Guildford Camerata

Guildford Philharmonic Orchestra

The Guildford Philharmonic is at the heart of music-making in the south east, with a huge repertoire extending from the 17th century to the present day. The main concert season runs from October to July in a variety of venues including the Guildford Civic, Guildford Cathedral, the Electric Theatre, Holy Trinity Church, the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, Abbot’s Hospital, Wanborough Barn, the Castle Grounds, Shalford Park and the Lido. In addition, the orchestra is invited to give concerts throughout London and the south of England. Over the past few seasons, the Philharmonic has achieved the distinction of averaging 98% attendances across all of its events, and in 2000, all concerts sold out completely.

The Guildford Philharmonic's scope ranges from concerts for children and with children, via chamber concerts in more intimate venues, to large-scale choral and orchestral works. The repertoire covers everything from jazz and light music to new music, and the emphasis is to work with young soloists at the outset of their careers. En Shao was appointed Principal Conductor in 1995, following in the illustrious footsteps of Crossley Clitheroe, Vernon Handley, Sir Charles Groves and Sir Alexander Gibson. The orchestra continues its work of attracting new audiences for all types of classical music and of making concert-going an exciting experience.

Guildford Borough Council has funded and managed the Philharmonic as part of its arts provision for the Borough since the orchestra's inception in 1945 (when it was the Guildford Municipal Orchestra). The Borough Council is grateful to the South East Arts Board, South East Music Trust, and to its major corporate sponsors BOC Gases, Borax Europe Ltd, The Guildford Nuffield Hospital, and Stevens & Bolton.

Guildford Camerata

The Guildford Camerata is committed to the highest standards of ensemble singing. The choir's musical experience is wide and varied, its members having sung in cathedral choirs, college ensembles, professional choruses, oratorio and opera. The repertoire is large, from the 16th century to the present day, with the emphasis on the Baroque period and on British music. The choir gives concerts throughout London and the South-East, often with the Guildford Philharmonic Orchestra. It has combined with the Choir of Guildford Cathedral for the Messiah and has given highly acclaimed performances of Bach's St John Passion and B Minor Mass with Nicholas Kraemer in Guildford Cathedral. The choir presented Music for Royal Occasions with Barry Rose during the 1999 Guildford International Music Festival; and as part of the 1999/2000 season performed A Christmas Fanfare with Nicholas Cleobury in Holy Trinity Church and the Fauré and Rutter Requiems conducted by Barry Rose and John Rutter respectively in Guildford Cathedral. During the 2000/2001 season it performed in the highly acclaimed Bach in Leipzig concert with Nicholas Kraemer, Handel’s Messiah conducted by John Rutter, and in the world premiere of Barry Rose's orchestrated version of Stainer's Crucifixion. Recently, the choir gave the UK premieres of John Rutter's Feel the Spirit in Guildford Cathedral in March 2002 and of his Mass of the Children, also in Guildford Cathedral, in March 2003.

Barry Rose

Barry Rose was appointed to be the first Organist and Master of the Choristers at the new Guildford Cathedral in May, 1960, whilst still a student at the Royal Academy of Music. At Guildford he founded a new choir and a pattern of daily sung Services, and was to stay at the cathedral for the next 14 years, during which time he was also appointed as the BBC’s Music Adviser to the Head of Religious Broadcasting. In 1974 he moved to St Paul’s Cathedral, to be sub-organist, but in 1977 took up the specially created post of Master of the Choir, which he held until 1984, when he went to The King’s School, Canterbury, as Master of the Choirs. In 1988 he was persuaded to return to cathedral music, as Master of the Music at the Cathedral and Abbey Church of St Alban, where he remained until 1997.

Now living in Somerset, he spends a great deal of his time giving choral master-classes, especially in the USA, though he has maintained his links with Guildford through the recently celebrated 40th anniversary of the Consecration of the Cathedral and his concerts with the Guildford Camerata and the Guildford Philharmonic Orchestra.

Other recordings from Barry Rose on the Lammas label:
Christmas at St. Albans (St Albans Cathedral Choir - carols)
Over the Rainbow (St Albans Cathedral Choir - sacred and secular music from 3 USA tours)
Praise and Majesty (St Albans Cathedral Choir - sacred music across 5 centuries)

Peter Auty

Born in 1969 Peter Auty began his singing career as a treble at St Paul's Cathedral where he sang for five years. Subsequently he sang as a choral scholar with the choirs of Bristol Cathedral and York Minster before moving to the Royal Scottish Academy of Music where he studied under Peter Alexander Wilson, with whom he has continued to study. In 1997 he made a very successful debut with British Youth Opera as Tom Rakewell in their acclaimed production of The Rake's Progress and returned in 1998 to sing Rodolfo in La Bohème.

Peter joined the National Opera Studio in 1997 where he received support from the Nicholas John and the RVW Trust funds. In the 1998/9 season he was invited by Opera North to cover the role of Jenik in The Bartered Bride which resulted in an invitation to sing the role of Remendado as well as covering Don José in their new production of Carmen. More recently he has covered the role of Alfredo in Opera North’s acclaimed production of La Traviata and in 2001/2 gave acclaimed performances as Rodolfo/La Bohème.

As a concert artist Peter Auty has worked with many orchestras and ensembles in the UK with notable recent successes including a performance of Berlioz Grande Messe des Morts at the Ryedale Festival, a performance of Schumann Das Paradies und die Peri with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment/Mark Elder at the Royal Festival Hall, a concert performance of Stravinsky Oedipus Rex with the London Philharmonic Orchestra/Zagrosek and most recently he has had great success singing The Dream of Gerontius at St David’s Hall, Cardiff and with the Iceland Symphony Orchestra conducted by Vladimir Ashkenazy. Appearances also include performances with the London Symphony Orchestra/Sir Colin Davis and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra.

Peter Auty was a company principal of the Royal Opera, Covent Garden from 1999/2000 until the 2001/2 season and sang the rôles of Major Domo I (Der Rosenkavalier), Michelis (Greek Passion) Nathanaël (The Tales of Hoffmann), Roderigo (Otello) and Gaston (Traviata) Borsa (Rigoletto), Apparition of a Youth (Frau ohne Schatten), Sailor (Tristan und Isolde) and Malcolm (Macbeth). He returns as a guest artist in 2003/4 to sing Arturo (Lucia di Lammermoor).

Roderick Williams

Roderick Williams is a versatile artist, recognised for his intelligent and musical performances. He frequently appears throughout Europe and the UK – most recently he enjoyed huge success as Eddie in Turnage’s Greek (part of momentum: the music of Mark Anthony Turnage at the Barbican in January 2003). Other recent performances include his debut with Deutsches Sinfonie Orchester Berlin, concerts in France, New York and London with Paul McCreesh and the Gabrieli Consort, and Mozart arias with Joseph Swensen and the Academy of St Martin in the Fields at the Barbican’s Mostly Mozart Festival. Roderick has made many appearances in opera in concert, including Diomede Troilus & Cressida with the Philharmonia and Richard Hickox (repeated for Opera North last autumn) and Sid Albert Herring with the City of London Sinfonia. Plans include Sir Robert Cecil Gloriana at Snape, also with the Philharmonia and Hickox.

Opera roles include Count Marriage of Figaro and Figaro Barber of Seville (Opera North), Schaunard La Bohème (Scottish Opera), Watchful and First Shepherd Pilgrim’s Progress (Royal Opera, Covent Garden), and Prince André War and Peace (Spoleto Festival). Premieres include David Sawyer’s From Morning Til Midnight and Martin Butler’s A Better Place, (both for ENO), Alexander Knaifel’s Alice in Wonderland (Netherlands Opera) and Sally Beamish’s Monster (Scottish Opera). Plans include Donner The Rhinegold in the new Phyllida Lloyd Ring Cycle for ENO, and Marcello La Bohème for Scottish Opera.

Roderick has a wide experience of recital work, including recitals at the Wigmore Hall, on BBC Radio 3 and on Classic FM. He has broadcast on Radio 3’s Voices programme with Iain Burnside, and in 2000 took part in Century Songs - 100 songs by 100 different composers which together painted a picture of the twentieth century - presented in Sheffield, in London and at the Bath Festival, and broadcast on BBC’s Millennium Music Live. Recent BBC broadcasts include recitals from Belfast and Wales.

His many recordings for Chandos include Novice’s Friend Billy Budd, Ned Keene Peter Grimes, Page Sir John in Love (with Richard Hickox) and Frank Martin’s In Terra Pax (with Matthias Bamert). Recent releases include a critically-acclaimed disc of Schönberg songs with Iain Burnside (Black Box) and Sid Albert Herring, (Chandos).

Roderick is also a composer and has had works premiered at the Wigmore and Barbican Halls, the Purcell Room and live on national radio.