Christopher Maltman, baritone, Julius Drake, pianist
7:30pm, Friday, April 27, 2007

Winner of the Lieder Prize at the 1997 Cardiff Singer of the World Competition, Christopher Maltman read biochemistry at Warwick University and studied singing at the Royal Academy of Music.

His concert engagements have included the Philharmonia Orchestra with von Dohnanyi, BBC Symphony Orchestra with John Adams, Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment with Sir Roger Norrington, London Symphony Orchestra with Sir Simon Rattle, Concentus Musicus Vienna with Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Dresden Staatskapelle with Sir John Eliot Gardiner, Boston Symphony Orchestra with James Conlon, Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra with Esa-Pekka Salonen and the New York Philharmonic Orchestra with Kurt Masur.

He has recorded the Vaughan Williams 'Serenade to Music' for Decca; Warlock, Holst and Somervell songs for Collins Classics; and he took part in Deutsche Grammophon's complete Beethoven Folk Song project.  His recording of Schumann’s ‘Dichterliebe’ for Hyperion was released to tremendous critical acclaim and he has recently recorded Schumann’s ‘Liederkreis’, Op.24, with Graham Johnson, a Debussy album with Malcolm Martineau and a disc of English songs with Roger Vignoles.  On film, he has appeared in John Adams’ award-winning ‘The Death of Klinghoffer’.

He has recently made his debut at the Metropolitan Opera, New York as Harlequin (‘Ariadne auf Naxos’).  At the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, he created the role of Sebastian in the world premiere of Thomas Adès’ ‘The Tempest’ and has also sung Guglielmo (‘Così fan tutte’).  Other opera appearances include Figaro (‘Il barbiere di Siviglia’) at the Deutsche Staatsoper in Berlin, Tarquinius (‘The Rape of Lucretia’) at the Bayerische Staatsoper in Munich, Laurent (‘Therese Raquin’) at San Diego Opera, Tarquinius and Guglielmo at English National Opera and the title role in Billy Budd at Welsh National Opera, Teatro Regio in Turin and in Seattle.  His roles at the Glyndebourne Festival include Ned Keene (‘Peter Grimes’), Sid (‘Albert Herring’), Figaro (‘Le nozze di Figaro’) and his role debut as Papageno (‘Die Zauberflöte’).  Future engagements include returns to Covent Garden as Nardo (‘La finta giardiniera’) and Malatesta (‘Don Pasquale’), Guglielmo in Seattle, Rossini’s Figaro in San Diego and Papageno in San Francisco.

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The pianist Julius Drake who studied and lives in London, specialises in the field of chamber music and works with many of the world’s leading vocal and instrumental artists, both in recital and on disc.

He appears regularly at all the major music centres: in recent seasons concerts have taken him to the Edinburgh, Munich, Salzburg, Schubertiade, and Tanglewood Festivals; to the Lincoln Centre, New York; the Concertgebouw, Amsterdam;  the Musikverein and Konzerthaus in Vienna; the Chatalet in Paris; the Wigmore Hall and the BBC Proms in London; and on recital tours to Australia, Japan and America.

Director of the Perth International Chamber Music Festival in Australia from 2000 – 2003 Julius Drake was also musical director in Deborah Warner’s staging of Janacek’s Diary of One who Vanished, touring to Munich, London, Dublin, Amsterdam and New York.
Julius Drake’s passionate interest in song has led to invitations to devise series for the Wigmore Hall, London ( Britten Songs, Schubert Songdiary, Songs of the Nineties) the BBC, (Complete Songs of Fauré) and the Concertgebouw, Amsterdam (Brahms Songs.)
Julius Drake gives regular masterclasses in Europe and the USA and in 2006 he has been invited onto the jury of The 15th Leeds International Piano Competition.

Among the many outstanding vocal artists he has partnered are Victoria de los Angeles, Sir Thomas Allen, Olaf Bär, Barbara Bonney, Ian Bostridge, Alice Coote, Hugues Cuenod, Gerald Finley, Matthias Goerne, Dame Felicity Lott, Wolfgang Holzmair, Lorraine Hunt Lieberson, Simon Keenlyside, Angelika Kirschschlager, Christopher Maltman, Edith Mathis, Thomas Quasthoff, Joan Rogers, Dorothea Röschmann, Rolando Villazon and Willard White

Julius Drake is also a frequent visitor to international chamber music festivals - in 2006 he will play at Kuhmo in Finland, West Cork in Ireland, and Delft in Holland – and instrumental collaborators include Christian Altenburger, Annette Bartholdi, Natalie Clein, Robert Cohen, Michael Collins, Brett Dean, Nicholas Daniel, Chen Halevi, Steven Isserlis, Ernst Kovacic, Henning Kraggerud, Priya Mitchell, Christian Poltera and Richard Watkins. His instrumental duo with Nicholas Daniel has been described in The Independent newspaper as “one of the most satisfying in British chamber music: vital, thoughtful and confirmed in musical integrity of the highest order.”

Recordings include French song with Cuenod (Chandos), French Sonatas with Daniel (Virgin), Britten song with Ragin (Etcetera), Haydn Canzonettas with Genz (Edel), Schumann Lieder with Daneman (EMI), Clarinet and Piano works with Johnson (ASV), Gurney songs with Agnew (Hyperion), Sibelius songs with Karneus (Hyperion), Shostakovitch sonatas with Bartholdy (Naxos) and Haydn, Schumann and Mahler with Coote (EMI).  His award winning recordings with Ian Bostridge on EMI (including Gramophone Award and Edison Award) include Schumann Lieder, two volumes of Schubert Lieder, Henze’s Songs from the Arabian, Britten Canticles (also with Daniels and Maltman) and The English Songbook.

Recent and forthcoming discs include Mahler, Schumann and Haydn with Alice Coote (EMI), Songs of Charles Ives and Songs of Samuel Barber with Gerald Finley (Hyperion), French song with Lynne Dawson (Edel), Cello Sonatas with Christian Poltera (Bis) and Fauré, Poulenc and Debussy with Ian Bostridge and the Belcea Quartet (EMI).

In 2005/6 Julius Drake will host a series of concerts – Julius Drake and Friends - at Middle Temple Hall London, to include recitals with Sir Thomas Allen, Olaf Baer, Ian Bostridge, Christopher Maltman and Joan Rodgers. Other highlights of the season include concerts throughout Europe and America with Ian Bostridge; piano quintet concerts with the Belcea, Maggini and Szymanowski quartets; a tour of the USA with Mathew Pollenzani; concerts at the Schubertiade Festival and La Scala Milan with Michael Schade; a return visit to the Kuhmo International Chamber Music Festival in Finland; recitals in London and New York with Alice Coote; in Vienna with Rolando Villazon; in Denmark with Angelika Kirchschlager; in London and Strasbourg with Gerald Finley; in Amsterdam with Christianne Stotijn and Mark Padmore; and Carnegie Hall, New York with Dorothea Röschmann and Ian Bostridge.