Glenville Hargreaves was born in Yorkshire and studied music and drama at the University College of St. John‚ York (where he was organ scholar) and later at the Royal Northern College of Music‚ finishing his studies at the London Opera Centre and Liverpool University. He was a pupil of the late Frederic Cox and began his professional career in 1981‚ singing Figaro Il Barbiere di Siviglia. In 1982‚ he made his début at the Royal Opera House‚ Covent Garden‚ as Hermann in John Schlesinger’s famous production of Les Contes d’Hoffmann‚ with Placido Domingo in the title-rôle. In the same year‚ for English National Opera‚ his début was in Magic Flute; since then he has been a frequent guest at ENO and ROH. His many rôles have included Zurga Les Pêcheurs de Perles‚ Nick Shadow The Rake’s Progress‚ Count Il Nozze di Figaro‚ Smirnov The Bear‚ Count Capriccio‚ Tonio Il Pagliacci‚ Scarpia Tosca‚ Sharpless Madama Butterfly‚ Michele Il Tabarro‚ Ankarstroem Un Ballo in Maschera‚ Germont La Traviata‚ Falstaff and Rigoletto.
He has worked regularly with contemporary composers and sang the formidable rôle of the Old Man in Purgatory by Crosse (a rôle which he later recorded for Decca). He created the rôle of Longinus in Hamilton’s The Catiline Conspiracy for Scottish Opera and has twice appeared in the London International Opera Festival‚ singing the title-rôle in Ullmann’s Der Kaiser von Atlantis and Mittenhoffer in Henze’s Elegy for Young Lovers. He created the rôles of Sir Charles and the Judge in Metcalf’s Tornrak for WNO.
For Opera Northern Ireland he has sung Belcore L’Elisir d’Amore‚ Schaunard La Boheme‚ and Duphol La Traviata; his début for Welsh National Opera was as Marcello and he has since appeared there regularly‚ singing title-rôle Don Pasquale‚ Pfleger Elektra and Ankarstroem. He has been a frequent guest with Opera North‚ singing Angelotti Tosca‚ Krušina Bartered Bride‚ Dark Fiddler A Village Romeo and Juliet‚ Kothner Meistersinger and Germont. He has enjoyed much success in comic rôles‚ singing Rossini’s Figaro on an extensive tour of the Netherlands and Belgium‚ Falstaff in Graham Vick’s production for CBTO‚ Don Pasquale for WNO‚ Don Alfonso for ETO‚ title-rôle Mikado for Carl Rosa and Musiklehrer Ariadne auf Naxos at Garsington‚ in Northern Ireland and for ETO. He has appeared in six seasons with Opera Holland Park‚ singing Marcello‚ Scarpia‚ Baldassare L’Arlesiana‚ Don Alfonso‚ Michele and Tonio.
He has wide experience on the concert-platform‚ singing all the standard repertoire from the Bach Passions to Carmina Burana. His début with the Hallé Orchestra in Béatrice et Bénédict (with Paul Schofield and Vanessa Redgrave) was followed by two performances of Elijah and Serenade to Music. He sang Judas Maccabeus with the National Orchestra of Spain‚ Sea Drift with the RPO‚ Sea Symphony and St. John Passion with the Northern Sinfonia‚ Finzi’s Requiem with the English Chamber Orchestra‚ The Kingdom with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra‚ Dream of Gerontius‚ The Kingdom and Mahler 8th Symphony with the RLPO‚ Messiah with the Royal Choral Society‚ Creation for a BBC broadcast and Elijah with the Bournemouth Sinfonietta. South Bank concerts have included title-rôle Bruch’s Odysseus‚ Puccini’s Messa di Gloria and Carmina Burana. He has enjoyed singing songs for ballet and contemporary dancers‚ most notably several performances of Songs of a Wayfarer with the late Rudolf Nureyev at the London Coliseum. His recordings include Purgatory‚ Caterina Cornaro (with Richard Bonynge) and many radio broadcasts‚ including BBC Radios 2 and 3‚ Suisse Romande and Hilversum Radio. He is a noted exponent of Carmina Burana‚ performances including Royal Albert Hall with Sir David Wilcox‚ South Bank‚ and a live recording for Classic FM with Laszlo Heltay. He is a regular guest soloist on Radio 2’s ‘Friday Night is Music Night’.
Recent engagements include the central rôle of Mittenhoffer in the French language premieres of Elegy for Young Lovers in Lausanne‚ title-rôle Rigoletto at Sadlers Wells and then on an extensive UK tour - to much critical acclaim. He has appeared extensively in France and Switzerland‚ singing The Rake’s Progress (Lausanne and Bordeaux)‚ title-rôle Rigoletto‚ Sharpless‚ Germont (notably in Paris and Lille) and in the Netherlands as Kolenaty Makropulos Case and all seven Traveller rôles Death in Venice. He sang Peter in the South American première of Elgar’s The Kingdom with the National Orchestra of Argentina in the Teatro Colón‚ Buenos Aires‚ has appeared twice at Grange Park Opera singing Messager’s Fortunio and Mountararat Iolanthe and at Opera North as Krušina Bartered Bride and Germont La Traviata. Most recent appearances include the title-rôle Rigoletto in Northern Ireland‚ title-rôle Falstaff for NSO‚ Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg at the Edinburgh Festival‚ and concerts throughout the UK.
Download as Word 2007 Document
|