FRIDAY 16th JULY
SONGS FOR SUMMER NIGHTS
Janet Macdonald - SopranoClaire Powell - Mezzo Soprano
Joyce Clarke- Piano
A very special evening of classical songs and duets with Claire Powell, Janet Macdonald and Joyce Clarke. There will be some English Song and works by Purcell, Mozart, Rossini, and a selection from Berlioz’s Les Nuits d’ete. Claire will sing La Maya Dolorosa, a 3 song cycle by Granados, a cycle of Bellini songs and the WORLD PREMIER of Nanoorisma, a lullaby, by Jaemus Downing the West Country composer.
FRIDAY 10th SEPTEMBER
7.30pm
AUTUMN OPERA GALA
OPERA GLASS
Opera Glass provides an evening of popular arias and ensembles from opera such as Mozart’s Don Giovanni, Gounod's Faust with Bizet’s Pearl Fishers duet and excerpts from light opera performed by the cream of South West singers. Janet and Claire will be joined by tenor Chris Hunt and others. Margaret Chave accompanies on the grand piano.
Poltimore House was regional winner of BBC2's Restoration in 2003. OPERAGlass is very honoured to be here at the start of Poltimore's cultural journey.
CLAIRE POWELL, Mezzo soprano,
Claire Powell LRAM, FRAM moved straight from the London opera centre to sing Eboli (Don Carlo) Orlofsky (Die Fledermaus), Dalila (Samson et Dalila) Maddalena, (Rigoletto) Auntie (Peter Grimes) and recently Die Walkure alongside Placido Domingo and Sir John Tomlinson. She has graced the major opera houses of New York Paris Munich,Rome, Palermo, Berlin and Tokyo, as Carmen, La Cieca ( la Gioconda), Azucena (Il Trovatore), Annina (Der Rosenkavalier) and Eboli. Her conductors include Carlos Kleiber, Riccardo Muti Zubin Mehta, Colin Davis, Lorin Maazel and Antonio Pappano, with several videos and CDs resulting. Singing students from all over the South-West attend her home in Cornwall or at Exeter University.
JAEMUS DOWNING, www.jaemusdowning.com
Jaemus is a West Country composer who lives in Tavistock and performs around the area as a Jazz and Blues pianist. Many of his works have been played and enjoyed all over the world.
JANET MACDONALD, Soprano
Janet studied music at Trinity College, London. She is known in and around Exeter for her mellow soprano voice and interpretation of songs. Janet loves to sing oratorio and art song - English, French, German, Italian and Russian. Her performed operatic repertoire includes Santuzza (Cavalleria Rusticana), Michaela and Frasquita (Carmen), Antonia (Tales of Hoffman), Hansel and Dew Fairy (Hansel and Gretel), Gilda (Rigoletto) and Donna Anna (Don Giovanni). Janet studies with Claire Powell.
CHRIS HUNT, Tenor
Chris started his musical career in the choirs of Southwark and Westminster Cathedrals, although these days he concentrates mainly on opera and oratorio. He is becoming much in demand by opera groups and choral societies He has sung Rossini’s Stabat Mater and Haydn’s Creation and in May, Mozart’s Requiem with Janet and Claire, Clyst Valley Choral Society and St David’s Singers He has performed Turiddu in Mascagni’s Cavalleria Rusticana with Somerset Opera and will be singing Don Ottavio in Mozart’s Don Giovanni this Summer.
JOYCE CLARKE, Pianoforte
Joyce gained her Diploma at the Royal Academy of Music with distinction.. As a concert player she is much in demand for her extensive repertoire and as accompanist she works regularly with leading solo singers and instrumentalists and choral groups. As repetiteur and coach she works with a number of professional opera companies and is a regular member of staff at the Canford Summer school.
TICKETS
For further information and online tickets visit : www.poltimore.org/
or phone Amy Coupland: 07909090475
Bring a picnic to enjoy in the delightful grounds before the programme. The gardens will be open from 6.00 pm.
