SINGERS DIRECT: News Archive

'Authentic' Elijah rings the changes

Deborah's performance of Mendelssohn's Elijah in Chichester on June 13th will be slightly different from the norm as it aims to reproduce the first performance of the piece in 1846 conducted by Mendelssohn himself, following which he made various changes to the score leading to the 1847 version most performers use today. Deborah says: "The differences are many. All my recitatives are different, although along the same lines, as the 1847 revised edition and although the arias are the same, the harmonies to O rest in the Lord are quite different and very interesting - there are many more accidentals and creeping harmonies. The lovely unaccompanied trio for ladies is also replaced with a duet for sop and alto." It will be interesting to see how the audience reacts to such well-loved gems not sounding quite as they expect.

Michael takes centre stage

Michael recently took part in the world premiere of Noam Shariff and George Whyte's Golem at the Czech National Opera (Narodni divadlo) on June 29, 2009. Further images and audio clips of the production are available at http://www.ct24.cz/no-comment/59656-norodni-divadlo-uvedlo-kabalitsticke-drama-golem-13/

Andrew Mackenzie-Wicks explores both the old and the new

Last year the youthful Andrew found himself challenging both himself and the make-up department at Scottish Opera, when he sang the roles of both Old Peng (see photo) and an Old Mountain Dweller in Judith Weir's A Night at the Chinese Opera.

Springfest brings great reviews for Christopher's Britten

Christopher's recent appearance in Britten's Curlew River at Springfest (the new name for the Hampstead and Highgate Festival) brought excellent reviews for him and fellow cast members Robert Murray and Lynton Black. Michael White in the Daily Telegraph declared the soloists "magnificent", while Robert Matthew-Walker on www.classicalsource.com wrote: "I doubt if this extraordinarily original masterpiece could have been better sung, or vocally characterised in any finer respect that that witnessed on this occasion. From the very beginning it was obvious that George Vass had chosen the cast wisely...".

Tenor Jeremy Budd joins the SD team

The acclaimed young tenor Jeremy Budd joined Singers Direct in January, following the departure of his (and SD's) great friend Nicholas Mulroy.

SINGERS DIRECT makes its debut in Birmingham's fully refurbished Town Hall

Helen, Susanna, Andrew and Christopher will be the first members of SD to grace the platform of the newly restored Birmingham Town Hall, which re-opened in October 2007 after a closure of several years.

Always allow plenty of time...

After studiously checking the postcode of St John's in the Square, Wolverhampton and arriving in the town with well over half an hour to spare, having parked and walked to the nearest church to that postcode still with 15 minutes on his side, Christopher discovered that it was more than a good thing he had allowed plenty of time to get to Wombourne & District Choral Society's concert with the City of Wolverhampton Choir.

Photo: Helena Dixson

Susanna returns to Three Choirs Festival

Susanna is looking forward to returning to the Three Choirs Festival, this year hosted by Hereford. She will be singing Britten's Spring Symphony, to be conducted by Adrian Lucas.

Verdi Requiem in Guildford Cathedral wins plaudits

SD members won particular praise last November for their performance of Verdi's Requiem in Guildford Cathedral.

Stabat Mater In March 2009 will prove both a change and a challenge

Rossini's Stabat Mater is less well known and far less frequently performed than his Petite Messe Solennelle.

Michael Bundy to take leading role in world première recording

Michael is to sing Dionysus in the world-première recording of Donald Tovey's opera The Bride of Dionysus in May 2009 with the Ulster orchestra conducted by George Vass. This will be the next in a series of recordings by Vass and various artists of the works of Tovey (1875-19490). The recent issue of Tovey's Symphony on disc (on the Toccata label) was a runner up BBC Disc of the Week in 2008.

Norwich Philharmonic and Vaughan Williams' Five Tudor Portraits saved by Susanna

Following her last minute saving of a performance of the Five Tudor Portraits a couple of years ago in Woodstock when the advertised mezzo fell ill, SD member Susanna received a 24 hour emergency call again this autumn from Norwich Philharmonic's conductor David Dunnett.

DMJ to make Wagnerian debut

Deborah will be singing Fricka in a concert performance of Wagner's Das Rheingold in Oxford Town Hall on March 7th. Having always thought of herself as a lyric mezzo, she had not considered Wagner to be her particular bag, but she has found working on it to be a fascinating voyage of discovery, and that it is "just wonderful" to sing.

Christopher Foster & Messiah: 43 not out

Christopher's most recent performance of Messiah (his 43rd) was a tumultuous affair in Madrid last December that caused him to recall his first performance, 20 years earlier.

Susanna gets a surprise at the 2008 Three Choirs Festival

The 2008 Three Choirs Festival found Susanna singing two concerts, one of which was of Vaughan Williams' little known Magnificat, with The Elgar Chorale, conducted by Donald Hunt, in Pershore Abbey.

Claire re-visits the Barbican and also celebrates Mendelssohn's 200th birthday

Claire will be performing Carl Orff's Carmina Burana at The Barbican on 7th April, her 4th appearance in the hall. She also has a celebrity concert to look forward to in July. 2009 being the 200th anniversary of Mendelssohn's birth, she will be singing in The Chichester Singers' performance of his Elijah, with Sir Willard White in the title role.