Trio of rising stars join Brigantes Orchestra for first concert of 2024

The Brigantes, conducted by Music Director Quentin Clare, is the city’s own professional orchestra and has made its home in Sheffield Cathedral where audiences can hear a full season of concerts each year.

The series of concerts with music that dances continues on Saturday March 2 at 7.30pm with Apotheosis of the Dance, a programme of buoyant, energetic and joyous music.

The double bill features Stravinsky's complete ballet score for Pulcinella and Beethoven’s legendary Symphony No 7 in A.

And joining the Brigantes will be three soloists - tenor Magnus Walker, bass-baritone Charles Cunliffe and mezzo-soprano Nicola Wemyss.

Magnus Walker is a recent graduate of the Opera course at the Royal Academy of Music and he has already given performances with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, the Lapland Chamber Orchestra and at The Three Choirs Festival.

On the opera stage he has appeared with Chelsea Opera Group and at the Theatre Royal, Bath, and he has also performed at the Edinburgh International Festival.

Scottish mezzo-soprano Nicola Wemyss graduated with honours from the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire and completed her postgraduate degree at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague.

She began her solo career by winning the first Chimay International Competition for Baroque Singing and has since been invited to perform with various leading orchestras and ensembles across Europe and beyond as well as recording with the likes of William Christie.

Charles Cunliffe is still studying at the Royal Academy of Music Opera School but is already being hailed as a name to watch. He performed in the final of the 67th Kathleen Ferrier Awards and then won the Leeds Lieder/Schubert Institute UK Song Prize.

He has sung for BBC Radio Three with the Ulster Orchestra, taken part in the Oxford Lieder Festival and will be joining the world-famous chorus at Glyndebourne Opera for their 2024 season.

“We are delighted to be welcoming these three accomplished singers to work with The Brigantes,” said Quentin.

“It’s unusual to have singers in a ballet score, but Stravinsky does it so well.

“He adds voices to the range of orchestral colours available to him and the vocal lines are so much fun and add a lot to the entertainment value of the piece.”

To find out more about Brigantes Orchestra and its 2024 concert season visit thebrigantes.uk