Join us for Haydn’s radiant masterpiece The Seasons, sung in English and performed in the glorious surroundings of Smith Square Hall, London.
From the freshness of spring to the golden harvest of autumn and the stillness of winter, Haydn’s choral epic brims with joy, humour and drama. Packed with sparkling choruses, lyrical solos and orchestral brilliance, this is a life-affirming celebration of nature and the turning of the year. An unmissable evening of uplifting music in one of London’s most beautiful concert halls.
Soprano – Rowan Pierce
Tenor – Colin Judson
Bass – Morgan Pearse
Morgan Pearse - Baritone
Morgan Pearse is one of the most exciting baritones of his generation. He studied at the Royal College of Music where he won the Lies Askonas Prize and Gold Medal at the Royal Over Seas League Competition. He was a member of the Houston Grand Opera Studio and subsequently made his UK debut at ENO singing Figaro / Barber of Seville. Recent and future opera highlights include Figaro / Le nozze di Figaro, Papageno / Die Zauberflöte and Araspe / Tolomeo (Staatstheater Karlsruhe), Sid / Albert Herring (Buxton Festival), Belcore / L’Elisir d’Amore and Figaro / Barbiere (New Zealand Opera and the State Opera of South Australia), Enrico / Lucia di Lammermoor (SOSA) and Opera Holland Park, Ned Keene / Peter Grimes (Auckland Philharmonia), Figaro / nozze (Opernhaus Zurich), baritone in Idalma (Innsbruck Festival of Early Music), La Serva Padrona with Pinchgut Opera, Papageno (Russian National Orchestra), Achilla/Giulio Cesare on tour with the English Concert and Scarpia / Tosca for Opera Holland Park. Concert highlights include a solo recital at Wigmore Hall, concerts with the BBC Symphony Orchestra, English Concert, Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, Hallé Orchestra, Gabrieli Consort, BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Academy of Ancient Music, Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Britten Sinfonia, King’s College Choir Cambridge, Bach with the Adelaide Symphony, Messiah with the Melbourne Symphony, RSNO, London Handel Festival and the Sydney Philharmonic Orchestra.
Howard Ionascu - Conductor
After a degree in music at Manchester University, Howard’s diverse career began as a professional singer in Wells Cathedral Choir, performing on many recordings, broadcasts and international tours.
Choral conducting began in 1997 when he founded The Laudate Choir, which continues to perform regularly in venues across the south east of England. Howard is also Musical Director of the Exeter Philharmonic Choir.
Past conducting roles have included Bournemouth Sinfonietta Choir, Finchley Children’s Music Group Trebles Choir and The Esterhazy Singers of London. Howard is also in regular demand as a guest rehearsal conductor, and in recent years has worked with Choir of the Old Royal Naval College, Greenwich, Orlando Chamber Choir, City of London Choir, Rodolfus Choir, Guildford Choral Society, Winchester Philharmonic Choir and on Eton Choral Courses.
Howard has conducted a number of the leading UK orchestras and ensembles, including Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, London Mozart Players, English Chamber Orchestra, City of London Sinfonia, New London Orchestra and Onyx Brass.
Howard has a long association with music education, having led departments at some of the UK’s finest educational establishments and directed the choirs at Winchester College, King’s Canterbury and Junior Royal Academy of Music.
