Neal Davies
Neal Davies is among Britain's most prominent bass-baritone singers. His repertory extends into opera, choral music, and vocal music, from the Baroque era to the present day.
Davies was born in 1967 in Newport, Wales, near Cardiff, in the United Kingdom. At school there, he enjoyed singing Gilbert & Sullivan operetta, and he enrolled for music studies at King's College, London, and the Royal Academy of Music. Davies attracted the attention of the soprano Dame Gwyneth Jones, who arranged for his further studies at the International Opera Studio in Zurich, Switzerland. He entered the Singer of the World Competition in Cardiff in 1991 and won the Lieder Prize. That might have been a big breakthrough, but instead, the 24-year-old departed for a two-and-a-half-year stint with the Coburg Opera in Germany; he later recalled that he gained confidence without pressure during those years. When he returned to Britain more seasoned, he found high-profile engagements there and in the U.S., where he resumed his Gilbert & Sullivan career with an appearance in The Pirates of Penzance at the Lyric Opera of Chicago. He has made numerous appearances at the Royal Opera, Covent Garden, and the Edinburgh Festival. In concert, Davies has performed with historical-instruments groups, including Les Violons du Roy, as well as with traditional ensembles, including the Minnesota and Cleveland Orchestras. Davies' repertory of concert works includes the Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125, of Beethoven, Haydn's The Creation, and Mendelssohn's Elijah and Die erste Walpurgisnacht. His recital career has encompassed such high-profile venues as Wigmore Hall in London and the Liederhalle in Stuttgart, Germany.
In addition to appearances on opera and oratorio recordings, Davies has made several solo albums. In 2004, he was heard on a Naxos release devoted to songs of soprano-composer Liza Lehmann, and in 2020, he joined the Hallé Orchestra for a recording of Vaughan Williams' Songs of Travel.
© James Manheim /TiVo
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Discography
7 album(s) • Sorted by Bestseller
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Bob Chilcott: Christmas Oratorio
Sarah Connolly, Nick Pritchard, Neal Davies
Classical - Released by Delphian Records on Nov 3, 2023
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Dutilleux: Complete Orchestral Works
Yan Pascal Tortelier, BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, Martyn Hill, Neal Davies, Olivier Charlier, Boris Pergamenschikow
Symphonies - Released by Chandos on Sep 1, 2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Dutilleux: Violin Concerto and other Orchestral Works
Yan Pascal Tortelier, BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, Martyn Hill, Neal Davies, Olivier Charlier
Symphonies - Released by Chandos on Aug 1, 1996
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Vaughan Williams: Job & Songs of Travel
Halle, Sir Mark Elder, Neal Davies
Classical - Released by Halle Concerts Society on Oct 2, 2020
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Wolf: The Complete Songs, Vol. 10 – Goethe Lieder, Pt. 1
Classical - Released by Stone Records on Jan 3, 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Dyson: Nebuchadnezzar, Woodland Suite, O Praise God in His Holiness, Confortare & Three Songs of Praise
Richard Hickox, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Mark Padmore, Neal Davies, BBC Symphony Chorus
Choral Music (Choirs) - Released by Chandos on Oct 1, 2007
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Songs of Travel: I. The Vagabond (Orch. Ralph Vaughan Williams)
Halle, Sir Mark Elder, Neal Davies
Classical - Released by Halle Concerts Society on Sep 4, 2020
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo