Lois McDonall
Encyclopedia
Lois Jeanette McDonall is a Canadian opera
tic soprano
, especially known for her performances in the operas of Mozart and Donizetti.
where she studied with Herman Geiger-Torel, Irene Jessner and Jacqueline Richard.
's Il Segreto di Susanna and Kate Pinkerton in Puccini's Madame Butterfly. She then went onto the Stadische Buhren in Flensburg, Germany where she played the demanding title role in Puccini's Tosca and Elsa in Wagner's Lohengrin. In 1970, McDonall became a resident artist at the Sadler's Wells Opera (now the English National Opera
). She appeared on short notice in the title role of Handel
's Semele when the lead soprano became ill during the first act. During that season, McDonall sang many performances of Constanze in The Abduction from the Seraglio by Mozart. In following seasons she performed Fiordiligi from Così fan tutte, the Countess in Le nozze di Figaro, Roselinda in Die Fledermaus
, Antonia in The Tales of Hoffmann, Leonora in Il trovatore
, Freia in Das Rheingold
, Hanna in The Merry Widow
, the title role in Massenet's Manon
, Marschallin in Der Rosenkavalier
, Violetta in La traviata
, Miss Jessel in The Turn of the Screw
and she created the title role in Iain Hamilton
's Anna Karenina
. Lois McDonall spent 14 years as a resident artist with the English National Opera. In addition to her tenure at the ENO, McDonall made appearances at the Scottish Opera, the Welsh Opera, Opera North and the Royal Opera House
, Covent Garden, where she made her debut in 1975 in Richard Strauss' opera Die Frau ohne Schatten
. She had performances in Canada in the 1974 Festival Canada as the Countess and in 1975 with the COC in Die Fledermaus and Donna Anna in Don Giovanni
at the Edmonton Opera in 1977. McDonall returned to live in Canada in 1984 and appeared as the Countess in The Marriage of Figaro at the Hamilton Opera. In 1988, she sang the title role in Fedora with Opera in Concert. She also sang in the COC's production of Andrea Chénier
in 1989.
in 1978; the Passion According to St. Mark's, commissioned by the London Chorale in 1982; and Cleopatra, a dramatic Scena for Soprano which was premiered by the BBC Symphony Orchestra at the 1978 Proms
. Lois McDonall also created the role of Mrs. Medlock in Stephen McNeff's The Secret Garden for the COMUS Music Theatre in 1985.
in Toronto from 1986–1992 and taught at the University of Toronto until 2001. Now-prominent students include soprano Othalie Graham
, Jackalyn Short, Elliot Madore, Stephen Harland, and Andrea Ludwig.
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
tic soprano
Soprano
A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody...
, especially known for her performances in the operas of Mozart and Donizetti.
Early life and education
Lois McDonall began her vocal training in Edmonton with Eileen McEcheran. She also studied with Glyndwr Jones in Vancouver. After winning the Metropolitan Regional Opera Auditions in Seattle, Washington Lois McDonall was encouraged to seek a career in opera. On the recommendation of Irving Gutmann, she was connected with the University of TorontoUniversity of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
where she studied with Herman Geiger-Torel, Irene Jessner and Jacqueline Richard.
Career
Lois McDonall made her Canadian Opera Company debut between 1967-9. Her early roles included: Susanna in Wolf-FerrariWolf-Ferrari
Wolf-Ferrari:* Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari, born: Ermanno Wolf , an Italian composer and teacher** List of operas by Wolf-Ferrari* Manno Wolf-Ferrari , an Italian conductor, and a nephew of Ermanno- See also :...
's Il Segreto di Susanna and Kate Pinkerton in Puccini's Madame Butterfly. She then went onto the Stadische Buhren in Flensburg, Germany where she played the demanding title role in Puccini's Tosca and Elsa in Wagner's Lohengrin. In 1970, McDonall became a resident artist at the Sadler's Wells Opera (now the English National Opera
English National Opera
English National Opera is an opera company based in London, resident at the London Coliseum in St. Martin's Lane. It is one of the two principal opera companies in London, along with the Royal Opera, Covent Garden...
). She appeared on short notice in the title role of Handel
HANDEL
HANDEL was the code-name for the UK's National Attack Warning System in the Cold War. It consisted of a small console consisting of two microphones, lights and gauges. The reason behind this was to provide a back-up if anything failed....
's Semele when the lead soprano became ill during the first act. During that season, McDonall sang many performances of Constanze in The Abduction from the Seraglio by Mozart. In following seasons she performed Fiordiligi from Così fan tutte, the Countess in Le nozze di Figaro, Roselinda in Die Fledermaus
Die Fledermaus
Die Fledermaus is an operetta composed by Johann Strauss II to a German libretto by Karl Haffner and Richard Genée.- Literary sources :...
, Antonia in The Tales of Hoffmann, Leonora in Il trovatore
Il trovatore
Il trovatore is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Salvadore Cammarano, based on the play El Trovador by Antonio García Gutiérrez. Cammarano died in mid-1852 before completing the libretto...
, Freia in Das Rheingold
Das Rheingold
is the first of the four operas that constitute Richard Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen . It was originally written as an introduction to the tripartite Ring, but the cycle is now generally regarded as consisting of four individual operas.Das Rheingold received its premiere at the National Theatre...
, Hanna in The Merry Widow
The Merry Widow
The Merry Widow is an operetta by the Austro–Hungarian composer Franz Lehár. The librettists, Viktor Léon and Leo Stein, based the story – concerning a rich widow, and her countrymen's attempt to keep her money in the principality by finding her the right husband – on an 1861 comedy play,...
, the title role in Massenet's Manon
Manon
Manon is an opéra comique in five acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Henri Meilhac and Philippe Gille, based on the 1731 novel L’histoire du chevalier des Grieux et de Manon Lescaut by the Abbé Prévost...
, Marschallin in Der Rosenkavalier
Der Rosenkavalier
Der Rosenkavalier is a comic opera in three acts by Richard Strauss to an original German libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal. It is loosely adapted from the novel Les amours du chevalier de Faublas by Louvet de Couvrai and Molière’s comedy Monsieur de Pourceaugnac...
, Violetta in La traviata
La traviata
La traviata is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi set to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave. It is based on La dame aux Camélias , a play adapted from the novel by Alexandre Dumas, fils. The title La traviata means literally The Fallen Woman, or perhaps more figuratively, The Woman...
, Miss Jessel in The Turn of the Screw
The Turn of the Screw
The Turn of the Screw is a novella written by Henry James. Originally published in 1898, it is ostensibly a ghost story.Due to its ambiguous content, it became a favourite text of academics who subscribe to New Criticism. The novella has had differing interpretations, often mutually exclusive...
and she created the title role in Iain Hamilton
Iain Hamilton (composer)
Iain Ellis Hamilton was a Scottish composer.He was educated in London where he became an apprentice engineer, and remained in that profession for the next seven years. He undertook the study of music in his spare time...
's Anna Karenina
Anna Karenina (Hamilton)
Anna Karenina is an opera in three acts by Scottish composer Iain Hamilton. The libretto, based on Leo Tolstoy's novel, Anna Karenina was written by the composer. Anna Karenina was premiered on May 7, 1981 at the London Coliseum by the English National Opera in a performance conducted by Howard...
. Lois McDonall spent 14 years as a resident artist with the English National Opera. In addition to her tenure at the ENO, McDonall made appearances at the Scottish Opera, the Welsh Opera, Opera North and the Royal Opera House
Royal Opera House
The Royal Opera House is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply "Covent Garden", after a previous use of the site of the opera house's original construction in 1732. It is the home of The Royal Opera, The...
, Covent Garden, where she made her debut in 1975 in Richard Strauss' opera Die Frau ohne Schatten
Die Frau ohne Schatten
Die Frau ohne Schatten is an opera in three acts by Richard Strauss with a libretto by his long-time collaborator, the poet Hugo von Hofmannsthal. It was written between 1911 and either 1915 or 1917...
. She had performances in Canada in the 1974 Festival Canada as the Countess and in 1975 with the COC in Die Fledermaus and Donna Anna in Don Giovanni
Don Giovanni
Don Giovanni is an opera in two acts with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and with an Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It was premiered by the Prague Italian opera at the Teatro di Praga on October 29, 1787...
at the Edmonton Opera in 1977. McDonall returned to live in Canada in 1984 and appeared as the Countess in The Marriage of Figaro at the Hamilton Opera. In 1988, she sang the title role in Fedora with Opera in Concert. She also sang in the COC's production of Andrea Chénier
Andrea Chénier
Andrea Chénier is a verismo opera in four acts by the composer Umberto Giordano, set to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica. It is based loosely on the life of the French poet, André Chénier , who was executed during the French Revolution....
in 1989.
Operatic roles
Lois McDonall has performed over 40 principal roles. Some of these roles include:- Miss Jessel, The Turn of the ScrewThe Turn of the Screw (opera)The Turn of the Screw is a 20th century English chamber opera composed by Benjamin Britten with a libretto by Myfanwy Piper, "wife of the artist John Piper, who had been a friend of the composer since 1935 and had provided designs for several of the operas". The libretto is based on the novella...
(Britten) - Maria Padilla, Maria PadillaMaria PadillaMaria Padilla is a melodramma, or opera, in three acts by Gaetano Donizetti. Gaetano Rossi and the composer wrote the Italian libretto after François Ancelot's play. It premiered on December 26, 1841 at La Scala, Milan...
(Donizetti) - Anna Karenina, Anna Karenina (HamiltonIain Hamilton (composer)Iain Ellis Hamilton was a Scottish composer.He was educated in London where he became an apprentice engineer, and remained in that profession for the next seven years. He undertook the study of music in his spare time...
) - Semele, Semele (HandelHANDELHANDEL was the code-name for the UK's National Attack Warning System in the Cold War. It consisted of a small console consisting of two microphones, lights and gauges. The reason behind this was to provide a back-up if anything failed....
) - Hanna, The Merry WidowThe Merry WidowThe Merry Widow is an operetta by the Austro–Hungarian composer Franz Lehár. The librettists, Viktor Léon and Leo Stein, based the story – concerning a rich widow, and her countrymen's attempt to keep her money in the principality by finding her the right husband – on an 1861 comedy play,...
(LehárFranz LehárFranz Lehár was an Austrian-Hungarian composer. He is mainly known for his operettas of which the most successful and best known is The Merry Widow .-Biography:...
) - Manon, ManonManonManon is an opéra comique in five acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Henri Meilhac and Philippe Gille, based on the 1731 novel L’histoire du chevalier des Grieux et de Manon Lescaut by the Abbé Prévost...
(Massenet) - Mrs Medlock, The Secret Garden (Stephen McNeff)
- Donna Anna, Don GiovanniDon GiovanniDon Giovanni is an opera in two acts with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and with an Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It was premiered by the Prague Italian opera at the Teatro di Praga on October 29, 1787...
(Mozart) - Fiordiligi, Così fan tutteCosì fan tutteCosì fan tutte, ossia La scuola degli amanti K. 588, is an opera buffa by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart first performed in 1790. The libretto was written by Lorenzo Da Ponte....
(Mozart) - Constanze, Die Entführung aus dem SerailDie Entführung aus dem SerailDie Entführung aus dem Serail is an opera Singspiel in three acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The German libretto is by Christoph Friedrich Bretzner with adaptations by Gottlieb Stephanie...
(Mozart) - The Countess, The Marriage of FigaroThe Marriage of FigaroLe nozze di Figaro, ossia la folle giornata , K. 492, is an opera buffa composed in 1786 in four acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte, based on a stage comedy by Pierre Beaumarchais, La folle journée, ou le Mariage de Figaro .Although the play by...
(Mozart) - Stella, The Tales of Hoffman (OffenbachJacques OffenbachJacques Offenbach was a Prussian-born French composer, cellist and impresario. He is remembered for his nearly 100 operettas of the 1850s–1870s and his uncompleted opera The Tales of Hoffmann. He was a powerful influence on later composers of the operetta genre, particularly Johann Strauss, Jr....
) - Giulletta, The Tales of Hoffman (OffenbachJacques OffenbachJacques Offenbach was a Prussian-born French composer, cellist and impresario. He is remembered for his nearly 100 operettas of the 1850s–1870s and his uncompleted opera The Tales of Hoffmann. He was a powerful influence on later composers of the operetta genre, particularly Johann Strauss, Jr....
) - Antonia, The Tales of Hoffman (OffenbachJacques OffenbachJacques Offenbach was a Prussian-born French composer, cellist and impresario. He is remembered for his nearly 100 operettas of the 1850s–1870s and his uncompleted opera The Tales of Hoffmann. He was a powerful influence on later composers of the operetta genre, particularly Johann Strauss, Jr....
) - Musetta, La BohèmeLa bohèmeLa bohème is an opera in four acts,Puccini called the divisions quadro, a tableau or "image", rather than atto . by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa, based on Scènes de la vie de bohème by Henri Murger...
(Puccini) - Kate Pinkerton, Madama ButterflyMadama ButterflyMadama Butterfly is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini, with an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. Puccini based his opera in part on the short story "Madame Butterfly" by John Luther Long, which was dramatized by David Belasco...
(Puccini) - Tosca, ToscaToscaTosca is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It premiered at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 14 January 1900...
(Puccini) - Rosalinda, Die FledermausDie FledermausDie Fledermaus is an operetta composed by Johann Strauss II to a German libretto by Karl Haffner and Richard Genée.- Literary sources :...
(StraussJohann Strauss IIJohann Strauss II , also known as Johann Baptist Strauss or Johann Strauss, Jr., the Younger, or the Son , was an Austrian composer of light music, particularly dance music and operettas. He composed over 500 waltzes, polkas, quadrilles, and other types of dance music, as well as several operettas...
) - Arabella, ArabellaArabellaArabella is a lyric comedy or opera in 3 acts by Richard Strauss to a German libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal, their sixth and last operatic collaboration. It was first performed on 1 July 1933, at the Dresden Sächsisches Staatstheater....
(StraussRichard StraussRichard Georg Strauss was a leading German composer of the late Romantic and early modern eras. He is known for his operas, which include Der Rosenkavalier and Salome; his Lieder, especially his Four Last Songs; and his tone poems and orchestral works, such as Death and Transfiguration, Till...
) - Marschallin, Der RosenkavalierDer RosenkavalierDer Rosenkavalier is a comic opera in three acts by Richard Strauss to an original German libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal. It is loosely adapted from the novel Les amours du chevalier de Faublas by Louvet de Couvrai and Molière’s comedy Monsieur de Pourceaugnac...
(StraussRichard StraussRichard Georg Strauss was a leading German composer of the late Romantic and early modern eras. He is known for his operas, which include Der Rosenkavalier and Salome; his Lieder, especially his Four Last Songs; and his tone poems and orchestral works, such as Death and Transfiguration, Till...
) - Leonora, Il TrovatoreIl trovatoreIl trovatore is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Salvadore Cammarano, based on the play El Trovador by Antonio García Gutiérrez. Cammarano died in mid-1852 before completing the libretto...
(Verdi) - Amelia, Simon BoccanegraSimon BoccanegraSimon Boccanegra is an opera with a prologue and three acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave, based on the play Simón Bocanegra by Antonio García Gutiérrez....
(Verdi) - Violetta, La TraviataLa traviataLa traviata is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi set to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave. It is based on La dame aux Camélias , a play adapted from the novel by Alexandre Dumas, fils. The title La traviata means literally The Fallen Woman, or perhaps more figuratively, The Woman...
(Verdi) - Elsa, LohengrinLohengrin (opera)Lohengrin is a romantic opera in three acts composed and written by Richard Wagner, first performed in 1850. The story of the eponymous character is taken from medieval German romance, notably the Parzival of Wolfram von Eschenbach and its sequel, Lohengrin, written by a different author, itself...
(Wagner) - Freia, Das RheingoldDas Rheingoldis the first of the four operas that constitute Richard Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen . It was originally written as an introduction to the tripartite Ring, but the cycle is now generally regarded as consisting of four individual operas.Das Rheingold received its premiere at the National Theatre...
(Wagner) - The Old Maid, The Old Maid and the ThiefThe Old Maid and the ThiefThe Old Maid and the Thief is an opera in one act by Italian-American composer Gian Carlo Menotti. The work uses an English language libretto by the composer which tells a twisted tale of morals and evil womanly power...
(Menotti) - The Witch, Hansel & Gretel (Engelbert HumperdinckEngelbert HumperdinckEngelbert Humperdinck was a German composer, best known for his opera, Hänsel und Gretel. Humperdinck was born at Siegburg in the Rhine Province; at the age of 67 he died in Neustrelitz, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.-Life:After receiving piano lessons, Humperdinck produced his first composition...
)
Iain Hamilton and other contemporary music premieres
Lois McDonall has premiered the works of several composers. Among these, most notably is the British Composer, Iain Hamilton. He wrote a few pieces specifically for her voice. These include the opera Anna Karenina, which was commissioned by the English National OperaEnglish National Opera
English National Opera is an opera company based in London, resident at the London Coliseum in St. Martin's Lane. It is one of the two principal opera companies in London, along with the Royal Opera, Covent Garden...
in 1978; the Passion According to St. Mark's, commissioned by the London Chorale in 1982; and Cleopatra, a dramatic Scena for Soprano which was premiered by the BBC Symphony Orchestra at the 1978 Proms
The Proms
The Proms, more formally known as The BBC Proms, or The Henry Wood Promenade Concerts presented by the BBC, is an eight-week summer season of daily orchestral classical music concerts and other events held annually, predominantly in the Royal Albert Hall in London...
. Lois McDonall also created the role of Mrs. Medlock in Stephen McNeff's The Secret Garden for the COMUS Music Theatre in 1985.
Teaching career
Lois McDonall has taught at The Banff Centre in Alberta. She taught at the Royal Conservatory of MusicRoyal Conservatory of Music
The Royal Conservatory of Music is a music school and performance venue in Toronto, Canada. Other uses of the term include:*The Madrid Royal Conservatory, Spain*The Royal Academy of Music, London, United Kingdom...
in Toronto from 1986–1992 and taught at the University of Toronto until 2001. Now-prominent students include soprano Othalie Graham
Othalie Graham
Othalie Graham is a Canadian dramatic soprano, whose operatic roles to date include the title roles of Puccini's Turandot, Verdi's Aida, Strauss' Elektra and Leonora in Verdi's Il trovatore as well as a role in Tosca and the role of Odabella in Attila...
, Jackalyn Short, Elliot Madore, Stephen Harland, and Andrea Ludwig.
Recordings
These are McDonall's recordings:- Margot le Rouge (DeliusDeliusDelius is a surname. It may refer to:* Ernst von Delius - German racing car driver* Frederick Delius - English composer* Nicolaus Delius - German philologist* Tobias Delius Delius is a surname. It may refer to:* Ernst von Delius (1912–1937) - German racing car driver* Frederick Delius...
), BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff... - AriodanteAriodanteAriodante is an opera seria in three acts by Handel. The anonymous Italian libretto was based on a work by Antonio Salvi, which in turn was adapted from Canti 5 and 6 of Ludovico Ariosto's Orlando Furioso...
(Handel), BBC - The Merry Widow (Lehár), BBC
- Don Sanche (LisztLisztLiszt is a Hungarian surname. Notable persons with that surname include:* Franz Liszt , Hungarian composer and pianist* Adam Liszt , father of Franz Liszt* Anna Liszt , mother of Franz Liszt...
), BBC - RienziRienziRienzi, der Letzte der Tribunen is an early opera by Richard Wagner in five acts, with the libretto written by the composer after Bulwer-Lytton's novel of the same name . The title is commonly shortened to Rienzi...
, (Wagner), BBC - Der Protagonist (WeillKurt WeillKurt Julian Weill was a German-Jewish composer, active from the 1920s, and in his later years in the United States. He was a leading composer for the stage who was best known for his fruitful collaborations with Bertolt Brecht...
), BBC - Das Rheingold (Wagner), EMIEMIThe EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
- Maria Padilla (Donizetti), Opera RaraOpera RaraOpera Rara is a British record label, founded in the early 1970s by Americans Patric Schmid and Don White to promote concerts of rare and/or forgotten operas by Giacomo Meyerbeer and Donizetti and such other "bel canto" composers as Giovanni Pacini, Saverio Mercadante, and Federico Ricci.The...