Only one British singer in Covent Garden’s new trainees
NewsThe Royal Opera House has named member of next season’s Jette Parker Artists Programme.
The young Scottish tenor Michael Gibson is the only British singer in the pack. The others are Sarah Dufresne (soprano, Canada), Gabrielė Kupšytė (mezzo soprano, Lithuania), and Josef Jeongmeen Ahn (baritone, South Korea).
Covent Garden is acting rather like a Premiership football club in its talent development policy. Its intended purpose, as a crucible for national talent, has long been abandoned.
The Royal Opera was never intended as ‘a crucible for national talent’. It’s a leading international opera house whose job is to showcase leading international singers.
precisely, where was it ever stated that the Jette Parker scheme was intended as a ‘crucible of national talent’? Only in NL’s head, perhaps.
Read the founding purpose of ROH in 1945 and the early aims of JP.
Yes, exactly. That is its history, not something Norman or anyone else made up! How singers like Josephine Veasey CBE, who never went to an expensive music college, got her training and learnt her trade from Covent Garden, and an international singer.
Damn you, Brexit! More proof of what a blinkered, nationalistic little island Britain has become since it drew up the drawbridge with the entire outside world. I doubt any overseas artist will ever sing at the Royal Opera ever again, even if it was physically possible.
Am I doing this right?
The Brexit argument and blaming is just simply very, very very boring and yawn-producing. The place is simply full of foreign singers.
Wasn’t part of the remit of Sadlers Wells/ENO to develop home grown talent and when did they renege on that? And if we are being snarky I think that the denizens of St Martin’s Lane are more open to comparisons with a football club, although in their case it is more Amateur than Premiere league. Or, given the number of Broadway Musicals that fill the Coliseum, the NFL.
“Its intended purpose, as a crucible for national talent”
I thought that’s what ENO etc were for?
It was Covent Garden and then the row about being the British Opera company, and not allows to use that name. Covent Garden sang in English. Norman will know the history and the result as I’m not totally clear.
At the very least, Canada pays Great Britain about $1.55 per Canadian citizen per year for the privilege of being at least a satellite country of the British Empire, so I’m sure Sarah Dufresne and other Canadians would be offended that you would not include her as part of the British circle of young singers being admitted to Covent Garden’s young artists program. At the very least, she would probably be as “British” as an artist from Australia, New Zealand, North Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
I think this article is quite shocking. I am agreed to promote British culture and British people but that sounds like sort of racist and pro Brexit. One should ask himself : who did auditionned, who was the best? Maybe a majority of non British did audition and were better? We are speaking about the best of the best here. Not a nationality! And these new coming people will represent with pride UK and make bloom UK reputation.
Well done Michael, a great young talent and a really fine and fun individual