"Exemplary in evenness of tone and dramatic delivery..."

                 Guardian

“No young British singer has excited me so much.”

                 Telegraph

  
BARBER
Capricorn Concerto
BRITTEN
Les Illuminations
BEETHOVEN
Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op.92

This concert modifies the standard triptych of 3 Bs in classical music (Bach, Beethoven, and Brahms) with works by Barber and Britten. The combination of endearing works on this program, on top of soprano Kate Royal’s first collaboration with Orpheus, will be a true treat this concert season. Royal, known for her meltingly rich voice, exquisite musicality and an intense stage presence at opera houses around the world, joins us for Benjamin Britten’s magical Les Illuminations, which sets to music nine prose poems of Arthur Rimbaud’s famous work. Barber’s Capricorn Concerto, written in a remarkably contemporary tonal style for its day, showcases several Orpheus musicians in a piece that seems tailor-made to display their virtuosity. Performing Beethoven’s seventh symphony marks an Orpheus milestone, as we take on this lively and sweeping masterpiece for the first time.

Born in London, Kate Royal studied at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and the National Opera Studio. Her many awards include the 2004 Kathleen Ferrier Award, the 2004 John Christie Award and the 2007 Royal Philharmonic Society Young Artist Award.

In concert she has appeared with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and Sir Simon Rattle (BBC Proms and Festspielhaus Baden-Baden), the Bach Akademie Stuttgart under Helmuth Rilling, at the Edinburgh Festival with Sir Charles Mackerras, the National Symphony Orchestra (Washington) under Helmuth Rilling, the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic and Vassily Petrenko, the Orchestra of La Scala Milan and Chung and the Berlin Philharmonic under both William Christie and Sir Simon Rattle. She has appeared in recital throughout Europe and North America.She has recorded Mahler's Symphony No. 4 with the Manchester Camerata and Schumann's Liederkreis (for Hyperion) with Graham Johnson. In October 2006 Kate Royal signed an exclusive contract with EMI Classics and her first solo recording with Edward Gardner and the Academy of St Martin-in-the-Fields was issued in the summer of 2007.In opera she has sung Pamina (Die Zauberflote) for the Glyndebourne Festival and the Royal Opera, Countess (Le nozze di Figaro) and Governess (The Turn of the Screw) for Glyndebourne on Tour, Helena (A Midsummer Night's Dream) for both the Teatro Real, Madrid and the Glyndebourne Festival, Poppea for the English National Opera, Miranda (Ades' The Tempest) for the Royal Opera, Handel's L'Allegro for the Paris Opera, Micaela (Carmen) for the Glyndebourne Festival and Countess Almaviva for the Aix-en-Provence Festival.

Her future concert engagements include both the Berlin Philharmonic and the Orchestra of Bavarian Radio under Rattle, Le Concert d'Astree under Emanuelle Haim, the Los Angeles Philharmonic under Pablo Heras-Casado and Les Musiciens du Louvre under Marc Minkowski at the Salzburg Festival. Her future operatic engagements include Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni) for the Glyndebourne Festival, Pamina and Micaela with the Bavarian State Opera and Pamina and Anne Trulove for the Royal Opera.
 

Purchase Ms. Royal's Recording

Kate Royal's Recital - April 12, 2008
Concerts from The Frick Collection