TREORCHY MALE CHOIR
“The Master Choir Of Them All” Sir Anthony Hopkins
The internationally celebrated Treorchy Male Choir has enchanted audiences around the world for more than 130 years.
From their Royal Command Performance for Queen Victoria to their appearance at the Royal Variety Show more than a century later, the Choir continues to entertain to celebrated packed houses.
The most recorded male voice choir in history with more than ninety albums to their name, Treorchy enjoys an unbeaten competition record and has performed with the likes of Tom Jones, Ella Fitzgerald, Julie Andrews, Burt Bacharach and Shirley Bassey.
The Choir has undertaken an enviable number of overseas tours, including two visits to Canada and a performance in Strasbourg Cathedral for its congregation of almost 6,000 people. Four successful tours of the USA followed, with visits to the White House and performances in San Francisco, Denver, Seattle and the Mid West.
Treorchy became the first Welsh choir to appear at the Sydney Opera House and in recent years have made three further visits “down under” appearing in Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Canberra and Melbourne. During their visit in 2009 they also enjoyed a triumphant sell-out concert tour of New Zealand.
In recent years the Choir has made unforgettable visits to Monte Carlo at the express permission of His Serene Highness Prince Albert II of Monaco. The Choir was honoured to represent Wales when they performed at the prestigious Centenary Commemorations of the Battle of Mametz Wood, the first battle of the Somme, in July 2016.
2017 saw another busy year travelling around the country concluding with a short Tour of Cornwall.
2018 saw three visits to the Millennium Centre Cardiff on the 1st, 3rd, 4th August, performing on stage with Sir Bryn Terfel and guests in the highly acclaimed “Hwn Yw Fy Mrawd” (“This Is My Brother”), commemorating The life of Paul Robeson which was televised on S4C.
2019 sees another busy year ahead for the choir with over 20 concerts already confirmed. We have just returned from another successful visit to Monaco where we again preformed for His Serene Highness Prince Albert II of Monaco and Princess Charlene at the Hotel de Paris.
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Musical Director, JEFFREY HOWARD B.E.M; ARAM; B.Mus. was born in Cardiff and studied at the University of Wales College, Cardiff and the Royal Academy of Music, London specialising in organ performance and Church Music. He now pursues a free-lance career as organist, pianist, singer, coach and conductor. He has accompanied leading international singers including Bryn Terfel, Sir Willard White, Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, Dennis O’Neill, Rebecca Evans, Wynne Evans, Alfie Boe and Jason Howard.
Outside the field of classical music, Jeffrey Howard is also involved in cabaret and music theatre having worked with such names as Michael Ball, John Owen Jones, Shan Cothi, Rhydian Roberts, Connie Fisher, Peter Karrie, Ruth Madoc, and more informally, Dame Shirley Bassey!
Guest soloist – RHODRI PRYS JONES Welsh tenor Rhodri Prys Jones made his professional début with Welsh National Opera in Autumn 2018 in the roles of Fyodor and Ivanov in David Pountney’s War & Peace. He subsequently sang the roles in WNO’s revival of War & Peace at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. Roles covered for the company include Ramiro in La Cenerentola, Tamino in The Magic Flute and Ernesto in Don Pasquale.
Rhodri studied for a degree in Music and Media at Trinity University College, Carmarthen before undertaking an M.A. Vocal Studies degree course at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, London. He completed his studies at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, Cardiff on the Opera Performance Course where he was taught by Adrian Thompson.
Roles whilst at the RWCMD include Tamino in The Magic Flute, Ramiro in La Cenerentola, Rinuccio in Gianni Schicchi, Sam Kaplan in Weill’s Street Scene and Jupiter in Semele – a co-production between Mid Wales Opera and RWCMD in association with the Academy of Ancient Music. Other roles include Nemorino in L’elisir d’amore and Triquet and Lensky cover in Eugene Onegin for Opra Cymru. In opera scenes, he has performed Ferrando in Cosi fan tutte, Jenik in Bartered Bride, Almaviva in Barber of Seville, Jaquino in Fidelio, Harlequin in Der Kaiser Von Atlantis, Robert Devereux in Gloriana and El Remendado in Carmen.
Rhodri’s Chorus experience includes Don Pasquale with Longborough Festival Opera and Francesca Di Foix, The Adventures of Pinnochio, San Giovanni Batista and The Cunning Peasant with Guildhall School of Music and Drama.
2016 saw Rhodri join Garsington Opera as an Alvarez Young Artist and chorus member in Rossini’s L’italiana in Algeri and Haydn’s The Creation. In 2015 he was a member of an eight-part ensemble in Gair ar Gnawd by Pwyll ap Sion for WNO.
Rhodri is a popular concert artist. Highlights include his performance as guest soloist in the 2019 Llangollen International Music Eisteddfod’s concert ‘Saint and Singers: The Music of Wales’, his Royal Albert Hall début as guest soloist at the London Welsh Festival of Male Choirs and a Gala Dinner performance for HRH Prince Charles. Rhodri’s concert repertoire includes Handel’s Messiah, Mendelssohn’s Elijah, Stainer’s Crucifixion, Bruckner’s Mass in F Minor, Gounod’s Petite Messe Solennelle, Puccini’s Messa Di Gloria, Haydn’s The Seasons, Vaughan Williams’ Serenade to Music, Mozart’s Requiem and Orff’s Carmina Burana.
He has given world premieres of works including Edward-Rhys Harry’s Mass of the Martyrs and Eilir Owen Griffiths’ In Memoriam. In 2017, he recorded a new Welsh language translation of J. S. Bach’s St John Passion (‘Dioddefaint yn ôl Ioan’) in Llandaff Cathedral for broadcast on S4C. Other TV broadcasts include performances on ‘Noson Lawen’, ‘Dechrau Canu Dechrau Canmol’ and ‘Heno’ for S4C and performing at the UK Ceremony of Remembrance ‘Centenary of Passchendaele, Third Battle of Ypres’ live on BBC One from Passchendaele.
Prizes and awards include the 2017 Ian Stoutzker Prize, the Janet Price Opera Prize, the Glynne Jones Scholarship, Help Musicians Sybil Tutton Award, the Dame Shirley Bassey Award and the Busenhart Morgan-Evans Worshipful Company Award.
Rhodri makes his company debut for Opera North this Season singing Michelis in The Greek Passion. Other upcoming engagements include a concert at the North Wales International Music Festival and Ernesto in Burry Port Opera’s Don Pasquale.
Artist Manager: Rhian Williams [email protected]
Accompanist HELEN ROBERTS B.Mus. After a varying career in music and following a concert in 2003 featuring the Silver Ring Choir and Treorchy Male Choir, Helen was invited to become the deputy accompanist to Treorchy and joined them on their successful tour of Australia in 2004.
She was also presented with Honorary Lady Membership of the Choir in 2007.
Following four years as a pupil of Fazliddin Husanov, the eminent Russian pianist and recording artist, Helen Roberts graduated with a Bachelor of Music Degree from the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama in Cardiff in 2007.
http://www.treorchymalechoir.com/