Siren Operatic Productions

20/06/2018

With the gateway to hell now sealed shut, we thought we'd share some photos from our Seven Deadly Sins Cabaret on 2nd June 2018 with Music in Hospitals & Care. Thank you to all who came to watch, it was a fantastic night! Lots of faces in the audience, beautiful weather and we raised over £3000 for the charity.

Thank you to our wonderful cast and crew, to Music in Hospitals and a massive thank you to Andrew and Susie Jackson for hosting our sinful soiree.

As always, please keep checking back here for updates. For now, here are some highlights from the night:

On 2nd June 2018, Siren prised open a gate way to hell with our Seven Deadly Sins Cabaret in a barn in the Welsh hills...

Give us a space and we'll make opera happen!

20/06/2018

On 2nd June 2018, Siren prised open a gate way to hell with our Seven Deadly Sins Cabaret in a barn in the Welsh hills...

Give us a space and we'll make opera happen!

01/06/2018

With one day to go here is our final sinful singer, Martin Pizarro.

Colombian tenor, Martín Pizarro, studied under Camila Toro before starting his Master's Degree at RWCMD. He is currently studying under Adrian Thompson. He has sung in the main venues of his country in roles including Lèon in Signor Deluso, Monsieur Vogelsang in Der Schauspieldirektor, and Bertoldo in the world premier of Muerte accidental de un anarquista. He has also sung oratorio solos such as Théodore Dubois's Les sept paroles du Christ and Beethoven's Choral Fantasy under the baton of Maestro Gustavo Dudamel.

31/05/2018

There are only two days left before our concert in Llanover, so it is time to introduce yet another member of our sinful cast, Polina Bielova!

Polina Bielova is a young Mezzo-Soprano originally from Russia and Ukraine. She studied in the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and finished her degree in Summer 2017. Now she is studying for her Masters degree at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. Her first operatic experiences include Die Fledermaus, an operetta composed by Johann Strauss II and Falstaff, by Giuseppe Verdi where she played Meg. She was part of the music festival In Saint-Jean-de-luz, France in 2016 and ISME conference in 2015 in Glasgow. Before arriving to study her A-levels in 2011 in London she had been living in Ukraine. Polina completed 7 years of piano course in Ukraine, studied jazz, opera, and was also very passionate about ballroom dancing.

30/05/2018

Bucket o' skulls

30/05/2018

Introducing our penultimate lustful leading lady, Scottish soprano, Claudia Wood.

Claudia Wood is a Scottish Soprano currently based in Cardiff, where she is completing her Masters of Music in Vocal Performance at RWCMD, studying under Gail Pearson. Previous to her studies in Cardiff, she studied at Royal Birmingham Conservatoire where she graduated with Distinction.

Claudia’s upcoming roles include First Lady, Magic Flute with RWCMD Opera, (July 2018) and Dido, Dido and Aeneas with Opera at Chilmark and Salisbury Baroque, August 2018. Past operatic roles include Fiordiligi, Cosi fan tutte (RWCMD Opera Scenes, 2018); Nedda, Pagliacci (Festi’Val de Valois, Provence: Love to Sing Opera, 2017); Helena, A Midsummer Night’s Dream (RWCMD Opera Scenes, 2017); Nedda, Pagliacci (Midland Opera, 2016); Lady Billows, Albert Herring (Royal Birmingham Conservatoire Opera Scenes, 2015). Claudia performed the role of Amaryllis, in Opera at Chilmark’s 2017 production of The Spring, a rediscovered pasticcio opera from the 18th Century created by James Harris, a good friend of Handel. In 2015, she created the role of Celia, in Royal Birmingham Conservatoire’s world premiere of Ava’s Wedding, an English opera composed by Michael Wolters.

In 2018, Claudia was awarded The Wagner Society of Scotland’s Bayreuth Scholarship. She has been a finalist in the Janet Price Opera Prize (2018), finalist (reserve) in the London Song Festival English Song Master class and British Art Song Prize. (2017). Claudia was a third prize winner in the Edward Brooks English Song Prize (2016), and a finalist in the Birmingham Symphony Hall and Town Hall Prize (2015), Ashleyan Opera Prize (2016), The Cecil Drew Oratorio Prize (2016) and The Edward Brooks Lieder Prize (2015).

29/05/2018

Only 4 days to go. Introducing baritone, Edmund Caird.

Edmund Caird is currently studying MA Advanced Opera Performance at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, where his teacher is Eric Roberts. He previously studied Music at the University of Leeds, receiving First Class Honours.
Operatic roles include: Count Almaviva (The Marriage of Figaro), Calchas (La Belle Hélène), Daneüs in Salieri's Les Danaïdes, Noye (Noye's Fludde), Bartley (Riders to the Sea), Pirate King (Pirates of Penzance), Pooh-Bah (The Mikado), Sam (Trouble in Tahiti), George Jones (Street Scene), Janitor / Clerk in Welsh National Youth Opera's Kommilitonen!, and the Premiere of 'State of Being' at the Tête a Tête festival.
On the concert platform, he has appeared as a soloist in works including: Bach's St John Passion and Christmas Oratorio, Monteverdi's Vespers of 1610, Handel's Messiah, and the premiere performance of Warwick Blair's song cycle Lieder at King's Place London.

27/05/2018

We hope you are having a wonderful weekend. Introducing Dragoş Ionel one of our sinful singers.

Dragoș Andrei Ionel is a professional singer currently undergoing his Master of Arts degree studies in Opera Performance at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama under the tuition of Eric Roberts and Angela Livingstone.
Dragoș holds a Bachelor Degree in Music from the University of Aberdeen where he was a member of the opera society and choral society conducted by Paul Mealor. During his course he received the part of Leporello in a production of Mozart’s ‘Don Giovanni’ done in collaboration with FAVA Summer Opera School in Salzburg. As a member of the Opera Society within the University of Aberdeen he also received the parts of the Captain and of Zaretsky in a production of Tchaikovsky’s ‘Eugene Onegin’.
In July 2017 he played the part of Harry Easter in the RWCMD’s production of Kurt Weill's 'Street Scene' and in November he took part in the annual opera gala of the college under the direction of Carlo Rizzi with the Welsh National Opera orchestra.

24/05/2018

Today's lustful leading lady is Cumbrian Soprano, Clare Eccles.

Clare Eccles is a soprano currently based in Cardiff. Originally from Cumbria, Clare began her vocal studies at the University of Leeds where she gained a first class honours degree in Vocal Performance. During the course she enjoyed undertaking a year at the Hochschüle für Musik und Tanz Köln in Germany.

Presently, Clare is studying with Lorna Anderson on the MMus Vocal Performance course at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. Highlights at the RWCMD this year include: performing in a masterclass with Louise Alder; and participating in two college ‘Opera Scenes’ productions. During her time at college she has worked as a freelance performer with Siren Operatic Productions, Blackbird Opera, Flatpack Opera, BBC National Chorus of Wales amongst others. Operatic highlights include Helena (A Midsummer Night’s Dream), Marzelline (Fidelio) and Despina (Così fan tutte).

Upcoming performances include: a production of contemporary chamber operas at the RWCMD with Flatpack Opera; and a Blackbird Opera performance based on Walter Scott novels as part of the Dumfries and Galloway Arts Festival 2018.

23/05/2018

It is time for you all to meet the man of the hour, the keeper of the keys to the underworld, it is the Devil himself. Matthew Scott Clark is joining us along with his quick witted commentary for this evening of sin. Keep your eyes peeled and you may see through his wicked disguises in a couple of numbers.

Matthew is an English tenor, and an alumnus of the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, taught by Eric Roberts and Adrian Thompson. Operatic roles include: Jupiter – Orpheus in the Underworld (Opera’r Ddraig); Dog – Starbird by Henry Mollicone (RWCMD – British Premiere); Peachum – The Beggar’s Opera (Opera’r Ddraig); The Soldier – The Heart of Man by Michael Lowe (RepCo – World Premiere); The Defendant – Trial by Jury (Winterbourne Opera); Pásek -The Cunning Little Vixen (RWCMD); and Don Curzio/Don Basilio (cover) – Le Nozze di Figaro (RWCMD); Bardolpho – Falstaff (RWCMD - conducted by Carlo Rizzi); Lord Tolloller – Iolanthe (Tarantara Productions); Apollo – Semele (RWCMD/Mid Wales Opera); Soldier – Der Kaiser von Atlantis (RWCMD); and Daniel Buchanan – Street Scene (RWCMD). He is also one third of the newly re-established operatic trio The Three British Tenors, who recently had their launch in London, and are set to tour next year.

18/05/2018

We have already met one of our lustful leading ladies, time to meet another.

Margaret Daly is a freelance soprano based in Cardiff, Wales and the San Francisco Bay Area in California. Margaret is in her final year of the Postgraduate Diploma course at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, where she will continue on to the MA in Advanced Opera Training program in Autumn 2018. She is excited to be covering the Queen of the Night in RWCMDs production of Mozart's Magic Flute this upcoming July.