John Shaw (baritone)
Encyclopedia
John Shaw, OBE
, AO
(12 October 1924 – 24 February 2003) was an Australian
operatic baritone
best known for his appearances at Covent Garden
, where he spent 15 seasons.
, New South Wales
, in 1924. Both his grandfathers were singers and he himself took an interest in singing at a young age, performing with his church choir and amateur musicals and concerts. In Melbourne
he studied under Henri and Annie Portnoj and joined the Australian National Theatre Opera Company where he performed in dozens of small roles and gained stage experience.
In 1953 Shaw played the Secret Police Agent in the Australian debut of Menotti's
The Consul
and soon repeated the role at the Tivoli Theatre
in Sydney
. In 1955 the J.C. Williamson Italian Opera Company hired him to perform 13 major baritone roles during a tour of Australia and in the following year performed Don Giovanni
and the Count in Le Nozze di Figaro for the Elizabethan Theatre Trust
, roles he would not repeat. With that company in 1957 he was to perform Iago in Verdi
's Otello
and Scarpia in Puccini
's Tosca
, with Joan Hammond
as Tosca and Desdemona. This gave Shaw the opportunity to perform at Covent Garden. His Covent Garden debut came in January 1958 as Verdi's Rigoletto
and he was soon to perform Amonasro in Verdi's Aïda
.
Shaw spent 15 seasons at Covent Garden and was best known for his performances as Amonasro, Tonio
, Ford
, Iago, Telramund
, and Scarpia. He toured all over Australia
, Europe
, and the United States
. He died in Sydney.
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
, AO
Order of Australia
The Order of Australia is an order of chivalry established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, "for the purpose of according recognition to Australian citizens and other persons for achievement or for meritorious service"...
(12 October 1924 – 24 February 2003) was an Australian
Australian people
Australian people, or simply Australians, are the citizens of Australia. Australia is a multi-ethnic nation, and therefore the term "Australian" is not a racial identifier. Aside from the Indigenous Australian population, nearly all Australians or their ancestors immigrated within the past 230 years...
operatic baritone
Baritone
Baritone is a type of male singing voice that lies between the bass and tenor voices. It is the most common male voice. Originally from the Greek , meaning deep sounding, music for this voice is typically written in the range from the second F below middle C to the F above middle C Baritone (or...
best known for his appearances at Covent Garden
Royal Opera, London
The Royal Opera is an opera company based in central London, resident at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. Along with the English National Opera, it is one of the two principal opera companies in London. Founded in 1946 as the Covent Garden Opera Company, it was known by that title until 1968...
, where he spent 15 seasons.
Life and career
Shaw was born in NewcastleNewcastle, New South Wales
The Newcastle metropolitan area is the second most populated area in the Australian state of New South Wales and includes most of the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie Local Government Areas...
, New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, in 1924. Both his grandfathers were singers and he himself took an interest in singing at a young age, performing with his church choir and amateur musicals and concerts. In Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
he studied under Henri and Annie Portnoj and joined the Australian National Theatre Opera Company where he performed in dozens of small roles and gained stage experience.
In 1953 Shaw played the Secret Police Agent in the Australian debut of Menotti's
Gian Carlo Menotti
Gian Carlo Menotti was an Italian-American composer and librettist. Although he often referred to himself as an American composer, he kept his Italian citizenship. He wrote the classic Christmas opera, Amahl and the Night Visitors, among about two dozen other operas intended to appeal to popular...
The Consul
The Consul
The Consul is an opera in three acts with music and libretto by Gian Carlo Menotti, his first full-length opera. Its first performance was on March 1, 1950, at the Shubert Theatre in Philadelphia with Patricia Neway as the lead heroine Magda Sorel, Gloria Lane as the secretary of the consulate,...
and soon repeated the role at the Tivoli Theatre
Tivoli circuit
The Tivoli Circuit was a successful and popular Australian entertainment circuit which flourished from 1893 and the 1950s. The circuit suffered a catastrophic decline in popularity after the introduction of television in Australia in 1956, and the last Tivoli show was staged in 1966.-History:The...
in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
. In 1955 the J.C. Williamson Italian Opera Company hired him to perform 13 major baritone roles during a tour of Australia and in the following year performed Don Giovanni
Don Giovanni
Don Giovanni is an opera in two acts with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and with an Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It was premiered by the Prague Italian opera at the Teatro di Praga on October 29, 1787...
and the Count in Le Nozze di Figaro for the Elizabethan Theatre Trust
Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust
The Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust was set up in September 1954 under the guidance of H. C. ‘Nugget’ Coombs, Governor of the Commonwealth Bank, Sir Charles Moses General Manager, Australian Broadcasting Commission and John Douglas Pringle, Editor of The Sydney Morning Herald. It aimed to...
, roles he would not repeat. With that company in 1957 he was to perform Iago in Verdi
Giuseppe Verdi
Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi was an Italian Romantic composer, mainly of opera. He was one of the most influential composers of the 19th century...
's Otello
Otello
Otello is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Arrigo Boito, based on Shakespeare's play Othello. It was Verdi's penultimate opera, and was first performed at the Teatro alla Scala, Milan, on February 5, 1887....
and Scarpia in Puccini
Giacomo Puccini
Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini was an Italian composer whose operas, including La bohème, Tosca, Madama Butterfly, and Turandot, are among the most frequently performed in the standard repertoire...
's Tosca
Tosca
Tosca is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It premiered at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 14 January 1900...
, with Joan Hammond
Joan Hammond
Dame Joan Hilda Hood Hammond, DBE, CMG was an Australian operatic soprano, singing coach and champion golfer.- Early life :...
as Tosca and Desdemona. This gave Shaw the opportunity to perform at Covent Garden. His Covent Garden debut came in January 1958 as Verdi's Rigoletto
Rigoletto
Rigoletto is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi. The Italian libretto was written by Francesco Maria Piave based on the play Le roi s'amuse by Victor Hugo. It was first performed at La Fenice in Venice on March 11, 1851...
and he was soon to perform Amonasro in Verdi's Aïda
Aida
Aida sometimes spelled Aïda, is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni, based on a scenario written by French Egyptologist Auguste Mariette...
.
Shaw spent 15 seasons at Covent Garden and was best known for his performances as Amonasro, Tonio
Pagliacci
Pagliacci , sometimes incorrectly rendered with a definite article as I Pagliacci, is an opera consisting of a prologue and two acts written and composed by Ruggero Leoncavallo. It recounts the tragedy of a jealous husband in a commedia dell'arte troupe...
, Ford
Falstaff (opera)
Falstaff is an operatic commedia lirica in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi, adapted by Arrigo Boito from Shakespeare's plays The Merry Wives of Windsor and scenes from Henry IV. It was Verdi's last opera, written in the composer's ninth decade, and only the second of his 26 operas to be a comedy...
, Iago, Telramund
Lohengrin (opera)
Lohengrin is a romantic opera in three acts composed and written by Richard Wagner, first performed in 1850. The story of the eponymous character is taken from medieval German romance, notably the Parzival of Wolfram von Eschenbach and its sequel, Lohengrin, written by a different author, itself...
, and Scarpia. He toured all over Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. He died in Sydney.
Reference
- John Shaw - Obituaries, News - The Independent - Obituary, as printed in The IndependentThe IndependentThe Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
, 21 March 2003 (retrieved 27 February 2011)
External links
- Royal Opera House Collections Online - Archive listing Shaw's performances at Covent Garden (retrieved 2 March 2011)