New Hampshire’s Opera North has announced its Summerfest 2026 season, themed “A Season of Epic Journeys,” running this June and July at Blow-Me-Down Farm in Cornish, New Hampshire. Rossini’s comedic “La Cenerentola” opens the festival. The cast will include Mariam Mouawad, Jason Gonzalez, Lwazi Dlamini, William Dopp, David Kahng, Veronica Richer, and Tzytle Steinman. Alex Paul Sheerin directs and Louis Burkot {…}
(Photo credit: Marco Borggreve) The Ryedale Festival announces its 2026 season. Below are the vocal events. The Dunedin Consort featuring soprano Jessica Cale, tenors Nicholas Mulroy and Samuel Boden, bass Chris Webb perform works by Purcell, John Blow, Henry Hall, and William Croft. Performance Date: July 10, 2026 Tenor Mark Padmore and pianist Christopher Glynn present Schubert’s “Winterreise.” Performance Date: {…}
Opera North has announced its 2026-27 season. The season opens with Tchaikovsky’s “Eugene Onegin” featuring John Brancy, Verity Wingate, Caspar Singh, Jingwen Cai, Hannah Mason, Claire Pascoe, and Joshua Bloom. Garry Walker conducts the production by Patrick Nolan. Performance Dates: Oct. 9–Nov. 21, 2026 Leonardo Sánchez, Blake Denson and Jasmine Habersham lead Verdi’s “Rigoletto.” The cast also includes Callum Thorpe and Sir Willard {…}
The U.K.’s York Early Music Festival announces its 2026 season. This article only features vocal concerts. I Fagiolini performs Monteverdi’s “Vespers of 1610.” Robert Hollingworth directs the English Cornett and Sackbut Ensemble. Performance Date: July 3, 2026 The Festival’s Ensemble in Residence, [hanse]Pfeyffery, presents “Casanatense Chansonnier.” Performance Date: July 4, 2026 “Siglo de oro: Music from the Spanish Renaissance” features {…}
Opera North will partner with Shadwell Opera for the world premiere of Isabella Gellis’ “The Devil’s Den.” The opera will take the stage on Nov. 15, 2025, at 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. in the Howard Assembly Room in Leeds and marks Opera North’s first in a new series of collaborations with innovative UK companies. The cast includes Jennifer France, {…}
A new organization representing the UK’s opera sector, the UK Opera Association (UKOA), has officially launched, uniting 20 founding companies to advocate for opera’s future and strengthen its presence across the country. UKOA, which was founded by Birmingham Opera Company, British Youth Opera, Buxton International Festival, English National Opera, English Touring Opera, Garsington Opera, The Grange Festival, Glyndebourne, Longborough Festival {…}
(Photo credit: Charlie Swinbourne) Opera North has announced the appointment of a new Howard Assembly Room general manager and lead programmer. Tony Green joins the core team behind Opera North’s Leeds city-centre venue. Green brings a wealth of experience from his previous roles across live music, cultural events and e-commerce. Green will take on the creative programming of the space {…}
The members of the Association of British Orchestras (ABO) are presenting live music making activities for children as part of the UK’s #AnOrchestrainEverySchool initiative. The events which take place throughout the UK feature interactive performances and workshops for a variety of age groups. Partnered organizations promoting opera are Opera North and Wells Cathedral School. Opera North will give participants the {…}
Opera North has announced its 2025-26 season. Judith Weier’s “The Secret of the Black Spider” will be conducted by Nicholas Shaw and directed by Rosie Kat. Performance Dates: Sept. 26 & 27, 2025 Handel’s “Susanna” will star Anna Dennis, Matthew Brook, and Claire Lees. Johanna Soller conducts the production by Olivia Fuchs. Performance Dates: Oct. 4 – Nov. 21, 2025 Isabela Díaz and {…}
At the end of its celebratory 75th birthday year, the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama announced Dame Shirley Bassey CH DBE FRWCMD as its new President. For the next three years she will hold the title. The President of the College is an honorary role which supports the College’s position as the national conservatoire of Wales and inspires {…}
(Photo credit: Vikram Kushwar) Guildhall School of Music & Drama has announced that Dr. Toby Young has been selected to receive a Future Leaders Fellowship, awarded by UKRI (UK Research & Innovation). The fellowship provides a grant of £1.4 million, the largest research-related funding award Guildhall School has received to date. This funding goes directly towards Dr. Young’s research project {…}