Choir's season finale - an ‘Evening at the Opera’
Exeter Philharmonic Choir has a special ‘Evening at the Opera” planned to conclude its 2023/24 season on a high note. On the evening of 18th May, the Choir - accompanied by two rising stars of the professional opera world - will transport concert goers to the opera houses of Europe for a sparkling evening of arias, duets and choruses.
The season finale at St. David’s Church in Exeter will be a comparatively intimate affair with just 200 tickets available. The £25 ticket price includes interval drinks and canapes.
EPC’s Director of Music Howard Ionascu says: “We will be serving up a wonderful feast of music spanning four centuries, including much-loved arias and choruses from Puccini’s La bohème, Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro, Bizet’s Carmen and Verdi’s La traviata. We are delighted to be joined by soprano Camilla Harris and tenor Rhys Batt, who have strong associations with Garsington Opera and English National Opera. They will be sure to bring to life the heightened emotions of Monteverdi’s Orfeo, Purcell’s Dido, Mozart’s Countess Almaviva and Puccini’s Rodolfo.”
Well-known Exeter musicians Stephen Tanner and Andrew Downton will accompany the singers on piano.
So far, the Choir’s 2023/24 season has been a resounding success with four sell-out concerts in Exeter Cathedral. With seating for just 200, opera lovers are urged to book early to avoid disappointment.
British soprano Camilla Harris is fast establishing herself as an exciting new interpreter of classical and 20th Century repertoire. A former Salisbury Cathedral Girl Chorister, Camilla is a Britten Pears Young Artist and a multiple-award winner.
Camilla says, “I am very much looking forward to performing with Howard Ionascu and Exeter Philharmonic Choir for the first time. It’s always a joy to perform such a varied programme of opera with a talented group of musicians. It will be particularly fun to reunite on the concert stage with Rhys Batt who was a contemporary of mine at Royal College of Music.”
