James Gilchrist (tenor)
Encyclopedia
James Gilchrist is a British tenor
specialising in recital and oratoria singing. He began his working life as a doctor, turning to a full-time music career in 1996. In concert he has performed among others, Benjamin Britten
's Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Strings with the Manchester Camerata and the Northern Sinfonia
, Elgar's The Dream of Gerontius with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra
, Tippett
's The Knot Garden with the BBC Symphony Orchestra
and Sir Andrew Davis, Bach
's Christmas Oratorio
with the Zurich Tonhalle Orchestra under Ton Koopman
, the St Matthew Passion at the Concertgebouw
, Pulcinella with the Ensemble orchestral de Paris, and Die Jahreszeiten with the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra
and with the Handel and Haydn Society
at the BBC Proms.
to record Bach's complete vocal works.
, volumes 1 and 2 of the complete songs of Hugo Wolf
, and for Chandos, the title role in Britten's Albert Herring, Amaryllus in Vaughan Williams's The Poisoned Kiss, songes by Grainger
, the E flat Mass by Schubert and most recently songs by Lennox Berkeley
.
Tenor
The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
specialising in recital and oratoria singing. He began his working life as a doctor, turning to a full-time music career in 1996. In concert he has performed among others, Benjamin Britten
Benjamin Britten
Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten, OM CH was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He showed talent from an early age, and first came to public attention with the a cappella choral work A Boy Was Born in 1934. With the premiere of his opera Peter Grimes in 1945, he leapt to...
's Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Strings with the Manchester Camerata and the Northern Sinfonia
Northern Sinfonia
The Northern Sinfonia is a British chamber orchestra, based initially in Newcastle upon Tyne, and currently in Gateshead. For the first 46 years of its history, the orchestra gave the bulk of its concerts at the City Hall, Newcastle upon Tyne. Since 2004, the orchestra has been resident at The...
, Elgar's The Dream of Gerontius with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra
Scottish Chamber Orchestra
The Scottish Chamber Orchestra is Scotland's national chamber orchestra, based in Edinburgh. One of Scotland’s five National Performing Arts Companies, the SCO performs throughout Scotland, including annual tours of the Scottish Highlands and Islands and South of Scotland. The SCO appears...
, Tippett
Tippett
Tippett is the surname of:*Andre Tippett , American footballer*Clark Tippet , American dancer*Dave Tippett , ice hockey coach*Gerald Tippett, fictional character in Shortland Street...
's The Knot Garden with the BBC Symphony Orchestra
BBC Symphony Orchestra
The BBC Symphony Orchestra is the principal broadcast orchestra of the British Broadcasting Corporation and one of the leading orchestras in Britain.-History:...
and Sir Andrew Davis, Bach
Bạch
Bạch is a Vietnamese surname. The name is transliterated as Bai in Chinese and Baek, in Korean.Bach is the anglicized variation of the surname Bạch.-Notable people with the surname Bạch:* Bạch Liêu...
's Christmas Oratorio
Christmas Oratorio
The Christmas Oratorio BWV 248, is an oratorio by Johann Sebastian Bach intended for performance in church during the Christmas season. It was written for the Christmas season of 1734 incorporating music from earlier compositions, including three secular cantatas written during 1733 and 1734 and a...
with the Zurich Tonhalle Orchestra under Ton Koopman
Ton Koopman
Ton Koopman is a conductor, organist and harpsichordist.Koopman had a "classical education" and then studied the organ , harpsichord and musicology in Amsterdam...
, the St Matthew Passion at the Concertgebouw
Concertgebouw
The Concertgebouw is a concert hall in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The Dutch term "concertgebouw" literally translates into English as "concert building"...
, Pulcinella with the Ensemble orchestral de Paris, and Die Jahreszeiten with the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra
Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra
The Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra is an American symphony orchestra based in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1880 by Joseph Otten as the St. Louis Choral Society, the SLSO is the second-oldest symphony orchestra in the United States as it is preceded by the New York Philharmonic.-History:The St...
and with the Handel and Haydn Society
Handel and Haydn Society
The Handel and Haydn Society is an American chorus and period instrument orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1815, it remains one of the oldest performing arts organizations in the United States.-Early history:...
at the BBC Proms.
Music
A prolific recitalist, he has appeared in many venues in the UK and abroad. His operatic repertoire includes roles in Handel's Acis and Galatea, Purcell's King Arthur and Vaughan Williams's Sir John in Love. He took part in the project of Koopman and the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & ChoirAmsterdam Baroque Orchestra & Choir
The Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & Choir is a Dutch early-music group based in Amsterdam.The Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & Choir was created in two stages by the conductor, organist and harpsichordist Ton Koopman. He founded the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra in 1979 and the Amsterdam Baroque Choir in...
to record Bach's complete vocal works.
Discography
His extensive discography includes, for Stone RecordsStone Records
Stone Records is a British, independent, classical record label, founded in 2008 by opera singer Mark Stone. It started by producing recordings of English song but has since widened its repertoire to include instrumental, choral and orchestral works....
, volumes 1 and 2 of the complete songs of Hugo Wolf
Hugo Wolf
Hugo Wolf was an Austrian composer of Slovene origin, particularly noted for his art songs, or lieder. He brought to this form a concentrated expressive intensity which was unique in late Romantic music, somewhat related to that of the Second Viennese School in concision but utterly unrelated in...
, and for Chandos, the title role in Britten's Albert Herring, Amaryllus in Vaughan Williams's The Poisoned Kiss, songes by Grainger
Grainger
Grainger may refer to:People*Grainger ,Places*Grainger County, Tennessee, county located in Tennessee, USA.*Grainger Falls, waterfall in Chalky Inland, Fiordland, NZ.*Grainger Market, covered market in Newcastle upon Tyne, England....
, the E flat Mass by Schubert and most recently songs by Lennox Berkeley
Lennox Berkeley
Sir Lennox Randal Francis Berkeley was an English composer.- Biography :He was born in Oxford, England, and educated at the Dragon School, Gresham's School and Merton College, Oxford...
.
Sources
- Philip Campbell, "Messiah returns", Bay Area Reporter, 1 December 2005
- Bernard Holland, "Straight From the Joyous Heart and Soul, in a Setting the Composer Would Relish, New York Times, 29 December 2000
- Richard Morrison, "Vasari Singers/Backhouse", The TimesThe TimesThe Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
, 16 May 2006 - James Oestreich, "'The Creation' An Early-Music Master Follows Haydn Way Back to the Beginning" , New York Times, 19 October 2009