English Touring Opera are delighted to announce a season of lyric monodramas to tour nationally from October to December. The season features music for solo singer and piano by Argento, Britten, Tippett and Shostakovich with a bold and inventive approach to making opera during social distancing.
Conductor Oliver Zeffman has commissioned the very first opera for a socially distanced world, which is now available to watch exclusively on Apple Music. Eight Songs From Isolation has been written by eight leading composers, specifically for streaming - rather than live performance - and is the first opera written for a time when the performers were unable to meet in person.
Leading freelance musicians unite in Parliament Square to call for targeted support for colleagues in the arts and entertainment sector.
Duo Lewis Murphy (composer) and Laura Attridge (writer) have launched a charitable song project entitled Notes From Isolation. The resulting songs, featuring some of the UK's top singing talent, are being released online between August and October 2020 and can be enjoyed free of charge.
The Royal Opera House is thrilled to announce an exciting, wide-ranging new line-up for its autumn programme. For the first time, extraordinary performances will be accessible online for a global audience through livestreams and for socially distanced live audiences at our home in Covent Garden. In a global first, we present a new opera in hyper-reality, alongside repertory favourites from both artistic companies.
Some of the most famous and outstanding stars from the opera world are to take part in a very special evening from Wexford Festival Opera, including Aigul Akhmetshina, Joseph Calleja, Daniela Barcellona, Juan Diego Flórez, Igor Golovatenko, Ermonela Jaho, Sergey Romanovsky, and many more.
Following its successful launch in 2019, OperaStreaming streams nine operas on YouTube from the historic opera houses of Emilia-Romagna during the 2020-21 season, with fully-staged productions of Verdi's La traviata in October from Modena and Verdi'sOtello from Bologna in...
‘A brief history of song’ is the subtitle of the 2020 Oxford Lieder Festival (10th-17th October), which will present an ambitious, diverse and imaginative programme of 40 performances and events.
Bampton Classical Opera returns to the Baroque splendour of London’s St John’s Smith Square on November 6 with a concert performance of Gluck’s one-act opera The Crown, the first in the UK since 1987. The performance will also be filmed and available to watch on demand on the Bampton website from 9 November.
While many of us spent lockdown at home taking it a little easier, composer Andrew Synnott wrote an opera.
Owen Wingrave is part of the new Interim Season of 19 brand new events, all free to view online between September and December 2020.
The Arts Council has awarded innovative UK charity Music and Theatre For All (MTFA) a major new grant to develop three ambitious new projects in the wake of Covid 19.
English National Opera (ENO) will reopen the London Coliseum to socially distanced audiences on 6 and 7 November for special performances of Mozart’s Requiem. These will provide audiences with an opportunity to reflect upon and to commemorate the difficulties the nation has faced during the pandemic.
The Royal Opera House is proud to continue its curated #OurHouseToYourHouse programme into the autumn, bringing audiences the best of the ROH through a new series of Friday Premieres and cultural highlights.
After six months of closure, the Royal Opera House is thrilled to be opening its doors to the public as part of Open House London weekend, giving visitors a taste of one of the world’s most famous theatres for free.
The Academy of St Martin in the Fields is thrilled to announce re:connect - an eight concert series with live socially distanced audiences at its namesake church, St. Martin-in-the-Fields. The autumn concerts will take place at 5pm & 7:30pm on two Saturdays per month with guest artists including baritone Roderick Williams, soprano Carolyn Sampson and composer-conductor-pianist Ryan Wigglesworth performing a wide range of repertoire.
Music and poetry unite and collide across centuries, from the Medieval to the Enlightenment to the present day. This year, the Oxford Lieder Festival will present a thrilling and innovative programme comprising more than forty events streamed over eight days.
The English Concert with artistic director Harry Bicket is delighted to announce a series of concerts from 1-15 October 2020. The concerts take place in historic London venues with star soloists and will be performed and streamed live to a paying audience at 7pm GMT on each performance date. The programmes include first-class vocal and instrumental works from the two pillars of the English Baroque, covering different aspects of the repertoire.
Glyndebourne has announced plans for a ‘staycation’ series of socially-distanced indoor performances, starting on 10 October 2020.
The Royal Opera House is delighted to announce two packed evenings of opera and ballet, live from our stage in Covent Garden and available to view wherever you are in the world online.
Winners of this year’s prestigious Leonard Ingrams Foundation awards are mezzo-soprano Bianca Andrew and tenor Oliver Johnston. These awards support, encourage and nurture the best young artists involved in the creative process of bringing opera to the stage, and are made in memory of Garsington Opera’s founder Leonard Ingrams, to ensure the continuity of his vision.
Three further awards to emerging young artists have also been won: the Helen Clarke Award by baritone Seán Boylan, the Simon Sandbach Award by baritone Kieran Rayner and the Christine Collins Award to soprano Josephine Goddard. These awards are made in recognition of their extraordinary talent, musical skill and contribution to the 2019 Garsington Opera productions.
These young singers were part of the 2019 Alvarez Young Artists’ Programme which provides invaluable training and performance opportunities to those singing small roles or in the chorus at Garsington Opera. As well as performing on stage, these artists have understudy opportunities, and participate in masterclasses, training seminars on professional development and public recitals.
Bianca Andrew who understudied the title role and sung the principal role of Flamel in Fantasio said: “As an opera singer still at the beginning of her career, there are always the inevitable expenses that arise for auditions, coaching, lessons and travel. This award will go a long way in allowing me to prepare my work to the highest level in the seasons ahead.”
Oliver Johnston who has sung principal roles in previous seasons and understudied and performed the role of Jeník in The Bartered Bride said: “Understudying Jeník was an amazing experience, giving me the chance to explore some Czech repertoire for the first time in a safe and supportive environment. Garsington invests so much in their young artists and covers and thanks to this investment and amazing support I felt well prepared to step onto the stage when the time came.”
Seán Boylan who understudied and performed the title role of Don Giovanni and was in the chorus commented: “Receiving the Helen Clarke Award is a great honour which provides me with timely practical support and I am deeply grateful. An undeniable love of opera, support of young talent and an infectious community spirit make Garsington a truly unique experience.”
Kieran Rayner chorus member and understudy for the Prince of Mantua in Fantasio said: “I’ve loved working with Garsington - fantastic music, a beautiful setting, and incredibly talented and generous staff, crew, creatives and fellow cast. It is a real pleasure to be part of the Garsington family.”
Josephine Goddard chorus member and understudy for the role of Mařenka in The Bartered Bride said: “I’m indebted to Garsington for all the opportunities they have given me this year and I will be putting this generous award towards making some new recordings and having some singing lessons.”