Samling Masterclass

The Sage, Gateshead

One of Tyneside’s great musical venues is the Sage, Gateshead.  The big auditorium is a great space, and for the first time on this trip I experienced the charms of the Studio Theatre, Sage 2.  On Saturday afternoon I attended a series of Masterclasses for six young classical singers.  They and two accompanists had attended a week’s intensive course run by the Samling Artist Programme.

This event was a serendipitous find!  Samling, a north-east of England music education charity, runs a year-long programme for local singers aged 14-21, and also provides week-long courses for singers from the UK and overseas in the first phase of their operatic careers.  It’s been running since the late 1990s, and the list of their alumni includes many singers who have gone on to great things.

One of them, Anna Stephany, whose stunning mezzo I last heard a year ago in a concert of baroque music in Sage 1, was one of the leaders in the master classes.  She worked with Scots mezzo, Katherine Aitken, on Mahler’s Urlicht, with a focus on words and meaning. Like the other leaders, her attitude was entirely positive and complimentary.  All of the singers performed demanding arias, and their technical skills were taken for granted and praised (not always the case in masterclasses!).   Stephany also worked with Macedonian–born Canadian, Ema Nikolovska, on another intense piece for mezzo voice, Ravel’s Le martin-pecheur (kingfisher).  Ema was encouraged to work on the stillness and slow speed of the song (new to me and many of the audience).  By the end we could clearly imagine that elusive bird perched on the end of her fishing rod!

Another Scot, Liam Bonthrone, singing the Prince’s second act aria from Rossini’s Cenerentola (you can see what I meant by demanding!) was coached by actor James Garnon on the text and dramatic performance of the piece.  Imagine having to think about something other than hitting these high notes  - all of them spot-on, by the way.

Garnon’s session with bass-baritone Edward Jowle, singing Bottom’s aria from Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s dream was possibly the most memorable for the audience.  He pointed out that Bottom’s dream was the most erotic experience of his life, and the singer should be aware that as a donkey not only his ears were big.  (“Perhaps too much information,” said an audience member on the way out)

Caroline Dowdle, an accompanist to Thomas Allen among others, has been involved in Samling education for many years.  She worked with Welsh soprano, Caitrin Woodruff on Dorinda’s aria from Cosi, and with baritone, Nicholas Mogg on the Count’s aria “Ha gia vinta la causa” from the Marriage of Figaro.  In both she encouraged the singers to work on pacing  and to think about whom they were addressing.  Audience participation was encouraged in clicking time and shouting out appropriate responses.

A thought-provoking three hours raced past.  Three-quarter of an hour later, the singers, in evening dress, delivered a concert of solo arias, lieder, and duets.  They were accompanied here and during the masterclass by pianists, Gary Beecher and Camille Lemonnier, and Somi Kim, a former Samling artist who had returned this year as a leader.  Highlights included Woodruff’s and Aitken’s duet from Hansel and Gretel, Bonthrone’s Britten setting of Hardy’s The Choirmaster’s Burial, Nikolovska’s The Owl and the Pussy Cat (Stravinsky) and Jowle’s La Belle Dame Sans Merci in a setting by Stanford.

An excellent afternoon for a mere £16.50!  Information about the Samling programme, including further events at the Sage, can be found at http://www.samling.org.uk/

Next year one of Samling’s earlier alumni, tenor Toby Spence, takes the title role in Opera North’s Parsifal.  Spence sang regularly at the Festival during his earlier career, notably as the Woman in Britten’s Curlew River, an eerily moving performance which I am lucky enough to have on a recording of the radio broadcast.  Parsifal will be a concert performance, with the full Wagnerian orchestra on stage.  Those who saw Opera North’s Ring at the Sage a few years ago, or the Festival’s Ring performed over the last few years will know what a treat is in store.  Parsifal is coming to the Usher Hall on June 2rd 2021.  Details of Opera North’s 2020-2021 programme can be found at https://www.operanorth.co.uk/news/new-season-announced-for-2020-21/. For the Sage programme see: https://sagegateshead.com/.