National Opera Studio
Encyclopedia
The National Opera Studio in London
, England
was established by the Arts Council
as a link between the music colleges and the six main UK opera companies. It was resident at Morley College
in Lambeth
until 2003, when it gained use for the first time of its own dedicated premises in Chapel Yard, Wandsworth
. Its director is the soprano Kathryn Harries, who succeeded Donald Maxwell at the start of 2009, its Head of Music is Mark Shanahan, and its General Manager Kevin Rainey. It is responsible for the training of approximately twelve singers each academic year, as well as three piano repetiteurs. Its funding comes in part from the six main UK opera companies – Royal Opera House
, English National Opera
, Welsh National Opera
, Scottish Opera
, Opera North
and the Glyndebourne Festival Opera
. Representatives from each company sit on the final audition panel for selection of each year's intake. The one-year course usually includes residencies at two of the national opera companies, as well as four opera scene performances in London throughout the year.
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
was established by the Arts Council
Arts Council of Great Britain
The Arts Council of Great Britain was a non-departmental public body dedicated to the promotion of the fine arts in Great Britain. The Arts Council of Great Britain was divided in 1994 to form the Arts Council of England , the Scottish Arts Council, and the Arts Council of Wales...
as a link between the music colleges and the six main UK opera companies. It was resident at Morley College
Morley College
Morley College is an adult education college in London, England. It was founded in the 1880s and has a student population of 10,806 adult students...
in Lambeth
Lambeth
Lambeth is a district of south London, England, and part of the London Borough of Lambeth. It is situated southeast of Charing Cross.-Toponymy:...
until 2003, when it gained use for the first time of its own dedicated premises in Chapel Yard, Wandsworth
Wandsworth
Wandsworth is a district of south London, England, in the London Borough of Wandsworth. It is situated southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.-Toponymy:...
. Its director is the soprano Kathryn Harries, who succeeded Donald Maxwell at the start of 2009, its Head of Music is Mark Shanahan, and its General Manager Kevin Rainey. It is responsible for the training of approximately twelve singers each academic year, as well as three piano repetiteurs. Its funding comes in part from the six main UK opera companies – 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...
, 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...
, Welsh National Opera
Welsh National Opera
Welsh National Opera is an opera company founded in Cardiff, Wales in 1943. The WNO tours Wales, the United Kingdom and the rest of the world extensively. Annually, it gives more than 120 performances of eight main stage operas to a combined audience of around 150,000 people...
, Scottish Opera
Scottish Opera
Scottish Opera is the national opera company of Scotland, and one of the five national performing arts companies funded by the Scottish Government...
, Opera North
Opera North
Opera North is an English opera company based in Leeds. The company's home theatre is the Leeds Grand Theatre, but it also presents regular seasons in several other cities, at the Theatre Royal, Nottingham, the Lowry Centre, Salford Quays and the Theatre Royal, Newcastle...
and the Glyndebourne Festival Opera
Glyndebourne Festival Opera
Glyndebourne Festival Opera is an English opera festival held at Glyndebourne, an English country house near Lewes, in East Sussex, England.-History:...
. Representatives from each company sit on the final audition panel for selection of each year's intake. The one-year course usually includes residencies at two of the national opera companies, as well as four opera scene performances in London throughout the year.
Notable alumni
- Peter Auty Peter AutyPeter Auty is an English operatic tenor who has worked with most of the major opera companies in Britain and a number of companies in continental Europe.-Choirboy:...
- Barry BanksBarry Banks (tenor)Barry Banks, Born in Stoke-on-Trent. English lyric tenor. Who after a long association with The Metropolitan Opera and English National Opera has achieved acclaim as one of finest interpreters of the Italian bel canto repertoire.-Early education:...
- Jeffrey BlackJeffrey BlackJeffrey Black , is an internationally acclaimed opera singer. He studied singing at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music, and appeared in many of the operas staged by the Conservatorium students and post-graduate students, including appearing in the role of "Figaro", as a First year Opera...
- Alfie BoeAlfie BoeAlfred Giovanni Roncalli Boe, known professionally initially as Alf or Alfred Boe and now as Alfie Boe, , is an English tenor.-Background:...
- Ivor BoltonIvor BoltonIvor Bolton is an English conductor and harpsichordist. He studied at Clare College and at the Royal College of Music...
- Susan BullockSusan BullockSusan Bullock is an English soprano.She was educated at Cheadle Hulme School, and further at Royal Holloway College, University of London, the Royal Academy of Music and the National Opera Studio....
- Paul Carey JonesPaul Carey JonesPaul Carey Jones is a baritone opera singer.-Education:Jones attended Ysgol Gymraeg Melin Gruffydd and Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Glantaf...
- Wynne EvansWynne EvansWynne Evans is a Welsh tenor. Popularly known for his role as the tenor Gio Compario in the Gocompare.com insurance adverts on television in the United Kingdom, he sang, , in the 25th Anniversary Celebration of Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera at the Royal Albert Hall...
- Richard FarnesRichard FarnesRichard Farnes is a British conductor, and is currently Music Director of Opera North.- Education :Farnes was a chorister at King's College, Cambridge before entering Eton College as a music scholar in 1977...
- Gerald FinleyGerald Finley-Career:He was born in Montreal and received his musical education in St. Matthew's Anglican Church, Ottawa, the University of Ottawa, King's College, Cambridge and the Royal College of Music in London, England...
- Lesley GarrettLesley GarrettLesley Garrett CBE is an English musician, broadcaster and media personality.- Early life :Garrett was born in the town of Thorne near Doncaster in South Yorkshire, into a musical family. She attended Thorne Grammar School, where she performed in school plays and musicals. As she grew up she...
- Lisa GasteenLisa GasteenLisa Kinkead Gasteen AO , is an internationally acclaimed Australian operatic soprano, renowned for her performances of the works of Wagner. She won the Cardiff Singer of the World competition in 1991...
- Julian GavinJulian GavinJulian Gavin is an Australian-born operatic tenor who has sung leading roles both in the United Kingdom and internationally. His full-length opera recordings include Don José in Carmen and the title roles in Ernani and Don Carlos for Chandos Records.-Biography:Julian Gavin was born in Melbourne to...
- Susan GrittonSusan GrittonSusan Gritton is an English soprano.Susan Gritton was educated at the University of Oxford and the University of London, where she studied Botany....
- Philip JollPhilip JollPhillip Joll is a Welsh operatic baritone known for his portrayal of Wotan in Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen.Born in Merthyr Tydfil in 1954, he was a pupil at Cyfarthfa High School, before joining the Royal Northern College of Music. He graduated from the National Opera Studio in London...
- Marie McLaughlinMarie McLaughlinMarie McLaughlin is a Scottish operatic soprano.A light lyric soprano, McLaughlin is noted for her performances as Susanna , Zerlina , Despina , Norina , Marzelline , Nannetta , Micaëla and Tytania Marie McLaughlin (born Hamilton, South Lanarkshire 2 November 1954) is a Scottish operatic...
- Jean RigbyJean RigbyJean Rigby , is an English opera and concert singer. A mezzo-soprano, she is a long-time principal with the English National Opera....
- Kate RoyalKate RoyalKate Royal is an English lyric soprano. She is the daughter of Steve Royal, a singer and songwriter for television, and of Carolyn Royal, a former model and dancer....
- Claire RutterClaire RutterClaire Rutter is an English operatic soprano.-Biography:Claire Rutter studied at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and at the National Opera Studio. Her title role performances have included those in Tosca, La Traviata and Aida at English National Opera...
- Hilary SummersHilary SummersHilary Summers is a Welsh contralto. She was trained at Reading University, the Royal Academy of Music, and the National Opera Studio in London. She has performed on soundtracks such as The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, The Libertine, and The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy...
- Buddug Verona JamesBuddug Verona JamesBuddug Verona James is a Welsh mezzo-soprano opera singer who studied at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, the National Opera Studio and in Rome...
- Jeremy Huw WilliamsJeremy Huw WilliamsJeremy Huw Williams is a Welsh baritone opera singer who studied at Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Glantaf, St John's College, Cambridge, at the National Opera Studio, and with April Cantelo....
Other alumni
- Marie Arnet
- Clive Bailey
- Kim Begley
- Matthew Best
- Cora Burggraaf
- Elizabeth Byrne
- Bruno Caproni
- Karen Cargill
- Ashley Catling
- Alice CooteAlice CooteAlice Coote is a British lyric mezzo-soprano.The daughter of the painter Mark Coote, she was educated at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London , the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester and the National Opera Studio...
- John S. Craven
- David Curry
- Robert Dean
- Imelda Drumm
- Adrian Dwyer
- Martin Fitzpatrick
- Martene Grimson
- Jonathan Gunthorpe
- Alison Hagley
- Gwyn Hughes-Jones
- Katarina Karnéus
- Anthony Kraus
- Garry Magee
- Alastair Miles
- Gerald Moore
- Robert Murray
- Steven Naylor
- Steven Page
- Joan Rodgers
- Peter Rose
- William Shimell
- Rebecca Von Lipinski
- Roland Wood