The world premiere of a song cycle by Jonathan Dove will be at the heart of a concert in Wigmore Hall to celebrate the Samling Institute\u2019s 25 years of inspiring musical excellence in young people. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The special event, on 7 November, will feature a wide variety of music performed by six alumni of the Samling Artist Programme \u2013 which provides week-long intensive residential masterclasses for the UK\u2019s very best emerging singers and song pianists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The highlight will be the specially-commissioned Man, Woman, Child<\/em> in which Dove sets poems by Australia\u2019s Judith Wright to music to create a spirited but tender duet song-cycle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Dove said:<\/strong> \u201c<\/em>I was delighted to be asked to write a cycle marking the 25 years of extraordinary work the Samling Institute has done to nurture the best young singers and song pianists.<\/em> <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c<\/em>Judith Wright\u2019s poetry was wonderful to work with \u2013 she writes lyrically, directly and with great vitality about life, love and nature. Setting her words to music I discovered it has hidden depths, taking the reader or listener further than they were expecting.\u201d <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Looking ahead to The Samling Artist Showcase: \u2018Man, Woman, Child\u2019<\/em> he added: \u201cThe best thing about composing vocal music is hearing wonderful singers produce sounds I can only dream of making. It feels as though I am singing with their voices. But not everything is in the notes: the music needs singers too, with all their imagination, seeing everything they are singing about in their mind\u2019s eye. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI hardly ever mark dynamics or expression for the singer, as I want their musical performance to be shaped by their individual response to the words, and to the stories they tell.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n The singers will be the soprano Alexandra Lowe<\/strong> and tenor Filipe Manu<\/strong> (both of whom progressed from Samling to the prestigious Jette Parker Young Artists Programme<\/em> at the Royal Opera House). They will be accompanied by the renowned pianist James Baillieu.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The three other Samling Artists taking part will be:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Together they will present a programme drawn from the great flourishing of 20th century English song.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Karon Wright, Samling Institute\u2019s Artistic and Executive Director, said:<\/strong> \u201cSamling Institute has had a powerful impact on the world of song and opera. This event is a celebration of a quarter of a century of dedication to nurturing our most talented young musicians.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOur alumni now form a global family of singers, pianists and leaders. The six taking part offer a snapshot of the institute\u2019s impact on the world of song and opera.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnd while we are immensely proud of everything that our Samling Artists have achieved, this concert is also a timely reminder that as we emerge from a pandemic that has had a devastating impact on the performing arts, the need for programmes that inspire musical excellence has never been so great.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n The Man, Woman Child song cycle<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Karon Wright initially suggested a song cycle based on five of Judith Wright\u2019s poems. After considering doubling the number, Dove settled on six, most from the Woman to Man<\/em> collection. Gradually, a story emerged in Dove\u2019s mind of a man returning from war, who meets a woman in a wine bar and it ends with the voice of the child that emerges from their union. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The Samling Institute Story<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The story began with a concert held in a barn in Cumbria 25 years ago and since then the Samling Institute has grown to become a global family of singers, pianists and leaders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That first concert was given by Katarina Karn\u00e9us, who had just won Cardiff Singer of the World, and the poet Tony Harrison, and was the start of an ambitious plan to bring world-class coaching in song and opera to a region with no resident opera company or music college. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The list of Samling Artists is an impressive roll call of established stars and emerging talent which also includes Louise Alder, Benjamin Appl, Lauren Fagan, Anush Hovhannisyan, Ruby Hughes, Christopher Maltman, Catriona Morison (winner of 2017 BBC Cardiff Singer of the World), Nick Pritchard, Nicky Spence and Claire Barnett-Jones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One of the first singers to benefit from Samling\u2019s unique model of coaching was tenor Toby Spence, who recalls:<\/strong> \u201cThe Samling Artist Programme taught me the value of detailed preparation and respect for the art song genre and how much thought and artistry can be applied to singing. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAs a group, we enjoyed listening to each other, watching our peers develop and learning from our shared classes. It was an invaluable week on the path to becoming a professional singer.\u201d <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n This year the charity has formed an exciting partnership with Marchmont House in the Scottish Borders, where there is already a thriving visual arts community and recently held its first masterclass week there, led by conductor Sir Mark Elder, Sir Thomas Allen, soprano Yvonne Kenny and actor Alex Jennings. <\/p>\n\n\n\n ENDS<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Notes to Editors <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n About the Samling Artist Showcase: \u2018Man, Woman Child\u2019.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n 7 November 2021, 7.30pm. Wigmore Hall, London. Tickets \u00a316 — \u00a340 available from wigmore-hall.org.uk <\/p>\n\n\n\n