Leeds Lieder Young Artists 2022
Flore Van Meerssche soprano
Flore Van Meerssche will make her debut at the Salzburger Festspiele as Sacerdotessa in Verdi‘s Aida in the Summer of 2022 and she will be part of the Young Singers Project 2022.
In 2021 the Belgian soprano made her operatic debut at the Innsbruck Festival of Early Music in Mattheson’s Boris Goudenow and also took on the title role in Walpurgis’ Talestri at the Munich Chamber Opera. Other roles include Pamina, Cleopatra and Minerva.
Flore is a passionate interpreter of Lied. In December 2021 she won the Prix de Mélodie together with her piano partner Gyeongtaek Lee at the International Nadia and Lili Boulanger Competition in Paris. In May 2022 they will take part in the LIEDAcademy as scholarship-holders during the 2022 LIEDBasel Festival.
Flore is also a sought-after concert performer. In 2022 she will return to the Innsbruck Festival of Early Music to give a solo-recital at Schloss Ambras. Thanks to her intensive concert activities, Flore has a broad range of repertoire, working with conductors such as Philippe Pierlot, Alessandro di Marchi, Andrea Marchiol and esteemed ensembles such as Collegium Vocale Gent, Ricercar consort, Bavarian Radio Choir and Symphony Orchestra.
Flore graduated cum laude in Konzertgesang (2018) and Liedgestaltung (2021) from the University of Music and Performing Arts in Munich under Fenna Kügel-Seifried and Andreas Schmidt. She has attended masterclasses with Helmut Deutsch, Ian Bostridge, Jan Philip Schulze and Dietrich Henschel. She is a scholarshipholder from the Deutscher Bühnenverein, the Richard-Wagner Verband München, as well as Yehudi Menuhin – Live Music Now.
Gyeongtaek Lee piano
South Korean pianist Gyeongtaek Lee studied for a Bachelors Degree in Piano at Yonsei University, College of Music, in Seoul (South Korea). Since 2020 he has been studying for a Masters Degree in Lied Interpretation with Professor Gerold Huber and Professor Donald Sulzen at the University of Music and Performing Arts Munich. In 2021 he attended masterclasses with Ian Bostridge.
Gyeontaek Lee has gained concert experience on different stages in his country. He last worked in Germany on the performative artwork Sonic Blossom as part of the participatory exhibition by Lee Mingwei, Li. Gifts and Rituals at the Museum Villa Stuck, Munich. Multiple awards at international competitions include the Prix de Mélodie – Fondation Étrillard at the International Nadia and Lili Boulanger Competition in Paris with soprano Flore Van Meerssche.
Gyeongtaek Lee has been sponsored by the Yehudi Menuhin Live Music association since spring 2021. He has received the Young Artist and New Ways scholarship from the Free State of Bavaria. In April and May he will appear with his Lied-partner soprano Flore Van Meerssche as scholarship holders of the LIED Academy during the 2022 LIEDBasel Festival and Young Artists Programme at the 2022 Leeds Lieder Festival.
George Reynolds baritone
George Reynolds is a 23-year-old English Baritone currently in his second year of masters study at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama under the tutelage of Gary Coward. George sang as the cover Figaro in Saint Paul’s Opera’s 2019 summer production of Le Nozze di Figaro. He had been cast as Guccio and cover Marco in British Youth Opera’s 2020 summer production of Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi, however due to COVID-19, all 2020 productions were cancelled. In the 2021 summer season, George sang as a chorus member for Opera Holland Park’s production of Le Nozze di Figaro and sang the role of Fiorello in Clonter Opera’s production of Il Barbiere di Siviglia. George recently performed the role of Masetto in Opera at the Athenaeum’s 2021 autumn production of Don Giovanni, and will be returning to play the role of Marco in their 2022 production of Gianni Schicchi. George will also be joining the chorus for West Green House Opera’s summer production of E’lisir D’amore.
George came second in the 2021 Courtney Kenny Award, and works regularly with Jonathan Lemalu and Adrian Thompson on song repertoire. English song repertoire is the area of singing that George loves the most, with a particular fondness for Finzi’s works. George has recently received masterclasses from Roddy Williams, Richard Hetherington, Tobias Truniger, Kate Royal, Graham Johnson and Mark Padmore.
George’s studies at Guildhall are generously supported by the John Clemence Charitable Foundation, the Mario Lanza Educational Foundation and the Carpenter’s Company.
Bethany Reeves piano
Bethany Reeves is a second year Masters student in Piano Accompaniment at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, studying principally with Pamela Lidiard and Andrew West. Whilst studying, Bethany is also a regular accompanist for singing teachers including Yvonne Kenny, Janice Chapman and Marcus van den Akker. Bethany previously studied music at Brasenose College, Oxford, where she held organ and academic scholarships and graduated with first class honours.
Bethany is currently the Director of Music at Christ Church, East Sheen, where she runs a monthly recital series and directs the Solis Choir. Bethany was recently awarded the accompanist prize at the Courtney Kenny Award, and second place in the Guildhall Piano Accompaniment Prize. In 2012, one of Bethany’s compositions was played by the Royal Opera House Orchestra and at the BAFTA awards. She recently collaborated with singer-songwriter Tom Rosenthal as choral arranger on his new 2021 album, Denis Was a Bird. With grade 8 distinctions in six instruments, Bethany is an instrumental teacher, and specialises in music therapy facilitation for young people with autism. Bethany runs a weekly choir for KEEN Oxford, a charity which runs activities for young people with learning disabilities, and for which she fundraises through her homemade cards business, Bethany Ella Cards.
Together with baritone George Reynolds, Bethany receives regular coaching from Jonathan Lemalu, and has performed in masterclasses led by Richard Hetherington, Tobias Truniger, Graham Johnson and Mark Padmore.
Bethany’s studies are generously supported by Help Musicians UK and the Kathleen Trust.
Helena Donie mezzo-soprano
Mezzo-soprano Helena Donie studied voice with Professor Ingrid Haubold at the Karlsruhe University of Music graduating with a Bachelors degree in 2017. From 2017 to 2020 she studied a Master’s in Opera at the Institute for Music Theater Karlsruhe. Since October 2021 Helena has been part of the Liedklasse at the Karlsruhe University of Music under the direction of Professor Mitsuko Shirai and Hartmut Höll. She is part of the Udo Reinemann Academy 2021/2022 together with her duo partner Yeon Seo Ra.
During her bachelor studies she discovered her passion for Lied, chansons and operetta. Together with her piano duo partners she developed a wide repertoire of arias, songs, hits, chansons and operetta melodies. She is a scholarship holder of the foundation Live Music Now and the Richard Wagner Verband Karlsruhe.
Helena has participated in masterclasses with Barbara Frittoli, Stephan Herheim, Dan Ettinger
and Christoph Prégardien, among others. She received further training from Professor Daniel Fueter, Liv Solveig Wagner, Kathey Romey, Helmuth Rilling and Hans-Christoph Rademann.
She made her operatic debut in January 2018 in the production of Johann Strauss’ Die Fledermaus at the Musikhochschule Karlsruhe. Another success for her followed in June 2019, when she shone in the role of Mrs Grose in Benjamin Britten’s The Turn of the Screw.
Hana Kang piano
Hana Kang, born in Masan in 1992, is a South Korean concert pianist studying for the Solistenexamen with Professor Hartmut Höll at Hochschule für Musik Karlsruhe. Hana received her first piano lessons at the age of three and went on to study for her B.A. under the tutelage of Professor Sergey Tarasov at Keimyung University in Daegu, South Korea and for the M.A. in Liedgestaltung (collaborative piano) with Professor Hartmut Höll and Professor Dr.h.c. Mitsuko Shirai at Hochschule für Musik Karlsruhe where she graduated with distinction in 2019.
Hana has received scholarships from the Friends of the Karlsruhe University of Music as well as from Yehudi Menuhin- Live Music Now, recognizing her exceptionally gifted musical talents. In addition to her studies, Hana has participated in several masterclass events with world-renown pianists and vocalists, including Anne Grappotte, Anne Le Bozec, Liv Wagner, Markus Hadulla, Marie-Claude Solanet, Dorian Astor, Daniel Fueter, Wolfgang Holzmair and Christoph Prégardien. Hana has performed extensively all over Germany and Europe, including at concert venues in Karlsruhe, Düsseldorf, Bayreuth, and Milan. Hana enjoys the collaborative side of piano playing, regularly accompanying singers, choirs, as well as opera and theatre groups. Hana also plays the violin and drums and has ventured into conducting as part of her studies at HfM Karlsruhe in the past.
Hannah Morley mezzo-soprano
Mezzo-Soprano Hannah Morley is studying for a Masters degree in Vocal Performance at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire. Hannah studies under the vocal direction of Louise Crane, and she is generously supported by theConservatoire with an entrance scholarship. Prior to her studies in Birmingham, Hannah trained at the Morley Opera School, and at Bath Spa University where she gained her BA in Music.
For the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire Hannah has performed the role of Miss Forcible/Other Miss Forcible in Turnage’s Coraline, and in 2022 she will sing the role of Madge Williams in Mcneff’s Banished. For opera scenes excerpts, Hannah has sung Serafina in Il Campanello, Orfeo in Orfeo ed Euridice, Angelina in La Cenerentola, Baba in The Rake’s Progress, Hermia in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and most recently, Lucretia in The Rape ofLucretia, and La Maestra delle Novizie in Suor Angelica. Other full operatic roles include, Dorcas in Thomas and Sally for Bath International Festival, The Sorceress in Dido and Aeneas, Juno in Orpheus in the Underworld and Marcellina in The Marriage of Figaro, for Bath Spa Opera.
In 2021 Hannah was awarded first prize in the Edward Brooks Lieder Prize and third prize in the Edward Brooks English Song Prize at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire. Hannah recently sang as a soloist for a VoxBox concertexploring the works of Samuel Barber with Dylan Perez at RBC, and as a soloist for the Cecil Aronowitz International Viola Festival where she performed Brahms Zwei Gesänge (Op.91). As an oratorio soloist Hannah has performed works such as, Vivaldi’s Gloria, Handel’s Messiah, Haydn’s Nelson Mass and Mozart’s Vesperae Solennes deConfessore.
Michael Rose piano
At the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire Michael Rose is studying with Mikhail Kazakevich, pursuing his undergraduate degree in Piano Performance. Michael also takes interest in the art song repertoire, recently a finalist in the RBC Stuart Cameron Smith French Song Prize and prior to this, a finalist in the 2020 Delia Hall Accompanist Prize and the 2019 Edward Brooks Lieder Prize. He benefited greatly from the 2020 Home Sweet Home Vox Box project exploring themes of family and belonging, lead by Iain Burnside. Michael collaborates frequently with the Vocal and Operatic department at RBC, accompanying language and performance classes. The height of these collaborations result in Michael acting as repetiteur for the Opera and Opera Scenes productions that are presented throughout the year. He has played scenes from Handel’s Acis and Galatea and Giulio Cesare, Massenet’s Cendrillon, Gounod’s Faust, Janacek’s The Cunning Little Vixen, Stravinsky’s The Rakes Progress, Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Rape of Lucretia, Strauss’ Ariadne auf Naxos, Tchaikovsky’s EugeneOnegin and Bellini’s I Capuletti e I Montecchi.
He has worked as repetiteur for the 2020 production of Mark-Anthony Turnage’s Coraline as well as Cumbria Opera Group’s 2021 double bill, A Hand of Bridge and Trouble in Tahiti. He looks forward to acting as repetiteur for the Spring 2022 production of Banished by Stephen McNeff. He hopes to focus further on repetiteur studies at postgraduate level.
Chloë Pardoe mezzo-soprano
Chloë Pardoe is a lyric mezzo-soprano from Buckinghamshire, England. She completed her Masters in Advanced Vocal Studies at the Wales International Academy of Voice. Chloë was taught by Dennis O’Neill and generously supported by the Dennis O’Neill Foundation. Chloë won the Corton Hyde Early Music Prize and was a finalist in The Ambache Prize for the Performance of Music by Women Composers. Chloë continues to study privately with Rosa Mannion.
Her 2018/19 season included singing Ida Die Fledermaus with Iford Arts (now If Opera) at Bath Festival. She was a 2019 Iford Arts New Generation Artist and performed in their production of L’elisir d’amore. Chloë has sung regularly with Opera Holland Park in their chorus. Chloë’s 20/21 season included singing Woodpecker Cunning Little Vixen with Opera Holland Park.
Other opera engagements include Sesto in Giulio Cesare (Cardiff Opera); La Ciesca in Gianni Schicchi (collaboration with William Griffiths); L’Enfant in L’Enfant et les Sortilèges (Royal Birmingham Conservatoire); Hänsel in Hänsel und Gretel (Leamington Sinfonia) and Dido in Dido and Aeneas (Leamington Choral Society). Chloë’s operatic repertoire includes Cherubino in Le Nozze di Figaro; Siebel in Faust; Dorabella in Cosi Fan Tutte and Annio in La Clemenza di Tito. She also works frequently with the Welsh National Opera as a Vocal Animateur.
Chloë’s solo oratorio highlights include Beethoven’s 9th Symphony with Ludlow Orchestra, Vivaldi’s Gloria and Saint-Saëns Oratorio de Noël with Oxford Harmonic at the Sheldonian Theatre; Beethoven’s Mass in C and Haydn’s Paukenmesse with Stratford Upon Avon Choral Society; Mozart’s Requiem with the Cantorian Sirenian Singers; Haydn’s Nelson Mass with the British Sinfonietta and Côr Penclawdd; Handel’s Messiah with Rugby Philharmonic Choir; Bach’s St John’s Passion with the Gippeswyk Singers and Handel’s Dixit Dominus and Dvorak’s Mass in D with Ludlow Choral Society.
Future engagements include solos in Elgar’s Sea Pictures and The Music Makers, Duruflé’s Requiem and returning to Opera Holland Park to sing 3rd Woman in Margot la Rouge this summer.
Yupeng He piano
Born in China, Yupeng He is currently studying at the Royal Academy of Music London where she holds a scholarship. As a piano accompanist, her partners include singers and instrumentalists and her repertoire ranges from Baroque to the Contemporary period. She has also participated in masterclasses with Hartmut Höl, Lucy Crowe, Helmut Deutsch, Susan Bullock and Denis Bouriakov. From September 2022, she will be enrolled in the Advanced Diploma at the Royal Academy of Music.
Yupeng He has performed in venues including Magdalen College (University of Oxford), Italian Cultural Center in London, the National Centre for the Performing Arts of China, Forbidden City Concert Hall, Beijing Concert Hall and the Kodály Pedagogical Institute in Kecskemét. Together with her partners, she has participated in several prizes and competitions including The Kathleen Ferrier Awards, the Joan Chissell/Rex Stephens Schumann Lieder Prize and the Harold Craxton Prize.
Angharad Rowland mezzo-soprano
Angharad Rowland’s participation in the Leeds Lieder Young Artist Programme has been made possible through the support of the Josephine Baker Trust.
Described by Gramophone as ‘arresting’, Angharad Rowlands is a Welsh mezzo-soprano studying for an MA in Performance at the RAM under Raymond Connell and Iain Ledingham. She is a semi-finalist of the Hurn Court Opera Singer of the Year Competition (2020), a Nevill Holt Opera Associate Artist, and a member of the Academy Song Circle. From September 2022, Angharad will join Royal Academy Opera.
In 2019 Angharad made her debut at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden as 2nd Bridesmaid in David McVicar’s revival production of Le nozze di Figaro. Other roles include Dido (Dido & Aeneas – Hurn Court Opera); 2nd Witch (Dido & Aeneas – RAO); Béatrice (Béatrice et Bénédict – RAO Scenes); Octavian (Der Rosenkavalier) and Charlotte (Werther) for RAM Scenes, Nancy (Albert Herring – Byre Opera); Dorabella (Così fan tutte), and Zerlina (Don Giovanni) for Trinity Laban Scenes.
A native Welsh speaker, Angharad grew up competing regularly in the National Eisteddfod of Wales. She has worked extensively with Sir John Eliot Gardiner as a soloist in venues such as the Salzburg Festival; Palau de la Música Catalana, Barcelona; Philharmonie de Paris; Kursaal, San Sebastiàn and Alexandra Palace, London. She has participated in masterclasses with Dame Sarah Connolly, Christian Gerhaher, Florian Boesch, and with Nelly Miriciou at Wigmore Hall.
In 2017 she gained an MA in Art History from the University of St Andrews and a PGDip in Performance with Distinction from Trinity Laban where she was the 2019/20 recipient of the Drapers’ de Turckheim Award.
Angharad is grateful to the RAM, the Josephine Baker Trust and the patrons of Hurn Court Opera for their generous support.
Joseph Cavalli-Price piano
Welsh-Italian pianist Joseph Cavalli-Price is a collaborative pianist and tenor completing his Masters in Piano Accompaniment at the Royal Academy of Music, studying with Michael Dussek, Joseph Middleton, Malcolm Martineau and Raymond Connell. In 2020, he graduated with a First Class Honours degree in Vocal and OperaPerformance from the Royal Welsh College of Music.
At the Academy, Joseph plays for the prestigious Song Circle and Academy Voices, recently performing in a series of three ‘Transcending Borders’ recitals, exploring Songs from Austria, France and England and a recital of Strauss.He is a Leeds Lieder Young Artist for 2022, the Winner of the 2022 Mozart Competition Pianist Prize, the Academy’sJacob Barnes Award for Collaborative Piano and was very highly commended in the English Song Competition’s Major Van Someren-Godfrey Prize for Piano Accompaniment. He has accompanied Masterclasses with AngelikaKirschlagger, Hartmut Höll, Dame Sarah Connolly, Florian Boesch, Christian Gerhaher, Malcolm Martineau, James Gilchrist, Simon Lepper and Roderick Williams.
A talented ensemble singer, Joseph was a member of Harry Christophers’ The Sixteen Young Artist Scheme ‘Genesis Sixteen’ for 2019/2020 performing at Bridgewater Hall, Hampton Court Palace and Magdalen College, Oxford. During his undergraduate, he held Choral Scholarships with the choirs of Llandaff Cathedral, St David’s Metropolitan Cathedral, and the BBC National Chorus of Wales.
Upcoming engagements include: Oxford Lieder audition recitals and the Ferrier and Somerset Song Competitions.
Joseph is grateful for the support of Help Musicians UK, the Ryan Davies Memorial Award and the JamesPantyfedwen Foundation.
Charles Cunliffe bass-baritone
Charles Cunliffe is a bass-baritone studying with Giles Underwood and Joseph Middleton at the Royal Academy of Music. In 2019, he was put forward as a Royal Academy of Music outstanding student, and was awarded the Silver Medal by the Company of Musicians, of which he has now become a Young Artist. Charles began singing as a chorister at Peterborough Cathedral, becoming a choral scholar in 2014. Soon after, he was offered a scholarship to the Royal Academy of Music to study as an undergraduate. Charles has a strong affinity for song, and in the summer of 2019, he recorded the baritone solos in both Vaughan Williams’ Love bade me welcome and Finzi’s In terra pax for BBC Radio 3, alongside the Ulster Orchestra, conducted by David Hill. Charles also performed alongside Dame Sarah Connolly at last year’s Oxford Lieder festival, performing Butterworth’s 6 songs from a Shropshire Lad. He is a member of the Song Circle at the Royal Academy of Music, and has performed in a number of recitals with them to date, a highlight being in Spring 2021 where he performed the world première of I Wake by Roderick Williams. In opera, he has performed the role of Guccio in RAO’s production of Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi. He has also sung Figaro (Le nozze di Figaro), Dulcamara (L’elisir d’amore) and Enrico (Lucia di Lammermoor) in the Academy’s Vocal Faculty Opera Scenes. Charles is now enjoying his second year as a postgraduate student on the Royal Academy of Music Preparatory Opera course. In September, Charles will be joining Royal Academy Opera.
Michel Xie piano
Dutch pianist Michel Xie is a chamber pianist and song accompanist currently active in the United Kingdom and The Netherlands. He is a graduate of the Conservatory of Amsterdam where he obtained a Bachelor and Master of Music under the tutelage of Frank van de Laar and Frank Peters. He continued studying at the Royal Academy of Music where he specialised in ‘Collaborative Piano’. He learned with Michael Dussek and James Baillieu and obtained a Master of Arts (DipRAM) and Advanced Diploma. During his studies he won the Harold Craxton Prize for chamber music and the Regency Award for distinguished studentship and contribution to the Academy.
In 2022 Michel and his duo partner Julie Park (Viola) will be releasing a CD with Linn Records. In previous seasons Michel has performed in Wigmore Hall with Bicentenary Scholars Camilla Harris (Soprano) and Julie Park (Viola). For the academic year of 2021/2022 he has been appointed the Hodgson Fellowship by the Royal Academy of Music. He regularly works as a staff pianist at the Conservatory of Amsterdam.
Michel also has a passion for teaching and making classical music more accessible for the younger generation. He is presenting interactive children’s concerts in the Classic Express: a mobile concert hall in The Netherlands, an initiative by the Prinses Christina Concours. He is also a jury member of De Muziekwedstrijd an online music competition for young children.
Karla Grant soprano
Scottish soprano, Karla Grant, is in her second year of study on the MMus Performance course for Vocal Studies at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland under the tutelage of Wilma MacDougall.
In January 2022 Karla performed the role of Sandman in the Alexander Gibson Opera School’s production of Hänsel und Gretel. Operatic roles in scenes include Susanna (Le nozze di Figaro, Mozart), Rose (Lakmé, Delibes), Calisto (La Calisto, Cavalli), and Gretel (Hänsel und Gretel, Humperdinck). During the summer of 2020, she was invited to take part in the British Youth Opera Summer workshop, and in the summer of 2021, Karla was involved in two short courses with the National Opera Studio.
Karla is proud to work with Live Music Now Scotland as part of Vox Duo, a vocal ensemble which she established in 2018. In December of 2021, Vox Duo released a recording of a new composition with Earthtones Trio, which has been broadcast on BBC Radio 4 Woman’s Hour.
In 2019, she was selected to be part of the Associate Artist Programme with international mezzo-soprano, Karen Cargill at the RCS, and was invited to perform as the soprano soloist in Vivaldi’s Gloria and Faure’s Requiem with the Bearsden Choir, conducted by Andrew Nunn. In 2020, Karla was awarded 1st prize in the Leonie Kayser Prize for singing at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and in 2021 she was a finalist in the Norma Greig French Song Prize.
Upcoming engagements include Pamina in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte at the Lyric Opera Studio in Weimar 2022.
Jia Ning Ng piano
Praised by The Straits Times for her ‘admirable blend of sensitivity of musical understanding’ Singaporean pianist Jia Ning Ng has graduated with a First Class Honours from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland under the tutelage of Jonathan Plowright and Aaron Shorr.
In Singapore, she was invited to perform at the Victoria Concert Hall and The Esplanade, and was awarded the David Marshall Young Artist scholarship at the School Of The Arts, Singapore (SOTA). During her studies at the RCS, she gained 1st prize in the Dunbar Gerbar Chamber Music Competition and 1st prize for the Walcer Recital Solo Prize where she performed a series of five lunchtime and evening recitals in London. She also clinched 1st prize at the Jock Holden Memorial Mozart Concerto Prize and RCS Concerto Competition where she will be performing at the Glasgow City Halls in April 2022.
Jia Ning is an active chamber musician and accompanist on the Live Music Now Scheme. Together with her duo – Celtic Pacifica, she has performed at the Scottish Arts Club and National Galleries of Scotland. She also accompanies a range of vocal performances classes at the RCS from Italian Oratorio to German Repertoire, Audition Repertoire Class and French Repertoire. Recognized for her strong accompaniment abilities, Jia Ning has also been selected for masterclasses with Martin Martineau and Simon Lepper and stands in as a cover accompanist for vocal classes at the RCS.
Jia Ning is currently studying with Petras Geniuses and Aaron Shorr for her Postgraduate studies in Piano Performance at the RCS with a full scholarship from the Inches Carr Trust Scholarship and Craxton Memorial Award Trust.
Felix Gygli baritone
Swiss baritone Felix Gygli is a student of Professor Rudolf Piernay at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London. He previously studied with Professor Gerd Türk at the renowned early music institute Schola Cantorum Basiliensis where finished his Bachelor‘s degree with honours. He further worked with Margreet Honig in Amsterdam, Ulrich Messthaler in Basel and Christian Immler in Fribourg.
Felix is a scholarship holder of the Rahn Kulturfonds and holds the Robert Easton Scholarship for Bass/Baritone-voices. He also is a laureate of the Fondation Royaumont and is one of 12 Singers who will be generously supported by Génération Opéra in the upcoming season 22/23. Together with his duo-partner Tomasz Domanski he was a scholarship holder of the LIEDBasel Festival 2021.
He is a prize winner of the Elvirissima competition 2021 in Switzerland and the Maureen Lehane Vocal Awards in London, a finalist in the 2021 Schumann Competition in Zwickau, Germany and a double prize winner of the Concours international de la mélodie de Gordes 2021. Very recently, he was awarded the English Song Prize of the Guildhall School, together with pianist JongSun Woo.
In the 2021/22 season, he will perform the part of Papageno in Opéra Ouverture Sion‘s production of Die Zauberflöteand will appear in solo-recitals in Switzerland and France. He is also part of several professional vocal ensembles including the Zurich Chamber Singers and the La Cetra Vokalensemble.
Jong Sun Woo piano
Jong Sun Woo is a pianist who specialises in song and chamber music. She has been broadcast on BBC Radio 3, performed at venues such as the Wigmore Hall, the Southbank Centre’s Purcell Room and the Crush Room at the Royal Opera House, and made multiple appearances as a concerto soloist with orchestras in the UK. As a chamber musician, she performed Beethoven’s complete works for cello and piano in New York in 2017 and with violinist Eleanor Corr, she gave the Gold Medal-winning performance at the Royal Overseas League’s Annual Music Competition in 2020. In 2021, she was awarded the Pianist’s Prize at the Maureen Lehane Vocal Awards. At Guildhall School of Music and Drama, she won the English Song Prize with her duo partner Felix Gygli and the Paul Hamburger Prize for accompaniment awarded by Graham Johnson for his Poulenc Project. She has recently been selected as a scholar at Lied Akademie 2021/22 of Liedzentrum Heidelberger Frühling, mentored by Thomas Hampson and subsequently has performed during Schubert Woche at Pierre Boulez Saal, Berlin and will be performing at the Neuland Lied Festival, Heidelberg in 2022.
Jong Sun is currently in her final year of Artist Diploma studying with Carole Presland and Bretton Brown at Guildhall School of Music and Drama, from where she recently gained her Masters in Piano Accompaniment with distinction and Concert Recital Diploma. Jong Sun’s studies are generously supported by Help Musicians Fund.
Helena Ressurreição
Originally from Portugal, Helena studied a Singing Degree at Conservatori del Liceu and a Lied Masters Degree at ESMUC in Barcelona with the Fundación Victoria de Los Ángeles scholarship.
Helena is a resident artist of LIFE Victoria Lied Festival, and she débuted at the Oxford Lieder Festival accompanied by Ester Lecha. In Barcelona, she performed Janáček’s The Diary of one who disappeared with Julius Drake and Nicky Spence, and shared a concert and some duets with Frederica von Stade. She also recently appeared in recital at Fundación Juan March (Madrid), Òpera Comique (Paris), L’Auditori (Barcelona) and Schubertíada (Vilabertrán). As winner of 1st prize in the Juventudes Musicales de España contest she has sung at Madrid’s Teatro Monumental with the Spanish Radio and Television Orchestra, ORTVE.
She recently sang at Sevilla’s Teatro de la Maestranza Opera Studio, in the role of Tangia (Le Cinesi,García); was Lucilla (La Scala di Seta) in the Barcelona Rossini Opera Festival and also debuted as Angelina (La Cenerentola), Cendrillon (Cendrillon,Viardot), third lady (Die Zauberflöte) and Silvia (L’isola disabitata,García).
Future highlights include a debut at Madrid’s Teatro de la Zarzuela as Olympia in The Magic Opal by Albéniz, and she will appear in concert with Orquesta de Cambra de Mallorca and Sinfonietta de Braga Orchestra. She will perform at the Festival de Música Antígua de Pirineos as a member of the Kallias Ensemble and will record Pauline Viardot’s spanish repertoire alongside Natalia Labourdette and Francisco Soriano, for Odradek Records.
Ester Lecha piano
Originally from Barcelona, Ester Lecha obtained her Bachelor of Piano from ESMUC Barcelona, studying with Vladislav Bronevetzky. Ester has a Masters degree in Piano from the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki where she studied with Juhani Lagerspetz. Her interest in Lied lead her to study a Masters degree in Lied and Spanish Song with Francisco Poyato at ESMUC and she graduated in 2019.
She has studied with Ralph Gothoni, Rubén Fernández Aguirre, Simon Lepper, Kennedy Moretti, Stanislav Pochekin, Wolfrang Rieger and Arthur Schoonderwoerd, among others.
She has won prizes in several music competitions, such as the International Competition Música de les Corts (Catalonia), the International Competition Agustín Aponte (Tenerife), the National hamber music competition Montserrat Alavedra (Catalonia) and the National piano competition Ciutat de Carlet (Valencia).
She has been invited to perform at music festivals including Oxford Lieder, DeltaChamber (Amposta), Músics en Residència (Alella) and Académie Européenne de Musique Ancienne (Vannes), among others.
She has performed in venues such as the Auditorium of Barcelona, the Palau de la Música Catalana, the Auditorium of Tarragona, the Auditorium Teatre Espai Ter (Torroella de Montgrí), the Auditorium of Sant Josep(Moiá) and Musiikkitalo (Helsinki).
At present she is the repertory pianist at the Conservatory of Music of Sant Cugat and the collaborating pianist in the Banda Municipal de Barcelona.
Kirtsy McLean soprano
Soprano Kirsty McLean recently graduated from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama with Distinction and completed her Bachelors at Trinity Laban Conservatoire graduating with 1st class honours.
Kirsty is a Rosehill Young Artist, a Britten Pears Young Artist for 2018-2020 and a Young Artist on the French Exchange programme with Wigmore Hall for 2020-22, studying with François le Roux and Dame Felicity Lott. Throughout her studies Kirsty was generously supported by Drapers’ Hall, The Henry Wood Hall Trust and she was a Guildhall scholar. In 2019 Kirsty won the audience prize at the GSMD Chartered Surveyors competition.
Recent roles include Cover: Jano, Jenůfa at Royal Opera House Covent Garden, Tatyana, Eugene Onegin for Opera Loki, Cover: Anne Trulove in The Rake’s Progress with Opera Glassworks and Ännchen in Blackheath Opera’s Der Freischütz.
She has sung for Royal Opera House, English Touring Opera, Mahogany Opera Group and for the Opera Holland Park chorus, and as well as taking part in their award winning outreach programme Inspire.
Kirsty enjoys a varied career also working as a crossover artist and regularly deputises for crossover girl group ‘IDA Girls London’ performing worldwide and aboard luxury cruise liners. This winter Kirsty was ‘super swing’ for Charles Court Opera’s award winning pantomime Beowulf and performed 3 of the roles over the run at the Kings Head Theatre, London.
Sharon Cheng piano
Sharon Cheng is a collaborative pianist based in London. She gained her Masters degree in Piano Accompaniment from Guildhall School of Music and Drama in 2019, where she studied with Andrew West.
Performance highlights have included recitals at the World Youth & Children’s Choir Festivals, the Roman River Music Festival, and broadcast on Radio Television Hong Kong. Sharon has played in recitals curated by Eugene Asti, Gordon Back, Iain Burnside, and Stephan Loges among others.
Sharon actively participates in competitions and masterclasses. With duo partner Kirsty McLean, most recently in December 2021, they were the finalists in the British Art Song Competition and played for a masterclass with Dame Sarah Connolly. Sharon is the recipient of numerous awards including the Best Performance Award in the 11th Zhongsin International Music Competition (Singapore) and the 5th place in the Liszt Memorial Prizes – Hong Kong International Piano Open Competition and the Talent Development Scholarship from the Hong Kong Government Scholarship Fund.
Alongside performing, Sharon has a strong passion for music education. She received her Bachelor of Education in Music at the Education University of Hong Kong, and currently she is a piano teacher at several schools.
Katrine Deleuren Strunk soprano
Katrine Deleuren Strunk’s participation in the Leeds Lieder Young Artist Programme has been made possible through the support of the Royal College of Music.
Danish soprano Katrine Deleuran is a Postgraduate student and a Spiller Award Holder at the Royal College of Music, studying with Professor Rosa Mannion and coach Caroline Dowdle. Katrine was a Søholm Opera Young Artist 2020-21 and debuted as Nedda (Pagliacci) at the opera festival 2021. She is looking forward to performing the role of Gertrud (Hansel and Gretel) as a Festival Singer at the Berlin Opera Academy this summer where she will also study the role of Rosalinde (Die Fledermaus).
She graduated her Bachelor’s degree with the highest honour at the Royal Danish Academy of Music under the tutelage of professor Helene Gjerris. Previously Katrine earned a Bachelor’s degree in Musicology and Gender studies from the University of Copenhagen. At the same time she studied with Royal Danish opera singer Marianne Rørholm at a talent youth program (MGK) in Copenhagen.
Katrine has worked with prominent opera coaches and singers all around the world and has a substantial amount of concert experience, both in productions of operas/operettas, recitals and ensembles. Highlights include Nedda (Pagliacci), Gertrud (Hansel and Gretel), Fiordiligi (Così fan tutte), Læna (La belle Hélène) and singing excerpts of the role of Adele (Die Fledermaus) in The Operetta Boat around the Copenhagen canals as part of Copenhagen Opera Festival.
Aleksandra Myslek piano
Aleksandra is a Polish pianist based in London. Having won the III International Chopin Competition in Budapest at 16, she started performing around Europe. In 2010 Aleksandra received a scholarship to study at the Royal Academy of Music with Professor Christopher Elton. She went on to pursue a Postgraduate degree in Performance and Research with Professor Hamish Milne, which she completed with a distinction for overall outstanding studentship. Aleksandra regularly works with singers and instrumentalists; her collaboration with Damian Ganclarski resulted in her becoming a winner of the prestigious Brenda Webb Accompanist Prize in association with the Richard Lewis Award. The cellist Alberto Casadei was her duo partner in the winning performance of the Wilfrid Parry Brahms Prize. In addition to her chamber music professors at the Academy; Michael Dussek and Ian Brown, she took advice on ensemble playing from Richard Stokes, Christoph Prégardien, Ferenc Rados, Maxim Vengerov, Thomas Steinhöfel, Adrian Brendel, Michel Beroff, Gyorgy Pauk, James Ehnes and many others.
Aleksandra frequently works as a répétiteur and has experience with a large variety of repertoire. Recent collaborations include working with Gidon Saks on his role as Hagen in Deutsche Oper, Opera Loki on Carmen, Puzzle Piece Opera, All Aboard Opera and the Gilbert and Sullivan Society. She was involved in preparations of the new contemporary opera Syllable, commissioned by Trinity Laban and composed by Edward Jessen.
Aleksandra is a Live Music Now musician and a staff pianist at the Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance.