February 1st 2020 Concert £9 (£11)
"On a High Note"
Erin Alexander ~ soprano
Nick Miller ~ piano

"On a High Note" is the story of soprano Graziella Sciutti, who was a contemporary of Maria Callas and helped pioneer the movement of Opera singers becoming actors. It is performed in an intimate "an audience with..." style, and features the arias which made her career, such as Susanna, Despina, Rosina, and Musetta, the anecdotes from her interviews, and the heartbreak that comes with the price of success.

Award-winning soprano Erin Alexander has recently finished studying on a full scholarship at the Conservatorio Luigi Cherubini. While there, she performed the roles of Despina (Cosi fan Tutte), and Rosina (Il Barbiere di Siviglia). Erin read music at the University of Chichester under Ian Baar, graduating with First Class Honours and the Funtington Music Group Robert Headley Music Prize. In 2018, she graduated with a Master of Music from Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama under Gail Pearson. While in Wales, Erin performed the roles of Adele (Die Fledermaus), Mrs Fiorentino (Street Scene), and Gretel (Hansel & Gretel). As the first ever recipient of the Cooper Hall Emerging Artists Bursary Award, Erin has performed the roles of Zerlina (Don Giovanni) with assistant director at Royal Opera House, Greg Eldridge, and Mimi (La Boheme) for the editor of Opera Now. They commissioned her to write tonight's performance of "On a High Note" and were thrilled to learn of its success at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in August 2018.

 

 

Nick Miller, BA, MMus(Perf), ARCO is an organist, pianist and arranger. He is currently Assistant Director of Music at St John's Hyde Park, the newly-appointed Head of Organ at Eltham College, and a visiting teacher of piano, organ and singing at various schools. He trained at Liverpool Cathedral, and has subsequently held positions at St Mary Redcliffe, Bristol, and Portsmouth Cathedral. He holds degrees and prizes from Bristol University and Trinity Laban Conservatoire, and is an Associate of the Royal College of Organists.

Programme
Una voce poco fa - 1st half (Il Barbiere di Siviglia) G Rossini
Ich will dir mein Herze schenken (St Matthew passion) J S Bach
Hello, hello? (The Telephone) G Menotti
Deh vieni non tardar (Marriage of Figaro) W A Mozart
Saper Vorreste (Un ballo in Maschera) G Verdi
Sul fil d'un soffio etesio (Falstaff) G Verdi
Batti, batti (Don Giovanni) W A Mozart
Quando me'n vo (La Boheme) G Puccini
Allo? Et comme ca? (La Voix Humaine) F Poulenc
Una donna a quindici anni (Cosi fan Tutte) W A Mozart
Una voce poco fa - 2nd half (Il Barbiere di Siviglia) G Rossini