Iestyn Davies
Iestyn Davies FRAM | |
---|---|
Born | York, England | 16 September 1979
Genres | Opera |
Occupation(s) | Singer |
Website | iestyndavies |
Iestyn Davies
Education and background
Davies was born in York, England and first studied piano and recorder, mentored in his early years by his father Ioan, the founding cellist of the Fitzwilliam Quartet.[1][2] From the age of eight he sang as a boy treble in the choir of St John's College, Cambridge. He began singing countertenor in his teens, at Wells Cathedral School. He returned to St John's as a choral scholar, graduating in Archaeology and Anthropology. He gained his DipRAM from, and was later appointed ARAM by, the Royal Academy of Music.[3] In 2004 he won the Audience Prize at the London Handel Singing Competition[4] and in 2010 was named "Young Artist of the Year" by the Royal Philharmonic Society.[5]
Davies' father Ioan was a long-standing cellist with the Fitzwilliam Quartet and a member of St. John's College.[6]
Performance
Davies's opera career to date has included
He has appeared in concert at
Leading interpreters with whom Davies has collaborated include
Davies was the guest soloist in Leonard Bernstein's 'Chichester Psalms' at the Last Night of the Proms at the Royal Albert Hall in September 2013.
He sang his first full operatic performance for La Scala in Death in Venice. In London, he sang the role of Oberon in A Midsummer Night's Dream at English National Opera.
Beginning in December 2017, he performed the singing voice of Farinelli in Farinelli and the King at the Belasco Theatre on Broadway. The production ran for 16 weeks and featured Mark Rylance as King Philippe V of Spain. Davies is reprising the role he played at Shakespeare's Globe and in London's West End.[17]
In April 2021 Davies sang with English National Opera in a social distanced performance of Handel's Messiah, staged at the London Coliseum and conducted from the harpsichord by Laurence Cummings, broadcast by BBC Two.[18]
In February 2022, Davies sang in a performance of Bach's Mass in B minor with the Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra under the direction of Richard Egarr.[19]
Honours
Davies was made a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Music in 2012.[20]
He was appointed
Recordings
Davies has an extensive and growing discography including a Wigmore Live CD (2010) of a 2009 recital with his own Ensemble Guadagni and three recordings as a treble chorister.[23]
Reviews
- The Guardian (2010)
- Time Out (2010)
- The New York Times (2010)
- The Independent (2009)
- Press clippings
References
- ^ "About — Iestyn Davies". Iestyndavies.com.
- ^ Robert Cummings (2013). "Iestyn Davies – biography". AllMusic. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
- ^ "Iestyn Davies". Askonasholt.com. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
- ^ "London Handel Society website". Archived from the original on 28 March 2010.
- ^ "RPS Awards 2010 website". Rpsmusicawards.com. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
- ^ "News | Christ Church, Oxford University". Chch.ox.ac.uk. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
- ^ a b c "Public domain record of artist's previous engagements". Archived from the original on 5 December 2009. Retrieved 15 July 2010.
- ^ "Zurich Opera page on Iestyn Davies". Opernhaus.ch. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
- ^ "London Evening Standard review by Barry Millington". Archived from the original on 5 May 2013.
- ^ "Wall Street Journal review by Heidi Waleson". The Wall Street Journal. 21 April 2010.
- ^ "Observer review by Anthony Holden". The Guardian. London. 12 October 2008.
- ^ "ConcertoNet.com - The Classical Music Network". Concertonet.com. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
- ^ "Sunday Times review by Hugh Canning". The Times. London. 3 June 2007.
- ^ "Guardian review by Rian Evans". The Guardian. London. 7 March 2006.
- ^ "Metropolitan Opera Association". Archives.metoperafamily.org. Retrieved 7 February 2020.
- ^ "Guardian review by Guy Dammann". The Guardian. London. 18 August 2008.
- ^ "Farinelli and the King Broadway @ Belasco Theatre - Tickets and Discounts". Playbill.com. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
- ^ "Handel's Messiah to be on BBC Two, Saturday 3 April | English National Opera". Eno.org. 30 March 2021. Retrieved 26 April 2022.
- ^ "Bach's Mass in B Minor". Philharmonia.org. Retrieved 26 April 2022.
- ^ "Honours". Royal Academy of Music.
- ^ "No. 61803". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 December 2016. p. N17.
- ^ "Opera singer Bryn Terfel given a knighthood, Dame Evelyn Glennie made a Companion of Honour and Iestyn Davies given an MBE in the New Year's Honours 2017". Classicfm.com. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
- ^ "Recordings". Iestyndavies.com. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
External links
- Official website
- Askonas Holt artist management
- Wigmore Hall podcast: Iestyn Davies in conversation
- New York City Opera podcast: Iestyn Davies and Anthony Roth Costanzo discuss the countertenor voice
- Iestyn Davies sings Vivaldi
- "Iestyn Davies: the accidental counter-tenor" at The Daily Telegraph, 2009
- "Yet can I hear that dulcet lay", by George Frideric Handel at youtube.com