Sarah Connolly
Mezzo-soprano Sarah Connolly has been one of Britain's most versatile and committed singers, with a repertory ranging from Monteverdi to newly commissioned works. Her recording career has been notable for a variety of independently conceived recital recordings, as well as appearances in major operatic and choral works.
Connolly was born in County Durham in North East England on June 13, 1963, and grew up in Middleton St. George. She sang in a village choir and studied piano and cello as a youngster in addition to singing. At Queen Margaret's Boarding School, she continued with piano and was impressed by her sister's performance in Purcell's Dido and Aeneas, but continued to focus on piano at the Clarendon College of Further Education (as well as winning college championships in tennis and table tennis). Connolly even earned a piano education degree at the Royal College of Music before switching definitively to singing. After graduating, she joined the BBC Singers and became a freelance choral singer, flirting as well with a jazz career. A second-place finish at the International Vocal Competition s'Hertogenbosch, Opera Section, as well as meeting teacher Gerald Martin Moore confirmed her choice of classical music, and she landed solos in Bach concerts conducted by Philippe Herreweghe in the 1990s. In 1997, she made her recording debut on an album of Bach Advent Cantatas conducted by Herreweghe, with his Collegium Vocale, on the Harmonia Mundi label.
She continued to make inroads into the early music scene, recording Rameau's Les Fêtes d'Hébé with William Christie's Les Arts Florissants and performing the title role in Handel's Xerxes in several houses, including the New York City Opera. Gaining a reputation as a Handel specialist, she has moved into Romantic and contemporary repertory as well, performing heavy works such as Mahler's Rückert-Lieder and Elgar's The Dream of Gerontius; in 2011, as part of the observances of the centenary of Mahler's death, she performed all his vocal works with the Philharmonia Orchestra. Connolly has also supported contemporary music, performing and recording Mark-Anthony Turnage's Twice Through the Heart.
Connolly's extensive recording career includes many song recitals, both orchestral and voice-and-piano, that were original in conception. These included The Exquisite Hour (2006), which inaugurated her ongoing relationship with the Signum label. Connolly appeared with the choir Tenebrae on the 2017 release A Walk with Ivor Gurney. That year, she was made a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire. Connolly also recorded for Chandos, and for that label, she appeared on collections of pieces by Elgar, Arthur Bliss, and Frank Bridge between 2018 and 2022. In 2022, she released a complete recording of the songs of Henri Duparc on Signum Classics.
© James Manheim /TiVo
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Discografia
20 album • Ordinato per Bestseller
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Mahler: Das Lied von der Erde (Live)
Robert Dean Smith, Sarah Connolly, Rundfunk Sinfonieorchester Berlin, Vladimir Jurowski
Classica - Pubblicato da Pentatone il 28 ago 2020
Gramophone: Recording of the Month24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Bob Chilcott: Christmas Oratorio
Sarah Connolly, Nick Pritchard, Neal Davies
Classica - Pubblicato da Delphian Records il 3 nov 2023
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Mahler Songs
Joseph Middleton, Sarah Connolly
Musica vocale (sacra e profana) - Pubblicato da Signum Records il 28 lug 2023
24-Bit 192.0 kHz - Stereo -
Live at the Cutty Sark
Oliver Zeffman, Sarah Connolly, Philharmonia Orchestra
Classica - Pubblicato da Ozero Records il 14 apr 2023
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Sonnett für Wien
Iain Burnside, William Dazeley, Sarah Connolly
Classica - Pubblicato da Signum Records il 2 mar 2009
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Offenbach: Fantasio
Classica - Pubblicato da Opera Rara il 1 gen 2014
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Heroes and Heroines - Handel
Sarah Connolly, Harry Christophers
Classica - Pubblicato da CORO il 20 mag 2004
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Elgar: The Dream of Gerontius - Sea Pictures
Sarah Connolly, Stuart Skelton, BBC Symphony Chorus, David Soar, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Andrew Davis
Musica vocale (sacra e profana) - Pubblicato da Chandos il 29 set 2014
Gramophone Award24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
The Exquisite Hour
Musica vocale (sacra e profana) - Pubblicato da Signum Records il 9 feb 2006
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
My True Love Hath My Heart - English Songs
Classica - Pubblicato da Chandos il 1 ott 2011
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Purcell / Locke / Blow / Gibbons - Wigmore Hall Live
The English Concert, Rosemay Joshua, Sarah Connolly
Classica - Pubblicato da Wigmore Hall Live il 9 giu 2017
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Duruflé Requiem
Vasari Singers, Sarah Connolly, Christopher Maltman, Robert Cohen
Classica - Pubblicato da Signum Records il 1 mag 2009
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rückert-Lieder (Version for Voice & Piano): No. 4, Ich bin der Welt abhanden gekommen
Joseph Middleton, Sarah Connolly
Musica vocale (sacra e profana) - Pubblicato da Signum Records il 29 giu 2023
24-Bit 192.0 kHz - Stereo -
Rückert-Lieder (Version for Voice & Piano): No. 1, Ich atmet' einen linden Duft!
Joseph Middleton, Sarah Connolly
Musica vocale (sacra e profana) - Pubblicato da Signum Records il 13 lug 2023
24-Bit 192.0 kHz - Stereo -
Mahler: Das Lied Von Der Erde
Sarah Connolly, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Toby Spence, Yannick Nézet-Séguin
Classica - Pubblicato da London Philharmonic Orchestra il 30 set 2013
Gramophone Editor's Choice16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Turnage: Songs
Sarah Connolly, Gerald Finley, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Marin Alsop, Martin Robertson
Classica - Pubblicato da London Philharmonic Orchestra il 1 feb 2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Turnage: Songs
Marin Alsop, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Sarah Connolly, Martin Robertson, Gerald Finley
Classica - Pubblicato da London Philharmonic Orchestra il 1 feb 2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Black and Blue
Pop - Pubblicato da Sarah Connolly il 18 ott 2019
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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