Alcina

Recognized for her work in the Baroque repertoire, Canadian soprano Karina Gauvin sings Bach, Mahler, Britten and the music of the 20th and
21st centuries with equal success. She has sung with the world’s leading symphony orchestras, including the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal, the San Francisco Symphony, the Chicago Symphony, the New York Philharmonic and the Rotterdam Philharmonic, as well as Baroque orchestras such as Les Talens Lyriques, the Venice Baroque Orchestra, Le concert de la Loge, Accademia Bizantina, Il Complesso Barocco, Freiburger Baroque Orchestra, the Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra and Les Violons du Roy.

She has performed under the direction of Charles Dutoit, Michael Tilson Thomas, Michel Plasson, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Ivor Bolton, Mikko Frank, Teodor Currentzis, Bernard Labadie, Christophe Rousset, Sir Roger Norrington, Kent Nagano, Fabien Gabel, Jérémie Rhorer and the late Alan
Curtis among others. On the recital platform, she has collaborated with pianists Marc-André Hamelin, Angela Hewitt, Michael McMahon, Maciej Pikulski and Roger Vignoles.

In 2015, she sang a much lauded performance of Vitellia in La Clemenza di Tito at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées in Paris and Armida in Handel’s Rinaldo at the Glyndebourne Festival. She gave a gripping performance of title role in Gluck’s Armide at the Netherlands Opera and Giunone in Cavalli’s Calisto at the Bavarian State Opera.

In 2017, she again sang Vitellia at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées under the baton of Teodor Currentzis and appeared as Duchesse d’Étampes in Camille Saint-Saëns’ long-lost opera Ascanio, conducted by Guillaume Tourniaire at the Grand Théâtre de Genève. In 2018, she performed in recital at both the Lille Opera and Wigmore Hall. Past projects include a European tour and a recording of Handel's Ariodante for EMI Virgin Classics, along with a European tour and a recording of Giulio Cesare, both with Alan Curtis and Il Complesso Barocco. She sang in Debussy's The Martyrdom of Saint Sebastian and Mahler's Symphony No. 2 with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, under the baton of Michael Tilson Thomas. She was Lia in Debussy’s L’Enfant prodigue with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France under Mikko Frank, later released on the Erato label.

Her extensive discography—over 50 titles—has won her numerous awards, including a “Chamber Music America Award” for her “Fête Galante” disc with pianist Marc-André Hamelin, three Grammy nominations for her recordings with the Boston Early Music Orchestra and several Opus Prizes. Recent projects have included Merab in Handel’s Saul at the Glyndebourne Festival Opera and Paris Théâtre du Châtelet, Giunone in Cavalli’s Calisto at the Staatsoper München and at the Teatro Real in Madrid. She sang Bellezza in Handel's Il Trionfo del Tempo e del Disinganno at the Innsbruck Festival, Cleopatra in Giulio Cesare with the Talens Lyriques and Christophe Rousset at the Bucharest George Enescu Festival, Théâtre des Champs-Elysées and Ambronay Festival. She has given several concerts with Le Concert de la Loge under Julien Chauvin at the Halle Festival and the Metz Arsenal among others.

Among the numerous distinctions she received in her early career, she was named soloist of the year for the International French Radio Community, won first prize for the CBC Radio Young performers Competition, the Virginia Parker prize as well as the Maggie Teyte Memorial Prize in London and the lieder and public’s prize at the 's-Hertogenbosch International Competition.

During the pandemic, Karina Gauvin was privileged to participate in a very exciting new recording project: the complete songs of Jules Massenet, to be released in 2021. In late 2020, she was named artist in residence for Mécénat Musica, a cultural program by donors for donors to make a sustainable contribution in music and the arts.

Learn more at KarinaGauvin.com.

Lucy Crowe studied at the Royal Academy of Music, where she is a Fellow.

With repertoire ranging from Purcell, Handel and Mozart to Donizetti’s Adina and Verdi’s Gilda, she has sung with opera companies and orchestras throughout the world, including the Royal Opera, Covent Garden, Glyndebourne Festival, English National Opera, Teatro Real Madrid, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Bavarian State Opera, Metropolitan Opera, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Berlin Philharmonic, Vienna Philharmonic, Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Monteverdi Orchestra, Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia and London Symphony Orchestra.

Recent opera appearances include her debut at Dutch National Opera in the title role of Rodelinda, Poppea in Agrippina at the Royal Opera House, Susanna in The Marriage of Figaro at the Metropolitan Opera and Pamina in The Magic Flute at the Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona.

Appearances for the 2022/23 season include a return to the Royal Opera House for Musetta in La Boheme. The season's highlights in concert include a European tour of Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis with the Monteverdi Choir and Orchestra, also performed at the BBC Proms, Mozart’s Great Mass in C minor with the Dunedin Consort, Haydn’s The Creation with the Rotterdams Philharmonisch Orkest and with the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks (BRSO), concerts of Haydn and Schubert arias also with the BRSO, Morgana in Alcina with Les Violons du Roy in Quebec and Montreal, and her debut with the Cleveland Orchestra for concerts of selected Mozart arias.

In recital she has appeared at the Concertgebouw, Carnegie Hall, Aldeburgh, Edinburgh, Mostly Mozart and Salzburg Festivals and the BBC Proms. She has a vast discography. Her debut disc for Linn records featuring Berg, Strauss, and Schoenberg was released in the summer of 2021. She received a Grammy nomination in 2021 for Best Opera Recording for Janáček’s The Cunning Little Vixen with the London Symphony Orchestra and conductor Sir Simon Rattle.

Opera News wrote of Elizabeth DeShong's performance as Sesto in LA Opera's production of The Clemency of Titus: "Elizabeth DeShong took pride of place as Sesto. Completely unrecognizable in her beard and dingy armor, DeShong sang with the range, expressiveness and musical precision that captured the hysterical extremes of her character. Much of Sesto’s music lies in the cellars of DeShong’s mezzo-soprano, where the intensely deep contralto tones she commands contrasted startlingly with the dazzling coloratura runs at the top of her range.” 

During the 2019/20 season, Ms. DeShong returned to the Metropolitan Opera as Suzuki in Madama Butterfly. She debuted with the Melbourne Symphony as Hansel in a concert performance of Hansel and Gretel and performed Pauline in The Queen of Spades at Lyric Opera of Chicago—both conducted by Sir Andrew Davis.

The previous season, Ms. DeShong performed Adalgisa in Norma with the North Carolina Opera, gave a recital for Vocal Arts, D.C., sang  John Adams' The Gospel According to the Other Mary with the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia  with the composer conducting, and was a soloist in Handel's Messiah with the San Francisco and Houston Symphonies, conducted by Jane Glover. Additional highlights were her debuts with the Los Angeles Philharmonic as Ariel in Sibelius' The Tempest, the Philadelphia Orchestra in Rossini's Stabat Mater, conducted by Yannick Nézet -Séguin, a  tour of Europe and the United States with The English Concert in which she portrayed both Juno and Ino in Handel's Semele, the Verdi Requiem with the Minnesota Orchestra, and Sesto in a new production of La Clemenza di Tito with the Los Angeles Opera. 

In 2018/19, Ms. DeShong sang Ruggiero in Alcina at Washington National Opera, and Arsace in Semiramide at the Metropolitan Opera. In concert she performed Mendelssohn’s Elijah with Music of the Baroque, and made her debut with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in Schubert’s Mass No. 6, and the world premiere of Three Lisel Mueller Settings by Maxwell Raimi, both conducted by Riccardo Muti. On the European platform, Ms. DeShong portrayed Suzuki in a new production of Madama Butterfly at the Glyndebourne Festival, and made her debuts with the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, and at the Proms in Bernstein's Symphony No. 1 ("Jeremiah"), under the direction of Sir Antonio Pappano, and sang Hänsel  in a concert version of Hänsel and Gretel conducted by Sir Andrew Davis at the Edinburgh International Festival.

Further performances of note include Adalgisa in Norma at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, and her Royal Opera and Bayerische Staatsoper debuts as Suzuki. Ms. DeShong has performed extensively throughout the world with such companies as the Metropolitan Opera, San Francisco Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Los Angeles Opera, Canadian Opera Company, English National Opera, Wiener Staatsoper, Opéra National de Bordeaux, the Glyndebourne Festival, and Aix-en-Provence.

The list of symphony orchestras with whom she has performed includes the Cleveland Orchestra, Chicago Symphony, Baltimore Symphony, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra of St. Luke’s, Cincinnati Symphony, National Symphony Orchestra, Toronto Symphony,  the Royal Flemish Orchestra, Royal Scottish National Orchestra,  the Oregon Symphony, The English Concert, and the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia.

Ms. DeShong was the recipient of the Washington National Opera’s “Artist of the Year” award in 2010, as the Composer in Ariadne auf Naxos. On DVD, she can be seen as Suzuki in the Royal Opera's production of Madama Butterfly on Opus Arte, Hermia in the Metropolitan Opera’s pastiche opera The Enchanted Island (Virgin), and as Maffio Orsini in the San Francisco Opera’s production of Lucrezia Borgia (EuroArts Music and Naxos of America). Her recording of Handel’s Messiah with the Toronto Symphony under the direction of Sir Andrew Davis was released by Chandos and nominated for two Grammy Awards in 2018.

Learn more at ElizabethDeShong.com.

Irish mezzo-soprano Paula Murrihy received her bachelor of music from DIT Conservatory of Music and Drama in Dublin before continuing her studies in North America at the New England Conservatory. She also participated in the Britten-Pears Young Artist Programme, San Francisco Opera’s Merola Program and as an apprentice at Santa Fe Opera. A member of Oper Frankfurt’s acclaimed ensemble, her many roles there include Medoro in Orlando Furioso, Dido in Dido and Aeneas, Lazuli in L’étoile, Octavian in Der Rosenkavalier, and her role debut as Carmen in Barrie Kosky’s iconic production, which she reprised in Frankfurt for a 2020 revival.

An accomplished recitalist, Paula has given performances at the Wigmore Hall with Malcolm Martineau, the Aldeburgh Festival, the Shannon International Music Festival, the Chancellor’s Concert at the University of Limerick, in Frankfurt and at the Diaghilev Festival in Perm. This season, she releases her debut solo album with American pianist Tanya Blaich on Orchid Classics. Titled I will walk with my love, the disc explores folk inspired songs and myths and features works by Brahms, Mahler, Debussy and Grieg, as well as traditional Irish folksong.

Recent highlights include her debut at the Metropolitan Opera, as Stéphano in Roméo et Juliette, a return to Santa Fe Opera as Ruggiero in Alcina and Orlofsky in Die Fledermaus and the Salzburg Festival as Idamante in Peter Sellars’ production of Idomeneo, conducted by Teodor Currentzis. Last season Paula returned to Frankfurt to sing the title role in Fauré’s Pénélope, and has recently appeared with the Dutch National Opera as Octavian in Der Rosenkavalier and Sesto in La Clemenza di Tito, at Opernhaus Zürich as Concepcion in L’heure Espagnole and Cherubino in The Marriage of Figaro, at the Teatro Real in Madrid as Frances, Countess of Essex in Britten’s Gloriana, at Oper Frankfurt as the Composer in Ariadne auf Naxos, and a return to her native Ireland to make her role debut as Judith in Bluebeard’s Castle for Irish National Opera.

Further appearances include her role debut as Elvira in Don Giovanni with Orchestra of the 18th Century, Ino in Semele for Boston Lyric Opera, Ghosts of Versailles for Opera Theatre St Louis, Dido in Dido and Aeneas for Los Angeles Opera, Tebaldo in Don Carlo, and Mercedes in Carmen for Covent Garden, Annio in La Clemenza di Tito at the Théâtre Capitole Toulouse, Medoro in Orlando Furioso for Opéra de Nice, Octavian in Der Rosenkavalier at Staatsoper Stuttgart and Ascanio in Terry Gilliam’s production of Benvenuto Cellini at English National Opera.

On the concert platform Paula enjoys a close relationship with MusicAeterna and Teodor Currentzis and performances include Così fan tutte, The Marriage of Figaro, Purcell’s Indian Queen, Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater, Mahler’s Kindertotenlieder, Hindemith’s Die junge Magd and Das Knaben Wunderhorn at the Mariinsky Theatre and on a tour of Europe. Highlights include her debut at the BBC Proms in 2016 in Haydn’s Paukenmesse and performing works by Tommaso Traetta with La Nuova Musica and David Bates at the Wigmore Hall, and Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen with Sir Mark Elder and the Britten Sinfonia. Further concert appearances include Messiah with the Orchestre de Chambre de Paris, Elijah with the Spanish National Orchestra and Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, Christmas Oratorio with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Handel’s Solomon, Alexander’s Feast and Honneger’s Judith for the Nederlandse Programma Stichting, and Beethoven's Missa Solemnis with the London Philharmonic Orchestra. In the United States she has worked with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, where she premiered John Harbison’s Symphony No. 6, the Philadelphia Orchestra for Handel’s Messiah, the North Carolina Symphony Orchestra for Beethoven's Symphony No. 9, the Handel and Haydn Society (Juno/Ino in Semele) and the St Paul Chamber Orchestra in performances of Bach’s St. Matthew Passion.

American tenor Alek Shrader has developed an outstanding reputation both for his beautiful lyric vocalism and his expressive characterizations.

Polish bass Wojtek Gierlach is a much in-demand singer with a wide-ranging career that has seen him perform at major venues across the world. His recent performances include role debuts as Sparafucile in Rigoletto, the Parson in The Cunning Little Vixen and Procida in David Pountney’s new production of Les vêpres siciliennes for Welsh National Opera.  Also at WNO, Rocco in Fidelio, Giorgio in I Puritani and Alidoro in La Cenerentola, the latter a role he has also performed to great acclaim at the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, Deutsche Oper Berlin and Teatro de la Maestranza in Seville. He also recently returned to the role of Figaro in The Marriage of Figaro and sang Zbigniew in Stanisław Moniuszko's The Haunted Manor at the Teatr Wielki Poznań, as well as the Commendatore in Don Giovanni for Opera Wroclawska.  In concert, he appeared with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra in Dvořák’s Stabat Mater.

His other previous engagements include the Priest in Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk at Covent Garden, Talbot in Maria Stuarda at Deutsche Oper am Rhein, Rocco in Fidelio and Count Rodolfo in Sonnambula in St. Gallen, Oroveso in Norma with the Teatre Principal Palma, a role he previously sang at the Teatro National de São Carlos Lisbon, and Melisso in Alcina (alongside Joyce DiDonato) with Harry Bicket and The English Concert at the Barbican, Carnegie Hall, Théâtre des Champs-Élysées and Theater an der Wien, and in productions at the Royal Danish Opera and the Opéra national de Bordeaux, as well as Giorgio in I Puritani and Alidoro at Danish National Opera, Don Basilio in The Barber of Seville with Deutsche Oper Berlin, Assur in Semiramide at Royal Danish Opera, Mustafa in L’Italiana in Algeri at Minnesota Opera, Orbazzano in Tancredi in Seville, Leuthold in Guillaume Tell, Sydney and Profondo in Il Viaggio a Reims at the Rossini Opera Festival in Pesaro, and Leporello in Don Giovanni with Nico Opera Cape Town.

In Poland, his many appearances include Colline in La Bohème at Podlaska Opera, Escamillo in Carmen with the Warsaw National Philharmonic and, at the Polish National Opera in Warsaw he has also appeared as Hermes in Rozicky’s Eros i Psyche, Gessler Guillaume Tell, Talbot in Maria Stuarda, Colline, Figaro, Raimondo in Lucia di Lammermoor, Duke Alfonso in Lucrezia Borgia, and Escamillo. Elsewhere in Poland, roles also include Selim in The Turk in Italy and King of Clubs in The Love for Three Oranges at Krakow Opera, and the title role of Don Giovanni at the Warsaw Mozart Festival.

Wojtek is also much in demand as a concert performer, in repertoire spanning from the Baroque era to contemporary music. His performances at major venues across the world including the Dettingen Te Deum, Saul and Elijah at the Warsaw National Philharmonic Concert Hall, Bach Magnificat at the Auditorio Nacional de Madrid, Bruckner Te Deum and Beethoven Symphony No. 9 with the Ulster Orchestra in Belfast and Missa solemnis with Helmuth Rilling at Konzerthaus Berlin, Salieri’s The Passion of Jesus Christ with Solisti Veneti and Claudio Scimone and Rossini’s Stabat Mater with the  Orquesta del Principado de Asturias and Alberto Zedda. He regularly performs Penderecki’s music under the baton of the composer, and has sung works including his Polish Requiem, Seven Gates of Jerusalem and Credo, plus a special performance of Penderecki’s Dies Irae with the Simon Bolivar Orchestra in Caracas.

Wojtek’s wide range of recordings includes Mose in Egitto and La Donna del Lago, Meyerbeer’s Semiramide with Richard Bonynge, Penderecki’s Magnificat and Janacek’s Glagolithic Mass (all on the Naxos label), G.S. Mayr’s Medea in Corinto, Luigi Mosca’s L’Italiana inAlgieri, Cherubini’s Lodoïska and Weber’s Euryanthe (both for Poslkie Radio), Guillaume Tell with Michele Mariotti (for Deutsche Grammophon), and a live recording of the world premiere of Il dissoluto punito by Ramón Carnice, conducted by Alberto Zedda.

He has won prizes in numerous international vocal competitions, including at the Francesco Viñas Competition in Barcelona.

His future plans include a return to Welsh National Opera to sing the role of Mephistophelès in Faust, and he will also sing the Gold Merchant in Cardillac with Polish National Opera, as well as appearing in productions of Boris Godunov and Rigoletto.  In concert, he will also sing Père Laurence in Berlioz’s Roméo et Juliette with the Filharmonia Krakowska, as well the Dvořák Stabat Mater and the Kodaly Te Deum.

Harry Bicket is internationally renowned as an opera and concert conductor of distinction. He is especially noted for his interpretation of baroque and classical repertoire and in 2007 became Artistic Director of The English Concert, one of the UK’s finest period orchestras. He became Chief Conductor of Santa Fe Opera in 2013 and from 2018 assumes the Music Directorship. Productions at Santa Fe in recent seasons have included Fidelio, La Finta Giardiniera, Romeo et Juliette, Alcina and Candide.

He studied at the Royal College of Music and Oxford University. Plans for the 2018/19 season include return visits to Metropolitan Opera (The Magic Flute), Lyric Opera of Chicago (Ariodante), Cleveland Orchestra, Santa Fe Opera (Cosi fan tutte and Strauss’ Four Last Songs with Renee Fleming), Prague Philharmonia featuring Beethoven’s The Creatures of Prometheus, and while in Chicago also conducts Music of the Baroque. Plans with The English Concert include his own arrangements of Mozart works for mechanical clockwork organ, Bach's Cantatas for Advent and Wayne Eagling’s ballet Remembrance, set to Handel’s Ode to St Cecilia’s Day, at the English National Ballet Theatre. The orchestra continues their Handel opera series with performances of Semele in Europe and the United States including Theatre de Champs Elysées, Barbican Centre and Carnegie Hall.

Created by Trevor Pinnock in 1973, the orchestra appointed Harry Bicket as its Artistic Director in 2007. The English Concert’s discography includes more than 100 recordings with Trevor Pinnock for Deutsche Grammophon Archiv, and a series of critically acclaimed CDs for Harmonia Mundi with violinist Andrew Manze.

Recordings with Harry Bicket have been widely praised, including Lucy Crowe’s debut solo recital, Il caro Sassone. EMI Classics released Sound the Trumpet, a recording of Baroque music for trumpet with Alison Balsom and the English Concert directed by Trevor Pinnock. A recording featuring music by Handel with mezzo-soprano Alice Coote was released in the autumn of 2014.

The English Concert works with several distinguished guest directors, including violinist Fabio Biondi and harpsichordist Laurence Cummings. Learn more at EnglishConcert.co.uk.