside Ed Lyon as Grimoaldo and Jonathan Lemalu sings Rocco in Fidelio.
Other news
Adam McDonagh joins the National Opera Studio as a repetiteur for their 2024/25 Young Artist Programme.
Alexandra Achillea Pouta appears with Britten Sinfonia at St Giles Cripplegate in the Barbican in the premiere of ‘Concerto for Voice’ written for her by Eden Lonsdale as part of Britten Sinfonia’s composer development scheme.