In Conversation: Guildhall School podcasts: Recent Episodes
Guildhall School of Music & Drama
Guildhall School is a vibrant, international community of young musicians, actors and production artists in the heart of the City of London.
Ranked as one of the top ten performing arts institutions in the world (QS World University Rankings 2019), and recently awarded top conservatoire in the Complete University Guide Music League Table 2020, the School is a global leader of creative and professional practice which promotes innovation, experiment and research, with over 1,000 students in higher education, drawn from over 70 countries around the world.
It is also the UK’s leading provider of specialist music training at the under-18 level with nearly 2,500 students in Junior Guildhall and Centre for Young Musicians, as well as a joint Creative Learning outreach division with the Barbican which seeks to create inspiring arts experiences for all.
Our diversity extends to the art forms that we cover. We are one of the few major European conservatoires to combine schools of music, drama and production arts. Working across disciplines frees us to break down boundaries across traditional art forms, to nurture invention, and to cross-fertilise ideas and methods.
Above all, at Guildhall School of Music & Drama, we believe in the power of performing arts to transform people’s lives, and to radically enrich the world around us. We invite you to join us in transforming your own life, and to serving the wider world as we embark, together, on the challenge and change of the 21st century.
Canadian pianist Élisabeth Pion, Guildhall Wigmore Recital Prize winner for 2020, joins us to talk about her Wigmore Hall recital.
We discuss her programme of much-loved works by Mozart, Beethoven and three French composers from across the ages, her interest in Lili Boulanger, and getting back to performing in front of a live audience.
Following the postponement of this Winner's recital in Summer 2020, we're delighted that Élisabeth is now able to present this programme with a live audience in the wonderful surroundings of Wigmore Hall.
The recital takes place on Monday 19 July at 7.30pm. Tickets are available from the Wigmore Hall Box Office (https://wigmore-hall.org.uk/whats-on/elisabeth-pion-202107191930).
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
How has coronavirus affected the theatre industry? What does the pandemic mean for theatre training and the future of the industry?
In a wide-ranging discussion, Professor of Text & Poetry at Guildhall School, voice coach, author and theatre director Patsy Rodenburg OBE and Vice Principal & Director at Guildhall School Orla O’Loughlin discuss the future of the theatre industry and training in the light of COVID-19.
Their conversation opens with Patsy’s call to the government to protect theatre and training before covering topics including the importance of theatre and stories; the new energy, companies and ideas that will come out of this time; the need to make space for the next generation of actors and theatre-makers; and the importance of community.
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool).
Head of Composition Professor Julian Philips joins us for this podcast to talk about 'Stories of Sweet Visions', a programme of song and chamber works celebrating his 50th birthday year.
We discuss his inspirations as a composer, his fascination with text and song, the process of putting programme together for this milestone concert and what it's like to revisit past works.
Stories of Sweet Visions takes place on Monday 25 November at Milton Court Concert Hall. Tickets are available via the Barbican Box Office (https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2019/event/stories-of-sweet-visions-chamber-music-by-julian-philips).
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
Final-year Stage Manager Tom Downie joins us to discuss the access performance of our autumn term drama 'The Wheel', written by Zinnie Harris.
Tom talks us through the ins and outs of audio describing a performance, the rehearsal process and technical requirements and describing for the ear and not the eye.
'The Wheel' runs to 26 October in the Milton Court Theatre, and the audio-described performance and touch tour will take place on Thursday 24 October. Tickets and more information are available through Barbican Box Office (https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2019/event/the-wheel).
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
A very special podcast as Guildhall pianist Jonathan Ferrucci sits down with Carole Presland, Senior Tutor in Keyboard Chamber Music, to discuss our upcoming Chamber Music Festival in which they are both performing.
The pair talk about how the programming for the festival was decided, what it's like to programme and perform, and how the festival captures the essence of chamber music and its teaching at Guildhall.
Our Chamber Music Festival runs from 5-7 July at Guildhall School and across Culture Mile venues. Tickets are available via the Barbican Box Office (https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2019/series/guildhall-chamber-music-festival-2019).
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
Cast members Harriet Burns and Siân Dicker give us the inside track on this term's opera double bill of early operatic works exploring romantic love: Aminta e Fillide by George Frideric Handel and Venus and Adonis by John Blow.
We talk about these two very contrasting but thematically linked operas, exploring comedy and tragedy in a double bill, and performing opera in Milton Court Theatre.
Our opera double bill runs from 3-10 June in the Milton Court Theatre. Tickets are available via the Barbican Box Office (https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2019/event/opera-double-bill-aminta-e-fillide-venus-and-adonis).
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
Cast members Sam Carl, Irene Hoogveld, Madison Nonoa, William Sharma, Collin Shay and Christian Valle join us to discuss our production of Britten's 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'.
They talk us through this production of Britten’s interpretation of Shakespeare’s magical tale (emphasis on the magic), being double cast in two very different roles, and give us a glimpse into the incredible design and technical work that's gone into the production.
'A Midsummer Night's Dream' runs to 4 March in the Silk Street Theatre. The run is sold out but returns may become available from the Barbican Box Office (https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2019/event/brittens-a-midsummer-nights-dream-presented-by-guildhall).
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
Cast members Elena Faverio & Uri Levy and Stage Manager Chloë Siller talk us through our last autumn term drama production, Eduardo de Filippo's 'Saturday, Sunday, Monday'.
We discuss the rehearsal process and working with director Joseph Blatchley, the challenges and joys of having a large cast, and getting to grips with cooking in the rehearsal room and on stage - with a bonus recipe from Uri Levy.
'Saturday, Sunday, Monday' runs from 30 November – 5 December in the Silk Street Theatre. Get your tickets from the Barbican Box Office (https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2018/event/saturday-sunday-monday-presented-by-guildhall-school).
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
The entire cast of our autumn opera join us on this podcast.
Cast B singers Seán Boylan, Samuel Carl, Samantha Clarke, Frederick Jones, Lucy McAuley & Madison Nonoa talk us through this production of Mozart's comic opera, the benefits of having a double cast, what they've enjoyed most about the process and give us an insight into the design of the production.
' Così fan tutte' runs from 5 – 12 November in the Silk Street Theatre. (https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/event/mozarts-cosi-fan-tutte-at-the-guildhall-school).
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
Designer Libby Watson joins us in the studio and gives us an insight into the design process for 'The Last Days of Judas Iscariot', from how she works with director Wyn Jones and our lighting and sound designers to the design decisions of including a revolve and a white set.
'The Last Days of Judas Iscariot' runs from 22 – 27 October in the Milton Court Theatre. Get your tickets from the Barbican Box Office (https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2018/event/guildhall-presents-the-last-days-of-judas-iscariot).
Painting of Judas Iscariot by Dustin Parent.
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
Stage Manager Juliet Hague and cast members Jasmine Lee-Jones and Matthew Nikitow talk us through our upcoming production of 'The Last Days of Judas Iscariot' by Stephen Adly Guirgis.
We discuss the joys and challenges of large casts, the relationship between director and stage manager, and what it's like to bring well-known characters and historical figures to life on stage.
'The Last Days of Judas Iscariot' runs from 22 – 27 October in the Milton Court Theatre. Get your tickets from the Barbican Box Office (https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2018/event/guildhall-presents-the-last-days-of-judas-iscariot).
Painting of Judas Iscariot by Dustin Parent.
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
Aaaaand we're back! The podcast returns to deep dive into our first drama production of the term, Philip Ridley's 'Mercury Fur'.
We're joined by director John Haidar and cast members Mirren Mack and Joseph Potter to discuss the play, their first experience of 'Mercury Fur', the rehearsal process, and what they're most looking forward to about opening night.
'Mercury Fur' runs from 15 – 20 October in the Milton Court Studio Theatre. Get your tickets from the Barbican Box Office (https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2018/event/mercury-fur-guildhall-presents-the-play-by-philip-ridley).
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
It's summer musical time at Guildhall, so we caught up with cast and creative team to talk about our production of the classic Fiddler on the Roof.
We're joined by cast members Georgina Beedle and Alex James-Cox and Sound Designer Charlie Smith to discuss the production. Charlie and Alex tell us what it's like for their final Guildhall production to be on such a grand scale and how they've found their way in to the characters, and Charlie talks us through the process and challenges for sound design as well as telling us about some of his highlights since graduating from Guildhall in 2013!
Fiddler on the Roof runs from 4 – 11 July in the Silk Street Theatre. Get your tickets from the Barbican Box Office (https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2018/event/guildhall-school-presents-fiddler-on-the-roof). Audio-described performance and touch tour on Friday 6 July - book directly with Barbican Box Office in person or by phone.
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
The Gold Medal is the Guildhall School’s most prestigious prize for musicians. This year, instrumentalists take to the Barbican Hall stage to perform a concerto with the Guildhall Symphony Orchestra, conducted by James Judd.
Finalists Ljubica Stojanovic, Dan-Iulian Drutac and Joon Yoon talk about their Gold Medal experiences, from their first auditions to their preparations ahead of the big day, and why they chose the piece that they'll be playing.
This year's Gold Medal final takes place on Thursday 10 May in the Barbican Hall. Tickets are available from the Barbican Box Office (https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2018/event/guildhall-school-gold-medal-2018).
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
Our final drama production of the term is Clifford Odets' rarely-produced play Paradise Lost.
We're joined by cast members Georgina Beedle and Finlay Paul, Lighting Designer James McKeogh and Deputy Stage Manager Georgia Graham to discuss the play, working on a large production with such a large cast, the creative process, and what they're most looking forward to about opening night.
Paradise Lost runs from 23 - 28 March in the Silk Street Theatre. Get your tickets from the Barbican Box Office (https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2018/event/guildhall-presents-clifford-odets-paradise-lost).
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
'Blackout' in the Tower Bridge Bascule Chamber sees Guildhall video design artists return to the unique subterranean space for a new immersive video projection and sound installation inspired by the photography of Arthur Cross and Fred Tibbs.
We're joined by Lecturer in Video Dan Shorten, Design Realisation Assistant Tom Downing, and BA Video Design for Live Performance students Andrew Monks and Laurie Lumley. We discuss the collaboration with Tower Bridge, the City of London Police Museum and the London Metropolitan Archives, the Blitz photography of Cross & Tibbs, the challenges of working below river level and the design process for these kinds of immersive events.
Blackout runs from 23 - 25 March at Tower Bridge. Get your tickets from the Barbican Box Office (https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2018/event/guildhall-school-video-design-installation-at-tower-bridge). You can also find out more about the BA Video Design for Live Performance programme on our website (https://www.gsmd.ac.uk/video) and on Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallvideodesign).
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
Cast members Michelle Alexander, Lucy Anderson and Michael Vickers join us to talk about our spring term production of Poulenc’s sublime masterpiece set against the backdrop of the French Revolution, 'Dialogues des Carmélites', discussing everything from religion and martyrdom to nun puns and singing in French.
Dialogues des Carmélites runs from 26 February - 5 March in the Silk Street Theatre. Performances are currently sold out but you can find out more and try for a return ticket via Barbican Box Office (https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2018/event/guildhall-presents-poulencs-les-dialogues-des-carmelites).
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
To mark the start of the 'Reflective Conservatoire Conference 2018: Artists as Citizens', we talk to one of this year's speakers.
Nell Catchpole, Course Leader on the Master’s in Leadership programme, talks to us about her motto of "Sound artist as Activist? A Performance of Sonic Stories from East Suffolk", her views on artistic citizenship, and her performance piece 'Stenclmusic', a solo music theatre piece combining the poems of the Yiddish poet Avrom Stencl (1897-1983) and living local poet, Stephen Watts, stories from the community, and projected images with an original score for multi-layered recorded clarinets, live clarinet and voice by composer Rachel Stott.
The Reflective Conservatoire Conference runs from 20-23 February in Milton Court. Find out more at the RCC website (www.gsmd.ac.uk/rcc) and follow them on Twitter (twitter.com/rconservatoire) for updates from the conference.
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing).
To mark the start of the 'Reflective Conservatoire Conference 2018: Artists as Citizens', we talk to one of this year's speakers.
Neyire Ashworth, Professor of Clarinet at Junior Guildhall, talks to us about her motto of "Towards a more flexible musician of the future", her views on artistic citizenship, and her performance piece 'Stenclmusic', a solo music theatre piece combining the poems of the Yiddish poet Avrom Stencl (1897-1983) and living local poet, Stephen Watts, stories from the community, and projected images with an original score for multi-layered recorded clarinets, live clarinet and voice by composer Rachel Stott.
The Reflective Conservatoire Conference runs from 20-23 February in Milton Court. Find out more at the RCC website (https://www.gsmd.ac.uk/rcc) and follow them on Twitter (https://twitter.com/rconservatoire) for updates from the conference.
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
Stage Manager Samantha Agnew and cast members Poppy Allen-Quarmby, Charlotte Blandford and Tegen Short join us to discuss our spring term production of Shelagh Stephenson's The Memory of Water.
Cast & crew talk about the complex characters of the play, portraying a realistic sisterly rapport on stage, the 90s setting and the Stage Manager's biscuit and bread budget.
The Memory of Water runs from 12-17 February in the Milton Court Theatre. Tickets are available from the Barbican Box Office (https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2018/event/guildhall-presents-shelagh-stephensons-the-memory-of-water).
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
Cast & crew of our spring drama opener, Laura Wade's 'Colder Than Here', join us for this podcast.
Cast members Jonny Lavelle and Phoebe Marshall and Lighting Designer Sally McCulloch discuss working with director Lisa Blair and the creative team, the joys of working with a small cast and the challenges in finding the humour in a play about cancer.
Colder Than Here runs from 2-13 February in the Milton Court Studio Theatre. Tickets are available from the Barbican Box Office (https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2018/event/guildhall-school-presents-laura-wades-colder-than-here).
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
Director and cast of the Guildhall production of Edward Bond's 'Saved', an anatomy of a forgotten generation which changed the face of modern drama, join us for this podcast.
Director John Haidar and cast members Joe Bolland, Tom Glenister and Ellie Rawnsley are in the studio to discuss their first experience with 'Saved', the play's ongoing relevance and importance to today's society, the actors' way in to their characters, and how theatre censorship has evolved since the play's premiere in the 1960s.
Saved runs from 5-15 February in the Milton Court Studio Theatre. Tickets are available from the Barbican Box Office (https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2018/event/guildhall-school-presents-edward-bonds-saved).
'Theatre Censorship: Still Alive and Kicking?' takes place on 21 February in the Milton Court Concert Hall, in partnership with Shakespeare's Globe and part of the Reflective Conservatoire Conference (https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2018/event/reflective-conservatoire-conference-2018). Tickets are available from the Barbican Box Office (https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2018/event/theatre-censorship-still-alive-and-kicking).
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
Three outstanding Guildhall musicians join us for this episode to discuss their recital at Carnegie Hall's Weill Recital Hall in January 2018.
James Newby, Ionel Manciu and Jonathan Ferrucci talk to us about their chosen repertoire of Bach, Beethoven, Poulenc and Rachmaninov, their preparations for the concert, what they're most looking forward to about playing in Carnegie Hall and the concert for London audiences on 12 January. James, Ionel and Jonathan perform at the Weill Recital Hall on 16 January - tickets are available via the Carnegie Hall Box Office (https://www.carnegiehall.org/Calendar/2018/1/16/0800/PM/Guildhall-Artists-in-New-York/). London audiences can hear the musicians perform in Milton Court on 12 January - admission is free and unticketed.
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
We go behind the scenes of our final drama production of the term, Noël Coward's Post-Mortem, to celebrate this year's #LoveTheatreDay.
Cast members Nicholas Armfield & Rosalind Lailey and Associate Lighting Designer Elliot Smith join us to discuss their research for this drama set during and after the First World War and the benefits and challenges of incorporating video into a production. They also give us an insight into their favourite part of bringing a play together for #LoveTheatreDay.
Post-Mortem runs from 23-29 November in the Milton Court Theatre. Tickets are available from the Barbican Box Office (https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2017/event/noel-cowards-post-mortem-from-the-guildhall-school).
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
In this episode we're joined by renowned renowned pianist and Guildhall professor Iain Burnside, along with actor Harvey Cole, Lighting Designer James McKeogh and soprano Isabelle Peters to discuss Iain's latest music theatre piece, 'Swansong'.
We discuss from where the initial idea for the piece came, the added layers that interspersing songs with monologues can bring to a performance, and the challenges in staging a production that includes pianists, singers and actors.
Swansong takes place on 4 and 5 November in the Milton Court Studio Theatre. The performances are sold out but you may be lucky enough to grab a return on the day from the Barbican Box Office (https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2017/event/swansong-devised-by-iain-burnside-guildhall-school).
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
Gian Carlo Menotti's Pulitzer Prize-winning opera 'The Consul' is our autumn opera.
Cast members Michelle Alexander, Michael Vickers and Eduard Mas Bacardit join us to discuss our production of Menotti's opera, including some literal magic on stage, the opera's relevance today and how Menotti's first-hand accounts of refugees fleeing Europe after the Second World War informed his writing of the opera.
The Consul runs from 30 October - 6 November in the Silk Street Theatre. Tickets are available from the Barbican Box Office (https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2017/event/guildhall-school-presents-menottis-the-consul).
As mentioned by our guests, you can listen to Susan Bullock and a host of singers' performance of 'The Consul' on Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/album/0uIVzZn5afmbV7tvwBoGAo)
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
The cast and crew of our second drama production of the term, Chekhov's The Cherry Orchard, join us for this podcast.
Cast members Georgina Beedle and Alex James-Cox, Deputy Stage Manager Sissel Josefine and Audio Describer Ben Cook discuss how this adaptation by Tom Stoppard stands out from other adaptations of Chekhov's classic, the role of the Deputy Stage Manager in going from page to stage, and the Ben Cook talks about producing the first audio-described performance and touch tour for a production at Guildhall.
The Cherry Orchard runs from 16-21 October in the Milton Court Theatre. Tickets are available from the Barbican Box Office (https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2017/event/guildhall-school-presents-chekhovs-the-cherry-orchard). To book for the audio-described performance and touch tour, please book with the Barbican Box Office in person or by phone on 020 7638 8891.
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
We kick off the new academic year going behind the scenes of our first drama production, four short plays by British playwright Martin Crimp in Crimp 1, 2, 3 & 4.
We caught up with composer and sound designer Kerry Yong, lighting designer James McKeogh and assistant sound designer Lewis Hannaby to talk about the challenges of linking together four plays in our smallest theatre and the collaborative creative process.
Crimp 1, 2, 3 & 4 runs from 9-14 October in the Milton Court Studio Theatre. Tickets are currently sold out but returns may be available from the Barbican Box Office on the day (https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2017/event/guildhall-school-presents-crimp-1-2-3-4).
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
In this episode we're joined by James Rose, Guildhall alum and now award-winning producer, arranger, performer and educator, who co-produces and tours with the International A Capella group Accent. We're also joined from across the Atlantic by fellow Accent member Evan Sanders.
We discuss James' career since leaving Guildhall, from creating a capella music online with Accent (about which we also talk to Evan) to working as a vocal coach and arranger on BBC One's Pitch Battle. We also talk about James and Accent's a capella summer school taking place at Guildhall in summer 2017.
Find out more about Accent on their website (http://accentvocal.com/) and follow them across social media, @AccentVocal.
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
The annual summer musical is fast approaching, so we caught up with cast and creative team to talk about our production of the Tony-award winning Gershwin classic Crazy For You.
Cast members Lucie Fletcher and Luke Thallon discuss what it's like to end their time at Guildhall on such a showstopper and perform alongside Guildhall singers, as well as what it's like know this is their final performance as students here.
Musical Director Michael Haslam and Choreographer Ewan Jones also join us to discuss the creative process and the challenges and joy of bringing such a large and well-known musical to the stage.
Crazy For You runs from 4-12 July in the Silk Street Theatre. Tickets are available from the Barbican Box Office (http://www.barbican.org.uk/theatre/event-detail.asp?ID=21271).
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
In one of our last episodes of the summer term, we catch up with a host of students to talk about Curious, an annual showcase of new work created by students, graduates and guest artists from the Guildhall School in collaboration with visual artists and communication designers from Central Saint Martins, UAL. Curious is curated by Barbican Guildhall Creative Learning.
We spoke to students about how they've been interpreting the themes of the four-day showcase, what they've enjoyed most about collaborating with guests artists and artists from a range of different backgrounds and art-forms, and what they're most looking forward to about taking over the Barbican Exhibition Halls.
Curious runs from 3-6 July in the Barbican Exhibition Halls. Tickets are available from the Barbican Box Office (http://www.barbican.org.uk/education/series.asp?ID=1767).
Huge thanks to Leadership students Julia Koelmans and Katie MacDonald, BA Performance & Creative Enterprise students Katie Bunting and Natasha Mbwana, MA Collaborative Theatre Production & Design students Dylan Marie Parent, Lauren Wiggins and Petrina Tan, and Central Saint Martins students Linda Schultheis and Lucy Maria.
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
We caught up with some of the cast of Handel's Radamisto, our summer opera, directed by John Ramster and conducted by Chad Matthias Kelly.
Cast members Margo Arsane and Anna Sideris, who share the role of Polissena in our double-cast opera, joined us to discuss everything from the differences between this first version of Radamisto and the more well known later version and the benefits of having a double cast, to singing in Italian after having experienced Russian and Middle English this year and the freedom of singing a baroque opera.
Radamisto runs in the Milton Court Theatre from 5-12 June. Tickets are available from the Barbican Box Office (www.barbican.org.uk/theatre/event-detail.asp?ID=21263).
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
In this episode, we're joined by the winner of this year's Guildhall Wigmore Recital Prize, award-winning cellist Michael Petrov, to discuss his upcoming performance at the Wigmore Hall on Monday 12 June 2017.
We discuss the process of being nominated for the prize, how Michael and his accompanist Erdem Misirlioglu have been preparing for the performance (including a few rounds of tennis), the unusual repertoire and the joy of playing in the Wigmore Hall.
Michael's winner's recital takes place on Monday 12 June 2017 at the Wigmore Hall. Tickets are available from the Wigmore Hall Box Office (https://wigmore-hall.org.uk/whats-on/michael-petrov-erdem-m-s-rl-oglu-201706121930).
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
The Gold Medal is the Guildhall School’s most prestigious prize for musicians. This year is the turn of the singers, who will perform a short programme with piano accompaniment followed by a second half of arias with the Guildhall Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Dominic Wheeler.
We caught up with finalists Bianca Andrew, Samuel Carl, Josep-Ramon Olivé and Daniel Shelvey to talk about their Gold Medal experiences, the road to the final and how they're preparing for a concert in the Barbican Hall.
This year's Gold Medal final takes place on 5 May in the Barbican Hall. Tickets are available from the Barbican Box Office (http://www.barbican.org.uk/music/event-detail.asp?ID=20568).
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
In this episode we divert from our usual discussion of Guildhall events to delve into “the pedagogy of performance”, or the method and practice of teaching performance.
We’re joined by Vanessa Lingham, Lecturer in Costume at Guildhall, and Sue Dent, Music Teacher at Guildhall, both of whom are also on our PGCert Performance Teaching. We discuss different approaches to teaching and teaching performance, reflective practice, the two-way process between teachers and students and the importance of an interdisciplinary approach.
The PGCert in Performance Teaching at the Guildhall School is designed to support professional musicians, actors, theatre technicians and dancers who teach as part of their practice as performers or in undertaking a portfolio career. Find out more on the Guildhall School website: (http://www.gsmd.ac.uk/about_the_school/research/pgcert_performance_teaching/).
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
We spoke to the cast & crew of Lanford Wilson's Balm in Gilead, the final drama production of the Spring term directed by Joseph Blatchley.
Cast members Mairi Hawthorn, Ruth Ollman and Fode Simbo, lighting designer Jess Bernberg and sound designer Tom Bosworth joined us to discuss the play, what's inspired them in preparing for the production (including an extensive film list), and some of the challenges of working on a play with multiple on-set conversations happening at the same time.
Balm in Gilead runs in the Silk Street Theatre from 24-29 March. Tickets are available from the Barbican Box Office (http://www.barbican.org.uk/theatre/event-detail.asp?ID=20566).
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and head to our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
In this episode we talk about Dialogue, an annual festival celebrating the diversity and creative talent of East London. This unique collaboration brings together Guildhall School musicians and technical theatre students with local community groups to make and perform new music, poetry and visual arts.
We're joined by Sigrun Griffiths, Programme Leader of our Guildhall Artist Masters Programme in Leadership, and students Maya Khaldi and Julia Koelmann, as we discuss the inspiration behind the theme of this year's festival (Bedwyr William's exhibition 'The Gulch' at the Barbican Centre), the experience and process of working with a variety of community groups, and how it all fits in to the Leadership course.
Dialogue: Where the Water Curves is on 22 & 23 February at The Broadway theatre in Barking. Tickets are free but booking is essential - book your ticket from available from the Barbican Box Office (http://www.barbican.org.uk/education/event-detail.asp?id=20835).
Find out more about our at Guildhall Artist Masters Programme in Leadership (http://www.gsmd.ac.uk/music/principal_study/leadership/).
Follow us on Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (http://www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and check out our website (http://www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
As our Spring events season continues, we catch up with The Same Deep Water As Me cast members Jacob Coleman and Mairi Hawthorn and costume supervisor Jack Fox to discuss our production of award-winning playwright Nick Payne's sharply-observed social comedy, directed by Jo McInnes.
We talk about corpsing, the joy of finding characters and subtext through rehearsals, the role of the costume supervisor and their relationship with the cast, and how cast and crew can really get to enjoy the run of the play.
The Same Deep Water As Me runs in the Milton Court Theatre from 13 - 18 February. Tickets are available from the Barbican Box Office (http://www.barbican.org.uk/theatre/event-detail.asp?ID=20554).
Follow us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and check out our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
In this episode we talk about Guildhall's upcoming production of The (Imaginary) Misogynist.
We're joined by the play's writer and director Tamsin Oglesby and cast members Lucie Fletcher and Luke Thallon as we discuss the true story behind the play, what it's like to direct a play that you've written, and the different challenges that a comedy brings after an autumn term of August, The Crucible and Great Expectations.
Herons runs in the Milton Court Studio Theatre from 6 - 16 February. Tickets are available from the Barbican Box Office (http://www.barbican.org.uk/theatre/event-detail.asp?ID=20552).
Follow us on Twitter (https://www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and check out our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
We talked to director Lisa Blair, cast members Steffan Cennydd and Samuel Blenkin, and production manager James Asquith to talk about the upcoming Guildhall School production of Simon Stephens' Herons.
We talk about the role of the production manager, the challenges in bringing Herons to the stage and how cast and crew have prepared for a more intimate and modern production.
Herons runs in the Milton Court Studio Theatre from 3 - 14 February. Tickets are available from the Barbican Box Office (www.barbican.org.uk/theatre/event-detail.asp?ID=20551).
Follow us on Twitter (https://www.twitter.com/guildhallschool), Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/guildhallschool/) and Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/guildhallschool) and check out our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
Levon Chilingirian, Professor of Violin at the Guildhall School, joins us to talk about the upcoming Guildhall String Ensemble concert in Milton Court.
We discuss the wide-ranging repertoire, with the lesser-known Janáček Suite for String Orchestra and Beethoven's great String Quartet No. 14 bookending the British premiere of Tigran Mansurian Violin Concerto No. 2. We also talk about his experience of rehearsing and performing alongside students, as well as the ever-present excitement of performing on stage.
The Guildhall String Ensemble concert will take place in the Milton Court Concert Hall at 7:00pm on Thursday 26 Jauary. Tickets are available from the Barbican Box Office (https://www.barbican.org.uk/music/event-detail.asp?ID=200801).
Follow us on Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/guildhallschool) and check out our website (http://www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
We caught up with Sound Designer Robert Matthews and cast members Rupert Henderson and Amelia Strohm to talk about the upcoming Guildhall School production of Charles Dickens's Great Expectations.
We talk about their experience on the production so far, the creative team's process, working with such a large cast and the challenges in bringing such a well-known and well-loved story to life on stage.
Great Expectations runs in the Silk Street Theatre from 25 - 30 November. Tickets are available from the Barbican Box Office (https://www.barbican.org.uk/theatre/event-detail.asp?ID=20060).
Follow us on Twitter (twitter.com/guildhallschool) and check out our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
We're joined opera students Bianca Andrew and Joanna Skillett to discuss our autumn term double-bill of contrasting Russian masterpieces, Stravinsky’s Mavra and Tchaikovsky’s Iolanta.
We discuss why these two operas are being performed together, what it's like to prepare for such a contrasting double-bill, the challenges of singing in Russian and the benefits of double-casting.
The Mavra/Iolanta double-bill runs in the Silk Street Theatre from 31 October - 7 November. Tickets are available from the Barbican Box Office (https://www.barbican.org.uk/music/event-detail.asp?ID=20057).
Follow us on Twitter (twitter.com/guildhallschool) and check out our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
Ronan O’Hora, Head of Advanced Performance and Keyboard Studies, and Matthew Jones, Acting Head of Chamber Music, join us to talk about the upcoming Chamber Masters concert here at the Guildhall School. We discuss the concert itself, performing alongside colleagues, and the constant learning experience that is live performance.
Ronan and Matthew will be performing two masterful chamber works - Dvořák’s Piano Quintet and Beethoven's Ghost trio - alongside alongside Guildhall School colleagues Andras Keller and Pablo Hernan Benedi on violin and Louise Hopkins on cello in a special concert as part of our Faculty Artist series.
The Chamber Masters concert will take place in the Milton Court Concert Hall at 7:30pm on Monday 31 October. Tickets are available from the Barbican Box Office (https://www.barbican.org.uk/music/event-detail.asp?ID=20061).
Follow us on Twitter (twitter.com/guildhallschool) and check out our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
We welcome Professor Barry Ife, Principal of the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, to talk about the upcoming trio of concerts on 26 October celebrating the life and work of Enrique Granados (1867-1916) and mark the centenary of his death. We discuss Granados' work and his place in the pantheon of Spanish composers, as well as his special guest appearance at our final concert on 26 October. The concerts are supported by the Instituto Cervantes in London, the British-Spanish Society, the Spanish Song and Zarzuela Festival and the Embassy of Spain.
"Love and Death... el amor y la muerte..." runs in the Milton Court Concert Hall at 1pm, 6pm and 7:30pm on Tuesday 26 October. (http://www.gsmd.ac.uk/music/view_all_events/?tx_julleevents_pi1%5BshowUid%5D=4790) Admission is free so do come along and enjoy some wonderful music.
Follow us on Twitter (twitter.com/guildhallschool) and check out our website (www.gsmd.ac.uk) to stay up to date with all the events and news from the Guildhall School.
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
The Guildhall School events podcast returns as we talk to the cast and crew of The Crucible, one of our drama productions this autumn term.
In this episode, we talk to lighting designer Chris Needle and cast members Caleb Roberts and Mary Galloway about this production of Arthur Miller's disturbing yet thrilling take on the Salem Witch-hunts of 1692 which still resonates today with the threat we face from irrational ideologies and mass hysteria. The creative team is made up of director Mike Alfreds, designer Amelia Jane Hankin, lighting designer Chris Needle and sound designer Sean Mortimer (*students on the BA (Hons) Technical Theatre Arts programme).
The Crucible runs in the Milton Court Studio Theatre from 17-22 October 2016. Tickets available from the Barbican Box Office: https://www.barbican.org.uk/theatre/event-detail.asp?ID=20056
Intro and outro music is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon, licenced under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/Little_Lily_Swing/Tri-Tachyon_-_01_-_Little_Lily_Swing)
Barbican Guildhall Creative Learning presents Curious, an annual showcase of new work produced by students, graduates and professional artists from the Guildhall School.
Taking place between 4-7 July 2016 at the Rose Lipman Building in Hackney, the showcase presents work that responds to contemporary life – from the realities and beauty of the everyday to the political issues of the moment.
Responding to these ideas, participating musicians and artists present an eclectic range of cross-arts work, including performance installations, new experimental and improvised music, spoken word, discussions and a day exploring participatory processes.
We chat to Leadership student Kate to find out more about this very curious event.
Aboard a luxury locomotive travelling from Chicago to New York, a down-on-his-luck theatre producer attempts to rekindle his romance with a glamorous Hollywood starlet and lure her back to Broadway to save himself from bankruptcy. Based on the classic Howard Hawks film of the same name, this madcap 1930s-era screwball comedy catapults full steam ahead with fun and farce in the first-class carriages.
We talk to actors Claudia Jolly and Theo Boyce, and Assistant Musical Director Chris Ma, about the end-of-year musical running from 28 June - 6 July 2016.
Ariane (1958) is a short opera based on the myth of Theseus, Ariadne and the Minotaur, which reflects Martinů’s great admiration for the celebrity singer Maria Callas (pictured) in the virtuosic style of its title role. Set in Paris, the earlier Alexandre bis (1937) was written when the city was at the centre of Surrealism, a movement that considerably influenced the composer and is reflected in the opera’s curious subtitle, ‘The Tragedy of a Man who Had His Beard Cut’.
We talk to opera students Elizabeth Karani, Milan Siljanov and Josep-Ramon Olive about preparations for the production, which runs in the Silk Street Theatre from 31 May - 6 June 2016.
The Guildhall Wigmore Recital Prize annually awards an exceptional Guildhall School musician with a Wigmore Hall recital. In this podcast, we chat to this year's recipient, award-winning Japanese pianist Marina Koka about her performance on Monday 30 May 2016. Her recital takes in Beethoven’s virtuosic Piano Sonata No. 3 alongside favourite Chopin nocturnes, before culminating in Ravel’s exhilarating La Valse.
The Gold Medal is the Guildhall School’s most prestigious prize for musicians. This year is the turn of the instrumentalists, who will perform a concerto with the Guildhall Symphony Orchestra conducted by Adrian Leaper. We talk to finalists Antonina Suhanova (piano), Oliver Wass (harp) and Scott MacIsaac (piano) about what it means to them to be performing in the competition's climax on Friday 6 May.
William Shakespeare’s work changed our theatre, language and even, some say, the perceptions we have of ourselves. His 154 sonnets published in 1609 document his passions, both intellectual and personal. They inform and merge with many of his plays.
Using his sonnets as springboards into his creative and personal life, this new devised piece by Guildhall's Head of Voice Patsy Rodenburg explores the theatre, acting, passions and politics of Shakespeare’s life. Joining us for this podcast are Patsy, co-director Sue Lefton, DSM Ellie Cheyette, and actors Bessie Carter and Akpore Uzoh.
Go, make you ready takes place at Silk Street Theatre from 18-23 March 2016.
The powerful combination of music and literature and the collective talents of three institutions are the foundation stones for an exciting collaborative project led by renowned pianist and Guildhall professor Iain Burnside. Bringing together artists from the Guildhall School, Royal Irish Academy of Music, Dublin and the Juilliard School, New York, Drums and Guns is a devised piece which explores conflict in war and the impact it has on families left behind. This fresh and engaging production commemorates both World War I and the 1916 Easter Rising in Dublin.
We're joined in this Guildhall events podcast by one of the Guildhall School’s youngest professors, acclaimed violinist Roberto González-Monjas, ahead of his appearance with Guildhall String Ensemble concert on 19 February 2016.
Schoenberg’s richly expressive Verklärte Nacht lies at the heart of the programme, and the concert opens with Latvian composer Peteris Vasks’s 1983 requiem, Musica Dolorosa. Karl Hartmann’s most famous work, written during the first months of the Second World War, completes the programme.
The Guildhall School’s spring drama season continues with Caryl Churchill’s 1982 play Top Girls, opening on 8 February. Written during the rise of Thatcherism, this ground-breaking play explores life in an individualistic society where the few thrive at the expense of the many. Joseph Blatchley returns to the School to direct this production alongside designer Dora Schweitzer.
In this podcast, stage manager Hollie Trist, lighting designer Dom Baker and cast members Abigail Richardson and Ellen Francis discuss the production.
John Taylor’s illustrious four-decade career as a pianist, composer and foremost figure in British jazz came to an untimely end with his tragic death in July 2015. The Big Band concert on 27 November at Milton Court, which was originally due to feature John as guest artist, now celebrates his life with a programme that features his music as well as compositions by musicians closely associated with him. We catch up with director Scott Stroman to find out more.
Wedekind described his 1894 play as a “monster tragedy”. Between 27 Nov - 2 Dec in the Silk Street Theatre we present Nicholas Wright’s thrilling and explicit version of the original text, with five actresses sharing the role of Lulu.
In this podcast we talk about working on the production to sound designer Erin Witton, production manager Oliver Levitt, and cast members Michael Levi Harris and Claudia Jolly.
The award-winning Opera department at the Guildhall School presents Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari’s rarely staged opera in Three Acts: Le donne curiose. We talk to cast members Elizabeth Karani, Thomas Atkins and Elgan Thomas about working on the production.
Le donne curiose runs in Silk Street Theatre from 2-9 November 2015.
Songs of Solace is a musical response to Julie Nicholson’s book, A Song for Jenny, which relates the tragic death of her daughter in the 2005 London bombings.
The music was featured in the BBC dramatisation of the book, which starred Emily Watson and aired in July this year to mark the 10th anniversary. It contains settings of text by Shakespeare, Tennyson, Wheeler Wilcox and from the book of Ecclesiastes, as well as a number of powerful songs without words.
In this podcast, we talk to Guildhall saxophone professor Christian Forshaw about his role in the concert, which takes place on 27 October at Guildhall's Milton Court Concert Hall.
Directed by Stephen Unwin, The Secret Rapture is set in Margaret Thatcher’s Britain and explores the impact of Thatcherism on personal relationships within the family of a junior government minister after her father’s death. Although written in the 1980s, David Hare’s play remains a timely and important piece.
In this podcast we talk to the director, plus cast members Bessie Carter and Rose D'Aulbey, along with student sound and lighting designers Tom Bosworth and Tom Salmon.
The Guildhall production of the Secret Rapture runs in Milton Court Studio Theatre from 12-17 October 2015.
Patsy Rodenburg (Head of Voice, Guildhall School) discusses her upcoming event 'Education and Learning through Ancient Wisdom, Humanity, Creativity and Embodiment' with Guildhall's Vice Principal, Professor Helena Gaunt. The event, also featuring Iain McGilchrist (psychiatrist and author of The Master and his Emissary), takes place on Friday 9 October at Milton Court Concert Hall. For tickets see www.gsmd.ac.uk
In our final podcast of the School year, we catch up with actors Katrina McKeever and Luke Dale, musical director Michael Haslam and choreographer Bill Deamer, as they share their insights into our end of year musical, Guys and Dolls.
Curious is an annual showcase of new work produced and curated by students, graduates and professional artists associated with the Masters in Leadership programme at the Guildhall School.
In this podcast we talk to student Martins Baumanis, mentor Detta Danford and guest artist Eliza McCarthy about this year's exciting showcase, which uses Doug Aitken's ‘living exhibition’ Station to Station as a creative starting point for the development of new work including installation pieces, performances and discussions.
Described by Sir András Schiff as “a fine pianist with great sensitivity and imagination”, award-winning Swiss pianist and composer Jean-Sélim Abdelmoula talks to us ahead of his Wigmore Hall Prize-Winner's Recital, which annually awards an exceptional Guildhall School musician with recital in the beautiful Wigmore Hall.
Opera Course students Elizabeth Desbruslais and Martin Hassler talk about Guildhall's upcoming end-of-year opera double bill, 'Phaedra' and 'Ein Landarzt' by contemporary German composer Hans Werner Henze, taking place in the Silk Street Theatre from 8-15 June 2015.
In this episode of our events podcast, we talk to cast members Emily-Céline Thomson and Logan Georges, along with Sound Designer Erin Witton about the 2015 summer drama, Burnt By The Sun - an adaptation by Peter Flannery of Nikita Mikhalkov & Rustam Ibragimbekov's original film.
Ahead of the centenary of The Gold Medal, the Guildhall School’s most prestigious prize, we talk to two of our talented finalists about how they are preparing for the big day.
Bass-baritone Milan Siljanov and tenor Thomas Atkins join us for this podcast, and along with mezzo soprano Marta Fontanal-Simmons and soprano Jennifer Witton they will each be singing songs and arias, followed by a performance with the Guildhall Symphony Orchestra, in front of a prestigious jury panel including soprano and alumna Sally Matthews and BBC Radio 3 presenter Sara Mohr-Pietsch.
We find out how our finalists were selected, how they cope with nerves and just how much it would mean to them to find themselves on The Gold Medal board in the Silk Street foyer.
The Gold Medal takes place on 13 May in Barbican Hall. Get your ticket here: http://www.gsmd.ac.uk/music/view_all_events/?tx_julleevents_pi1%5BshowUid%5D=4038
Violin professor Levon Chilingirian OBE talks to us about his Faculty Artist Series concert on 15 May 2015 at Milton Court Concert Hall.
In Conversation: Piano Extravaganza with Ronan O'Hora & Charles Owen by Guildhall School of Music & Drama
“Challenging, but beautiful and brutal” – Machinal director Edward Dick joins us to discuss the powerful end of term drama with production manager George Lumkin, deputy stage manager Jocelyn Robinson and actors Emma Naomi and Freddy Elletson.
Machinal runs in the Silk Street Theatre at Guildhall from 27 March - 1 April 2015
“Rich orchestration, entertaining situations, great characters – what more can you ask for?!”
We meet director Martin Lloyd-Evans and cast members Alison Langer and Lawrence Thackeray to talk about the upcoming opera double bill of Arnold’s The Dancing Master and Donizetti’s I pazzi per progetto, receiving their world stage and UK stage premieres respectively.
The performances take place in the Silk Street Theatre from 2-9 March 2015.
A roll-call of esteemed concert pianists and alumni including Sa Chen, Paul Lewis, Serhiy Salov, Chenyin Li, Tom Poster, Stephen de Pledge, Lucy Parham, Read Gainsford and Ruya Taner, return to the School on 17 February 2015 in celebration of one of the School’s longest serving professors, Joan Havill.
In this podcast, Joan and Lucy Parham join us to talk about the concert, and discuss an extraordinary teaching and performance career.
“It’s incredibly complicated and very difficult for the actors…it delves into very difficult relationships - the more we dig, the more we find which is exciting about it. If it’s funny, it’s funny, that’s great - I’m not setting out to do a comedy, I’m just setting out to do this play.” – director Mike Alfreds joins us to talk about Twelfth Night in the Theatre at Milton Court (16-21 Feb), along with actor Charlie Bate, actor/composer Tom Chapman, production manager Elliott Cahill, and stage manager Rose Bedwell-Clayton.
“I think what we’re seeing in theatre now is that the design does the work rather than the language… all dressed up in a design that the actors can’t free themselves through”
Director Patsy Rodenburg with actors Lily Sacofsky and Oscar Batterham, deputy stage manager Marie Egetoft and lighting designer Rory Beaton discuss working on A Midsummer Night's Dream.
We catch up with long-time Guildhall collaborator and professor Iain Burnside and movement coach Victoria Newlyn to talk about Shining Armour, Iain’s new take on Brahms’ masterpiece Die schöne Magelone – as told by Clara Schumann.
Taking place on 14 January in Milton Court Concert Hall, the concert features the toast of the 2014 Proms Roderick Williams, alongside Iain, Victoria and opera student Alison Rose.
Actors Oscar Batterham, Alex Knox, Rebecca Lee, Amber James and Alice Winslow join us in the studio to talk about suffragette-based play Her Naked Skin, including meeting the writer Rebecca Lenkiewicz, working with Director of Drama Christian Burgess, and recreating what was called 'the most horrific incident on a London stage' by a 2008 National Theatre review.
Pete Brown, co-producer of Celtic Steppes, joined us in the studio to discuss making the record with post-bebop British saxophonist and composer Dick Heckstall-Smith (pictured). The rarely-performed three movement composition will be the centrepiece of the Guildhall Jazz Band's concert with special guests for EFG London Jazz Festival on 19 November at Milton Court.
As our first operatic production of the autumn term approaches, we talk to director Stephen Medcalf and students Alison Langer, Lawrence Thackeray and Emma Kerr about their approach to performing this warm, funny and wonderfully lyrical early Czech opera.
The Cunning Peasant runs in the Silk Street Theatre from 3-10 November 2014.
Final year actors Frankie Wakefield and Edward Sayer, Designer Susannah Henry, Technical Manager Martin Wade and Chief Electrician Liam Summerfield join us to discuss plumbing the depths of Rattigan's writing under Wyn Jones' direction in this upcoming drama double bill at the School.
South Downs & The Browning Version runs in Milton Court Theatre from 20-25 October 2014.
'Shoulder pads, Joy Division and gorilla costumes' - we catch up with director Owen Lewis, designer Alice Walking, lighting designer Jack Weir, sound designer Neville Billimoria and actors Katrina McKeever and Niall Ransome ahead of Guildhall School's first autumn production, 'True Dare Kiss' by Debbie Horsfield.
True Dare Kiss runs from 13-17 October in Milton Court Studio Theatre.
Part 2: We talk to director Rodula Gaitanou and set & lighting designer Simon Corder about the upcoming summer term baroque opera double bill, Stradella's 'San Giovanni Batista', and Thomas Arne's 'The Cooper', which takes place in the Milton Court Theatre 11-21 June 2014.
Part 1: We talk to Guildhall School opera singers Piran Legg and Tom Verney about the upcoming summer term baroque opera double bill, Stradella's 'San Giovanni Batista', and Thomas Arne's 'The Cooper', which takes place in the Milton Court Theatre 11-21 June 2014.
In this podcast, we're joined by members of the Technical Theatre department who discuss their upcoming 2014 Graduate Exhibition at Milton Court on 10 & 12 June.
Abi Emmett, Sam Gosling, Jen Leach and director Ben Sumner talk about some of the fabulous pieces on display, and why it's important that Technical Theatre students get their moment in the limelight.
We find out more about the School's summer term production, Napoli Milionaria - which looks at the cost of survival in a time of war - from director Joseph Blatchley and final year actors Florence Roberts and Robbie Carpenter.
Ahead of The Gold Medal, the Guildhall School’s most prestigious prize, we talk to our three talented finalists about how they are preparing for the big day. Clarinettist Max Mausen, cellist Michael Petrov and violinist Rose Hsien will each be playing a concerto with the Guildhall Symphony Orchestra, in front of a prestigious jury panel including renowned violinist and previous Gold Medal winner Tasmin Little and Ivan Hewett, Chief Music Critic at The Daily Telegraph. We find out how our finalists were selected, how they cope with nerves and just how much it would mean to them to find themselves on The Gold Medal board in the Silk Street foyer. The Gold Medal is on 12 May in Barbican Hall. Get tickets here: https://www.barbican.org.uk/music/event-detail.asp?ID=15752
Bridget Kimak discusses designing the set for upcoming opera Chérubin which opens on Thursday 4 March, and how she finds working with Technical Theatre students (first published 26 February 2009)
Director Christian Burgess discusses the first drama production of 2009/10 at the Guildhall School, Don Juan in Soho, by British playwright Patrick Marber. The play features final year actors and opens on Thursday 8 October 2009.
First published 21 September 2009.
Visiting director Alessandro Talevi is working on this term's opera, Donizetti's L'assedio di Calais. He tells us why he enjoys working with Guildhall students, and what makes this rarely-performed opera so intriguing.
First published 23 October 2009.
Head of Jazz Martin Hathaway discusses his upcoming concert in the School's Faculty Artist Series. Director of Creative Learning Sean Gregory also asks him what he finds particularly special about the Guildhall School's Jazz programme.
First published 12 October 2009.
Professor of Trombone John Kenny discusses his upcoming lecture recital in the Faculty Artist Series. John's event is titled 'Mouthpiece of the Gods' and here he explains more about the instruments he'll be exploring.
First published 2 November 2009.
Visiting director Douglas Rintoul talks to Christian Burgess about the final play of the term, A Midsummer Night's Dream.
First published 24 November 2009.
Professor of Piano Martin Roscoe tells Head of Advanced Performance Studies Ronan O'Hora about his recital in the Faculty Artist Series (24 February). He also discusses how he balances a high-profile performing career with his teaching.
First published 17 February 2010.
Director of Acting Wyn Jones discusses directing final year actors in Noel Coward's Tonight at 8.30, three miniature plays opening at the Barbican's Pit Theatre on 26 March.
First published 17 March 2010.
Christian Burgess quizzes visiting director Roberto Romei about directing Guildhall actors in Lorca's rarely-performed play When Five Years Pass, which opens at the Bridewell Theatre on Monday 15 February.
First published 12 February 2010.
Visiting director Will Kerley discusses upcoming opera Albert Herring, why he's set it in the 1970s and what it has to offer young opera students.
First published 3 June 2010.
The creative team for this autumn's opera Spinalba talk to Helena Gaunt about this rarely-performed work, and why the School's opera department has chosen to give its second only UK performance.
First published 8 October 2010.
Opera course student Gary Griffiths is the soloist in the Guildhall Symphony Chorus & Orchestra performance of Walton's Belshazzar's Feast on Friday 24 September. He discusses the highlights of his time at Guildhall, and his plans for the future.
First published 22 September 2010.
Head of Keyboard Ronan O'Hora and Head of Chamber Music Alasdair Tait preview their performance in the Faculty Artist Series on Monday 8 November at 7.30pm, and also talk about chamber music and collaborative opportunities for Guildhall students.
First published 5 November 2010.
Director of Drama Christian Burgess directs the world premiere of Badenheim 1939, Arnold Wesker's adaptation of the Aharon Appelfeld novel, opening on 26 November. He talks about this major project featuring Guildhall actors & musicians in collaboration.
First published 22 November 2010.
Adrian Thompson, Professor of Vocal Studies, gives a recital as part of the Faculty Artist Series on Wednesday 17 November. He discusses his own study at Guildhall, his subsequent singing career, and why Guildhall is renowned for its singing training.
First published 15 November 2010.
Head of Voice in the Drama department Patsy Rodenburg previews her latest publication, the DVD, Shakespeare in the Present, at a special platform at the School on 7 December. Here she discusses what's in the DVD, and why she loves working at Guildhall.
First published 1 December 2010.
Director of Acting Wyn Jones discusses JM Barrie's play Dear Brutus, which he directs at the School opening on 3 February. He also gives us a sneak preview of other upcoming drama productions at the School this year.
First published 31 January 2011.
Head of Jazz Martin Hathaway and research professor Gail Brand preview this year's Guildhall Jazz Festival, which takes place 21-26 March, and the improvisation fringe which will run alongside it.
First published 2 March 2011.
Singers Ashley Riches, Natalya Romaniw and Victor Sicard will compete, along with Koji Terada, for the School's most prestigious award The Gold Medal on 10 May. Here they discuss how it feels to compete against one another and how they manage the nerves.
First published 4 April 2011.
Guildhall pianist Alexandra Dariescu is the winner of this year's Guildhall Wigmore Recital Prize. Her winner's recital takes place at the Wigmore Hall on 18 March, and here she talks about the programme and other future plans.
First published 9 March 2011.
Professor of Piano Noriko Ogawa discusses her upcoming recital in the Faculty Artist Series on Thursday 26 May. She discusses the new Japanese work she will premiere on the night, as well as her fundraising efforts for the Japanese earthquake appeal.
First published 13 May 2011.
Head of Historical Performance Jane Booth talks to us about the Faculty Artist recital on 16 November, and also updates us on future projects for the Historical Performance department.
First published 16 November 2011.
Robert Thompson, a member of the Rhodes Piano Trio, discusses their upcoming recital in the Faculty Artist Series with Arisa Fujita and James Boyd, and talks about what it's like to be a Fellow at the Guildhall School.
First published 16 November 2011.
Director Harry Fehr talks to us about directing the autumn term opera, Nicolai's The Merry Wives of Windsor. He tells us about the challenges of an opera with a lot of spoken dialogue, the kind of operas he likes to work on, and what it's like to work with student singers and technicians.
First published 2 November 2011.
Director of Drama Christian Burgess discusses his upcoming production, a devised piece of theatre called ...think only this of me... featuring a multi-disciplinary cast of Guildhall musicians and actors. He talks about the challenges of rehearsing a devised piece, and what students will take away from it.
First published 29 November 2011.
Professor Graham Johnson talks about the launch of The Song Guild, an elite group of singers and pianists performing at LSO St Luke's on 24 February. He also discusses the challenges of making piano accompaniment a career, and what's distinctive about Guildhall's style of training for pianists and singers.
First published 20 February 2012.
Visiting director and Guildhall acting alumnus Nick Bagnall discusses Les Liaisons Dangereuses which he directs at the School in February. He also talks about what it’s like returning to Guildhall after years in the business, and why he decided to turn his hand to directing.
First published 25 January 2012.
Director of Music Jonathan Vaughan introduces the term's orchestral concerts, discusses the benefits of working with different conductors and with contemporary repertoire, and gives an overview of the Music Department's highlights this spring.
First published 25 January 2012.
Head of Jazz Martin Hathaway and Jazz Fellows Joshua Jaswon and Sam Braysher talk about the upcoming Guildhall Jazz Festival. They pick out the highlights of this year's Festival, and tell us what students get from a week of intensive performance.
First published 14 March 2012.
After over 20 years as Head of Opera at the Guildhall School, Clive Timms retires at Easter. We ask him how he feels about stepping down, his favourite memories of his time here, and what his plans are for the future. We also find out about the forthcoming production of A Midsummer Night's Dream, in which the Opera programme makes its Barbican Theatre debut.
First published 24 February 2012.
This year's Gold Medal finalists - Ashley Fripp, Jonathan Chan and Ben Schoeman - tell us how they're preparing for the School's most prestigious music competition on 2 May, and what they hope to get out of this high-profile event.
First published 13 April 2012.
Visiting director Joseph Blatchley talks about directing The Life & Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby (Part One) which opens on Monday 26 March in the Silk Street Theatre. He tells us what kind of plays attract him, and what the challenges are of working with a large cast on a big play in a short rehearsal time.
First published 19 March 2012.
Iain Burnside introduces his new play A Soldier and a Maker, which is based on the songs, poems and letters of Ivor Gurney and opens in the Barbican Pit Theatre on 20 April. He discusses why Gurney is relatively unknown, the collaborative nature of rehearsals for the show, and what Guildhall singers and pianists will gain from the project.
First published 13 April 2012.
Postgraduate pianist Mihkel Poll is the winner of this year's Guildhall Wigmore Recital Prize, which annually awards a Guildhall musician with a Wigmore Hall recital. He tells us how he selected his repertoire for the concert and what he's most looking forward to about the evening, as well as his latest disc and his future plans.
First published 16 May 2012.
Visiting director Stephen Medcalf talks about Our Town, a chamber opera by Ned Rorem based on the play by Thornton Wilder. The School gives the European premiere of the work 29 May - 6 June, and Stephen tells us how the opera reflects the novel, the challenges and delights of working with Rorem's music, and why he enjoys coming back to Guildhall to work with the Opera course.
First published 17 May 2012.
Professor of Piano Charles Owen talks about his upcoming recital on 10 May as part of the Faculty Artist Series. He tells us about the repertoire he'll be performing, and what he gets out of his teaching at Guildhall.
First published 1 May 2012.
Director of Drama Christian Burgess introduces the first play of the year, Lorca’s classic Blood Wedding, and describes why he chose it for this year’s cohort of actors. Cast members Sophie Khan Levy, Alex Large, Ben Schnetzer and Evelyn Miller discuss their roles and how they’ve approached them in this critical final year of their training.
First published 25 September 2012.
Opera Course students Lucy Hall, Ben McAteer and Tom Verney discuss their soloist roles in the Guildhall Symphony Orchestra & Chorus concert on Friday 21 September. They also talk about their experience of the Opera Course, and what they've got out of their time at the School.
First published 18 September 2012.
Head of Acting Studies Martin Connor talks about directing the musical Chaplin, why musical theatre is an important part of the course and why he enjoys working with young actors.
First published 6 June 2012.
The School’s new Head of Opera Studies Dominic Wheeler talks about the upcoming opera triple bill, which features Massenet’s La Navarraise, Le Portrait de Manon and Martinu’s Comedy on the Bridge. He also discusses what he’s enjoying most about his new role, and his upcoming plans for the Opera Course which include international collaboration.
First published 9 October 2012.
Debussy specialists and Professors of Piano Paul Roberts and Noriko Ogawa discuss the upcoming recital series Colours in Sound – four recitals commemorating the 150th anniversary of Debussy’s birth. Paul explains what fascinates him about Debussy and why it’s important for students to study and perform his work; Noriko tells us how they programmed the series, and why she loves teaching students amidst a busy performing career.
First published 12 October 2012.
Professor Barry Ife, Principal of the School, is joined by two postgraduate musicians, Alejandra Diaz and Marisa Gupta, to introduce the upcoming one-day festival Homage to Catalunya, which celebrates three important Catalan composers. Professor Ife tells us of his interest in the works of Montsalvatge, Toldrá and Mompou and why he programmed their music this way. Alejandra and Marisa explain the repertoire they’ll be performing on the day and why they find these composers so fascinating.
First published 23 October 2012.
Head of Voice Patsy Rodenburg is directing Twelfth Night in the Silk Street Theatre from 31 January to 5 February with Director of Acting Wyn Jones as Associate Director. They talk about their passion for the play, the importance of making the production relevant to now and how to teach young actors the basics of their craft.
First published 24 January 2013.
Current students Joshua Mills (tenor) and Alex Edmundson (horn) are both soloists in Britten’s Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Strings in the upcoming Guildhall Chamber Orchestra concert. They talk about the work, why music students are becoming increasingly interested in contemporary composers, and what they’re enjoying most about studying at the School.
First published on 16 January 2013.
Designer Dora Schweitzer is part of the creative team for The Life & Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby, Part Two of which is staged in the Silk Street Theatre 23-28 November. She describes the process of designing a production and discusses what she enjoys about working with Technical Theatre students, as well as the challenges of this large-scale production.
First published 19 November 2012.
On Monday 11 February, Joy Farrall (Senior Tutor in Chamber Music), Alison Teale (Professor of Oboe) and Graham Sheen (Professor of Bassoon) perform a recital as part of the Faculty Artist Series. Here they tell us about their choice of repertoire, what it's like to play together, and what they find special about the School's Wind, Brass and Percussion department.
First published 11 February 2013.
Head of Jazz Martin Hathaway and Professor of Improvisation Gail Brand preview the highlights of this year’s Jazz Festival, including a range of visiting artists and jazz styles. Undergraduate Helena Kay and postgraduate Tom Rees join them to talk about their participation in the Festival, and what they hope to take from the experience.
First published 15 March 2013.
On Friday 21 June, baritone Martin Häßler will make his Wigmore Hall debut as the winner of this year’s Guildhall Wigmore Recital Prize. Here he discusses what attracted him to the competition, the difference between performing in front of a judging panel and an audience, and why this recital will be the highlight of his career so far.
First published 13 June 2013.
Dominic Wheeler, the Guildhall School’s Head of Opera Studies, and Kelly Robinson, Artistic Director of the Banff Centre, Canada, explain why they’re joining forces on a new production of one of Britten’s most rarely-performed operas, Owen Wingrave. They talk about their approach to collaboration, Britten’s unique range of musical influences, and why some students turned pale when they first heard the work.
First published 29 May 2013.
Saxophonist, composer, and Professor of Jazz Carlos Lopez-Real will take to the stage with his quartet, Mandorla, on Thursday 16 May as part of the Faculty Artist Series. Here he tells us about writing new music, capturing inspiration, and how his postgraduate studies at the Guildhall School have shaped his approach to teaching.
First published 1 May 2013.
As the Drama department prepares to open a new production of the 1986 Broadway musical, Rags, the Design Realisation team discusses how they’re bringing the show to life, what challenges they’ve faced, and why it’s important to interpret each work anew. The podcast features Vanessa Cass, Head of Design Realisation; Rhian Jones, Production Manager; and Technical Theatre Arts students Nancy Nicholson, Daisy Rigley and Jenny Leach.
First published 1 July 2013.
Final year actors Sophie Khan Levy, Cormac Brown and Patrick Walshe McBride talk about playing multiple roles in Moises Kaufman's The Laramie Project, which plays from 22 to 27 March in the Silk Street Theatre. They also talk about how public performances in their final year are preparing them for the professional world.
First published 13 March 2013.
In the final Spring term events podcast, we find out more about the end of term production The Hour We Knew Nothing of Each Other by Peter Handke, from Director Sue Lefton, Lighting Designer Max Narula, Deputy Stage Manager Georgina Elsey, and actors Rebecca Collingwood and Alex Bhat. A one act play without words – and 400-odd characters - is not without its challenges for both cast, crew and audience – such as having only 20 seconds to change costumes, learning to rollerblade and how on earth one cues sound, lighting and entrances with a very different kind of script.
The Hour We Knew Nothing of Each Other runs in the Silk Street Theatre from 28 March - 2 April. Get tickets here: http://www.barbican.org.uk/theatre/event-detail.asp?ID=15742
Ahead of the legendary Guildhall Jazz Festival and Improvisation Fringe, we talk to the people behind the week of events, Head of Jazz Martin Hathway and Improvisation professor Gail Brand, as well as jazz student Will Glaser.
We find out why having a jazz festival is important to the School, Martin’s memories of studying at the Guildhall School, and what it was like to be involved in the late ‘80s London jazz scene alongside festival guest Julian Siegel.
‘For a conservatoire it’s a monster’ says director Martin Lloyd-Evans of The Adventures of Pinocchio, one of the School’s largest and most ambitious productions to date. He’s joined by Associate Designer Susannah Henry, soprano Anna Gillingham, and Technical Theatre student Sarah Sweet, to talk about this ‘ideas-hungry’ opera, the design process, and the enormous wardrobe requirements.
Hamlet is one of Shakespeare’s most well-known plays, and along with Henry V is the second of a duo to be shown here at the Guildhall School in Spring 2014. In this podcast, final year actors Adam Gerrett, Joe Eyre and Theo Cowan (who all play the lead role of Hamlet) join us with director Jo McInnes, and discuss the production in more detail.
In this episode, we're joined by Head of Keyboard Ronan O'Hora and professor of piano Laura Roberts, who talk about their memories of former Guildhall School Head of Keyboard James (Jimmy) Gibb, who passed away last year, ahead of the memorial concert for him here on 21 February.
In this episode of the events podcast series we talk to members of the cast of Henry V which runs in the Milton Court Studio Theatre between 10-15 February, along with director Martin Hutson. In particular, how Martin got into directing, the approach to sharing the leading part, and some very fascinating cast demonstrations of the sound effects that will be used on the night.
Find out more about studying Acting at the Guildhall School: http://www.gsmd.ac.uk/acting/programmes/
In this, the second 2014 Guildhall School events podcast, we talk to acclaimed violinist and chamber music director Alexander Janiczek and viola soloist Luba Tunnicliffe ahead of their Guildhall Chamber Orchestra concert on 23 January at Milton Court Concert Hall. In particular, they discuss dealing with the pressure of performing, reasons behind the choice of repertoire and what it’s like working with a chamber group.
Buy your ticket for the Guildhall Chamber Orchestra concert here: http://www.gsmd.ac.uk/about_the_school/home/view_all_events/?tx_julleevents_pi1[showUid]=3532
Find out more about studying music at the Guildhall School here: www.gsmd.ac.uk/music/principal_study/
In the first Guildhall School events podcast of 2014, we catch up with soprano Raphaela Papadakis, baritone Benjamin Appl and pianist James Sherlock, the three Guildhall artists who will make their New York performance debut at the prestigious Carnegie Hall on 23 January. Here they talk about how they’re preparing with a trip to Banff, the importance of having a portfolio career, and why you shouldn’t be put off by Schoenberg in the programme…
Buy your ticket for the Carnegie Hall concert here: http://www.carnegiehall.org/Calendar/2014/1/23/0800/PM/Artists-from-the-Guildhall-School
Find out more about studying music at the Guildhall School here: http://www.gsmd.ac.uk/music/principal_study/
Principal Violin and Oboe Dora Chatzigeorgiou and Maria Papathanasiou join Guildhall HQ for an informal chat ahead of their 29 November Guildhall Symphony Orchestra conducted by Takuo Yuasa at Barbican Hall.
They tell us what it’s like on the Guildhall Artist in Performance Masters, their experiences working with the London Symphony Orchestra (including playing under Valery Gergiev) and how it’s been working in rehearsals with guest conductor Takuo – as well as the differences between US and UK conservatoire experiences.
You can buy your ticket for the event on 29 November here: http://www.barbican.org.uk/music/event-detail.asp?ID=14529
Find out more about the Guildhall Artist Masters programme and pathways here: http://www.gsmd.ac.uk/music/courses/postgraduate/guildhall_artist_programme/
We talk to eminent jazz bassist and Guildhall professor Geoff Gascoyne ahead of his forthcoming 50th birthday concert at Milton Court on 22 November.
Geoff discusses what it was like working on a major Hollywood film, hanging out at Sting’s house, and recording the music for session band apps – as well as preparations for his upcoming concert here.
You can buy your ticket for the concert here: http://www.barbican.org.uk/music/event-detail.asp?ID=15230
Find out more about studying Jazz at the Guildhall School here: http://www.gsmd.ac.uk/music/principal_study/jazz/
Lead actors Simon Haines, Emily Laing and Joey Phillips drop into Guildhall HQ along with director Rachel Grunwald, to tell us about the end of year production and British première of Marathon ’33 by Broadway and Hollywood star June Havoc.
The actors explain the gruesome story behind Marathon ’33 (including how contestants managed to learn sleep whilst dancing), the technical challenges in putting on the production, the involvement with Guildhall jazz musicians, and the working relationship between director and cast in this truly extraordinary show.
You can book tickets for the show here: http://www.barbican.org.uk/theatre/event-detail.asp?ID=15247
Find out more about acting classes at Guildhall here: http://www.gsmd.ac.uk/acting/programmes/
In this episode we talk to Director Stephen Barlow and sopranos Lauren Fagan and Lauren Zolezzi about the two seldom-performed operas, Debussy's 'L’enfant prodigue' and Donizetti's 'Francesca di Foix', which opened at the Guildhall School on 4 November 2013.
You can find out more about studying Opera at the Guildhall School here: http://www.gsmd.ac.uk/music/principal_study/opera_studies/
In Conversation: Graham Johnson - Faculty Artist Series by Guildhall School of Music & Drama
In Conversation: Thomas Adès' visit, Ashley Fripp & James Kreiling by Guildhall School of Music & Drama
Director of Drama Christian Burgess, Director of Acting Wyn Evans and final year actors Kate Phillips, Ben Wainwright, Jay Saighal, Joe Eyre and Jacob Fortune Lloyd discuss the first two productions in the Milton Court theatres, two of Chekhov’s finest plays: The Seagull and The Three Sisters. The group also discuss what Milton Court provides to the Drama department, how it affects their training, and how they’ve approached their roles in these productions.
In Conversation:Julian Philips - Come Forth to Play by Guildhall School of Music & Drama