Robin Donald
Encyclopedia
Robin Donald Smith who appeared professionally as Robin Donald, is an Australia
n opera
tic tenor
. He performed leading roles in opera houses in Britain, Europe and Australia.
Robin Donald was born in Bundaberg, Queensland
in 1942, the son of the tenor Donald Smith. He studied music, stagecraft, and languages at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music in Brisbane
. He began his professional operatic career in England
in 1966 as a principal tenor with the Sadler's Wells Opera Company
(which later became the English National Opera
). He made his debut there in 1968 as Rodolfo in La bohème
. He returned to Australia in 1974, and was a principal tenor with Opera Australia
for over ten years.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n opera
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 tenor
Tenor
The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
. He performed leading roles in opera houses in Britain, Europe and Australia.
Robin Donald was born in Bundaberg, Queensland
Bundaberg, Queensland
Bundaberg is a city in Queensland, Australia. It is part of the Local Government Area of the Bundaberg Region and is a major centre within Queensland's broader Wide Bay-Burnett geographical region...
in 1942, the son of the tenor Donald Smith. He studied music, stagecraft, and languages at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music in Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
. He began his professional operatic career in 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...
in 1966 as a principal tenor with the Sadler's Wells Opera Company
Sadler's Wells Theatre
Sadler's Wells Theatre is a performing arts venue located in Rosebery Avenue, Clerkenwell in the London Borough of Islington. The present day theatre is the sixth on the site since 1683. It consists of two performance spaces: a 1,500 seat main auditorium and the Lilian Baylis Studio, with extensive...
(which later became 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...
). He made his debut there in 1968 as Rodolfo in La bohème
La bohème
La 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...
. He returned to Australia in 1974, and was a principal tenor with Opera Australia
Opera Australia
Opera Australia is the principal opera company in Australia. Based in Sydney, its performance season at the Sydney Opera House runs for approximately eight months of the year, with the remainder of its time spent in the The Arts Centre in Melbourne...
for over ten years.
Recordings
- Donizetti: Lucia di LammermoorLucia di LammermoorLucia di Lammermoor is a dramma tragico in three acts by Gaetano Donizetti. Salvadore Cammarano wrote the Italian language libretto loosely based upon Sir Walter Scott's historical novel The Bride of Lammermoor....
- Opera AustraliaOpera AustraliaOpera Australia is the principal opera company in Australia. Based in Sydney, its performance season at the Sydney Opera House runs for approximately eight months of the year, with the remainder of its time spent in the The Arts Centre in Melbourne...
(1986), Richard BonyngeRichard BonyngeRichard Alan Bonynge, AO, CBE is an Australian conductor and pianist.Bonynge was born in Sydney and educated at Sydney Boys High School before studying piano at the Royal College of Music in London. He gave up his music scholarship, continuing his private piano studies, and became a coach for...
conductor. (Arthaus Musik DVD 100242) - Donizetti: Lucrezia BorgiaLucrezia Borgia (opera)Lucrezia Borgia is a melodramma, or opera, in a prologue and two acts by Gaetano Donizetti. Felice Romani wrote the Italian libretto after the play by Victor Hugo, in its turn after the legend of Lucrezia Borgia. Lucrezia Borgia was first performed on 26 December 1833 at La Scala, Milan with...
- Opera Australia (1977), Richard Bonynge conductor. (Opus Arte DVD OAF4026D) - Verdi: 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...
- Opera Australia (1983), Richard Bonynge conductor. (Arthaus Musik DVD 100276)
Sources
- Kutsch, K. J. and Riemens, Leo, Grosses Sängerlexikon, Francke, 1987, Vol. 1, p. 768. ISBN 3317016388
- Murdoch, James, A Handbook of Australian Music, Sun Books, 1983, p. 46. ISBN 0725104198
- Rich, Maria F., Who's who in Opera, Arno Press, 1976, p. 141. ISBN 040506652X