John Querns

Répétiteur

John Querns' musical career began when a relative was trying to dispose of a piano. Luckily, John’s mother was quick to snap up the instrument and send her son on his musical journey. 'I was nine when I started to play,' says John, 'at the time I didn’t want to practice but there was definitely something about the instrument that made me want to keep playing. Yet I still don’t have any idea what that appeal is.'

John was born in Glasgow and trained at the city’s university. During his time at the University of Glasgow John started to play piano for David Kelly’s lessons at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. 'Up until then I had no idea what I was supposed to do with this ability I had to play a piano. All I knew was that I didn’t want to become a music teacher, which was what everyone expected of me.' Working with Kelly made John realise that he wanted be a répétiteur. 'The appeal is that you’re involved right from day one of a production, you’re in there at the early stages of the creative process.'

John’s work with Opera North began in 1980, following an audition, and he is part of the company’s music staff. He has been involved in so many productions that, when put on the spot, he finds it hard to single out a favourite but adores Bel canto opera and all-things Bellini. Newcastle, Nottingham and Sheffield are his favourite cities to tour to, 'I love the venues in those cities, they are the ideal size.'  Musical influences come in the shape of pianist Martha Argerich who is 'just amazing' and conductors Claudio Addabo and Nikolaus Harnoncourt. John adds that 'there’s so much to be impressed by and I’m constantly finding new names and pieces of music that I didn’t know before that are just amazing.'

Playing live, it seems, will never lose its appeal. 'As musicians we don’t play live all that often,' says John. 'Most of our time as musicians is spent in rehearsals so it is always fun to play live with other people.' Disasters in live performance have, thankfully, been few and far between but John has been known to damage a piano – or two - in his time. 'When I was at school I once snapped a pedal off a grand piano with my foot, which was a shock. In rehearsals I once moved a piano and one of the legs fell off.'

Outside of his life in opera, John enjoys indulging his passion for Italy, reading (because 'books enable me to switch off from music') and running, although his runs are invariably accompanied by more music and are 'not very far and not very fast.'

Posted 18th June 2007.

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Judith Burgin Cello

Judith Burgin was raised in Reading, but her parents came from Yorkshire, 'so coming to work for Opera North felt like coming home.' She started to play the cello at age ten only to get out of taking French at school, but 'pretty soon I got hooked on it.' By sixteen, she was determined to be a musician, and she began to attend the Royal College of Music junior department. When she left school, she attended the RCM full-time. She had just started her post-grad year at the RCM when a position for cello opened at Opera North, and she left to take the job in 1989.

'I didn't know any opera when I came, so it was a bit of a steep learning curve!' It soon turned out, though, that she'd found just the right job. 'I always loved playing in symphony orchestras, but actually the excitement of playing in an opera is even more – you get everything, orchestra, singers and a story. When you're in the middle of a fantastic performance, like Salome last year, it's really exciting.' Her favourite operas 'tend to be quite gloomy and rather horrible! I thought Duke Bluebeard's Castle was fantastic, and Wozzeck was an incredible experience. I love really complicated characters, and I love the twentieth-century pieces.' She's also become involved with the work of the Opera North Education department, doing 'a range of projects, from classroom work to big projects like Foiae Verde last year – that was really good fun.'

She met her husband, Dougie Scarfe, when they were both playing in the Orchestra of Opera North. He is now the Executive Assistant to the General Director, and they've been married since 1992. In the same year, she got her horse, Philco. 'That was a really big passion – not just horse-riding, but just going out to groom him, spending time with him just mucking around…and we used to compete on Sundays.' Since Philco passed away last year, she's spent a lot of her free time running, even doing the Great North Run this year for Macmillan Cancer Support. 'I just love to get out of the house, into the fields – it's a really good antidote to work.' She's also started an Open University degree in English literature. 'I love playing my instrument – I can't imagine ever giving it up - but it's also good to do something totally different.'

Judith Burgin with her horse, Philco.

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Marney O'Sullivan Timpani

Marney O'Sullivan first started to play drums at age 11. He played in a garage band for five years, as well as playing jazz and blues, and read music at Trinity College, Dublin. 'The one thing I did enjoy at university was studying operas. I remember one time a professor started talking about Verdi's Falstaff. I was totally captured.' He freelanced as a student, playing in both the RTE Orchestras as well as playing in light opera and shows. 'Eventually, I had so much work, I ended up leaving college to just play.' At age 22, he was accepted into the European Community Youth Orchestra. 'That was the turning-point. Spending month-long tours with a hundred of the best young musicians in Europe was such a buzz. And working with the great conductors - I got to play timpani in Mahler's Ninth Symphony with Claudio Abbado. At that point, I knew, OK, this is what I want to do.'

When his time with the Youth Orchestra ended, he took a job as percussionist in the Hallé Orchestra and moved from Dublin to Manchester, where he stayed for four years. He wanted to focus on the timpani, though, so when the position at Opera North opened up in 1991, he changed jobs. He's been happily settled in Leeds for the past fifteen years, and in 2003, he married a fellow staff-member, Assistant Technical Director Louise Holley. As well as playing in the Orchestra of Opera North, Marney frequently guests with other orchestras, in particular the London Philharmonic. 'I got to play some of the soundtrack sessions for The Lord of the Rings films with the LPO. That was fun.' He also teaches at Leeds College of Music, and he and drummer Stephen Keogh have started their own nonprofit company, the Global Music Foundation, which runs music courses in Tuscany, Spain and Leeds.

In his free time, 'I really love cooking - I've done several courses, and I enjoy cooking vegetarian food at home. I'm also interested in other types of music, especially jazz.' He owns twelve timpani, and he and Louise are currently building a music studio in their back garden 'so I'll be able to make as much noise as I like without disturbing anyone.'

Teaching at the Percussion Summer School.

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Kevin Gowland realised he wanted to be a professional musician at the age of eleven, 'from the first day I tried the flute. I just knew.' Luckily, his school in Aberdeen had an excellent music department, known for the musicians it has produced: in Kevin's own year, both he and percussionist Evelyn Glennie were graduates. He also played in the National Youth Orchestra of Scotland for several years before attending the Royal College of Music as an Exhibition Scholar.

At the RCM, Kevin won all the prizes offered for flute, and in 1988, he was awarded the RCM's top prize, the President's Rose Bowl for outstanding achievement. In the same year, the woodwind section leaders of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra approached his teacher, Susan Milan, to ask if she would be interested in the role of flute section leader in the CBSO. She refused, but suggested that they invite Kevin to audition. Within two months, he was appointed section leader by Sir Simon Rattle. He held the position for seventeen years, also performing as a soloist with the CBSO and appearing as guest principal flute with other orchestras, including the LSO, RPO, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Academy of St. Martin in the Fields and Hallé.

After seventeen years, he decided 'I was ready for a change. I've got a complete love of opera, and I knew if I was to go anywhere it would have to be somewhere with lots of variety. The best thing about working for Opera North is the mix of operatic repertoire and symphonic repertoire we perform. Also, it had always appealed to me to move up North.' He won the position of first flute in the Orchestra of Opera North in 2005, just in time to accompany the orchestra on tour to Ravenna. 'It was such an amazing way to start. The whole company was there, so I immediately got to know who was who. It was just perfect.' He now lives in Hebden Bridge and spends his free time cooking - 'I'm quite a foodie!' - playing chamber music and, most of all, spending time with his two dogs, Poppy and Bertie. 'They're Dalmatians, so they need a lot of exercise. Living where I do, I'm able to walk them through amazing scenery every day.' Posted 24th August 2006.

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Catherine Lowe has been playing the oboe since she was ten years old. She began at school, then took lessons privately. By the time she was sixteen years old, she knew she wanted to pursue music professionally. 'I just loved it so much. It still doesn't feel like a job even now; it feels like getting paid to do my hobby.'

She attended the Royal College of Music, but in the fifth year of her performance course, the audition at Opera North came up. She won the position and left college midway through her fifth year, in January 1988, to take the job. 'I didn't know any opera when I took the job, and it terrified me. But now I love it.' Her favourite operas are the Janácek operas she's performed with Opera North. However, she also loves the symphonic work the orchestra performs in its year-round concerts and enjoys getting the chance to perform both kinds of work.

Her favourite tour spot so far has been 'Ravenna - no question about it! It was absolutely perfect. The great thing about touring opera is that you go somewhere and stay there. You have the daytimes free. So in Ravenna we were on the beach every morning, then we'd think, oh, it's time to go to work now.' Outside of her job, she enjoys spending time with her family - her partner, the Orchestra's leader David Greed, their son and her two step-sons. She's also an avid golfer.  

Posted 27th July 2006.

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Andrew Fairley was encouraged to play the cello from an early age. 'I have a twin brother and an older brother. My dad loved classical music, so from the time I was six, my older brother played violin, my twin played piano, and Dad decided I would play the cello-a piano trio!' However, when it came time to decide on a career, 'I wasn't allowed to go to music college, because it was seen as a waste not to have a university degree. So I scoured the syllabi for a university that would let me play the cello as part of my degree.'

He settled on Leeds University, which offered performance-based music degrees. By a lucky chance, the cellist Anne Shuttleworth moved from the Royal College of Music to Leeds in the same year that Andrew began university. Studying privately with her at the same time as doing the university degree turned out to be a perfect combination. In 1978, less than a year after graduation, Andrew auditioned for and won the job of cellist in the newly-forming Orchestra of Opera North.

In the twenty-seven years since he joined the Orchestra, Andrew has taken on numerous extra jobs on top of his full-time job as a cellist. 'I'm a lucky man, because I get paid to do my hobbies.' With a passion for printed music, he became the music librarian in 1982 and is now the manager of Opera North's library; with a passion for computers and technology, he created the Opera North website, ran it on his own for 4-5 years, and is now the Information Services Manager in the IT department. However, the cello is still his first love and primary career.

Musical idols include Jacqueline du Pré, for her passion and directness of expression, and Bryn Terfel. Wagner was the composer who originally converted Andrew to opera, when he heard the Ring cycle in Scotland, but other favourite opera composers include Handel, Strauss and Janácek. His favourite part of playing in the Orchestra of Opera North is 'the range and quality of the repertory.from chamber music to Mahler symphonies to the variety of operas.' Even after twenty-seven years, 'the concerts and the operas are still exciting.'

Posted 26th June 2006.

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Once she finished at the RNCM, Annelise began a successful career as a freelance musician working across the Northwest and Northeast of England, touring with several orchestras and also spending a few years as the second horn player in Northern Ballet Theatre, before joining the Orchestra of Opera North in May 2005. She has also branched out over the years with a second, related career as a qualified aromatherapist and reflexologist, specialising in caring for professional musicians.

Her two roles frequently mix: for instance, Annelise has worked with the BBC Philharmonic as both a freelance musician and a therapist. 'A lot of musicians, particularly violinists and violas, have physical problems related to the static positions they have to sit in while playing for so many hours. I'm very interested in helping with that.' She did her first training in Manchester, but 'it's a continuous education': she continues to take national courses and attend conferences to update her knowledge and methods.

Posted 17th May 2006.

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Born in Colchester, John Robinson moved to New Zealand at age three and stayed there until his early twenties. He grew up in 'a sailing family' that was also musical, and he absorbed both passions. John played the recorder until he was nine, and then took up the clarinet 'because I got one as a birthday present'. He immediately began to study with the second clarinettist of the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Alan Gold, and by the time he was ten, he knew he wanted to play in an orchestra. At the same time, he was active in outdoor sports. 'Ever since I can remember, I've been doing music and going sailing!'

In his twenties, he moved to London, but 'it wasn't my kind of place, after growing up in the great outdoors.' He decided to move to Yorkshire so that he could freelance as a clarinettist while still having access to nature. He was hired by the Orchestra of Opera North in 1990. Since then, he has played not only clarinet, but also alto- and tenor-saxophone, bass clarinet, basset horn, treble recorder and even ocarina in the Orchestra. 'I've enjoyed the challenge of playing so many instruments,' he says. He also enjoys the mix of concert and opera work done by the Orchestra. 'It means when we play a Beethoven symphony, it still feels fresh.'

The multiplicity of instruments he plays mirrors the variety of different activities with which he fills his life. He now lives with his family on the edge of the Peak district. As well as teaching clarinet at Huddersfield University, he sails regularly on the local reservoir and takes sailing trips to the Lake District with another 'mad sailor' from the Orchestra. He also cycles, hikes and loves to build things (including sailboats!) in his garage, with string quartets playing on the stereo. His two children, aged eleven and thirteen, both play classical music, as does his wife, a violist, and the family often plays chamber music at home together. A few years ago, a family friend even wrote a piece for them as a Christmas gift.

Within the operatic repertoire, John most loves playing Strauss operas like Der Rosenkavalier and Salome, but he's looking forward to playing The Marriage of Figaro again. 'The only danger is that the tunes are so strong-they won't get out of my head!'

Posted 18th April 2006.

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Móeiður Sigurðardóttir Viola

Móa Sigurðarðottir didn't originally plan to become a musician. She grew up in Reykjavik, Iceland, playing the violin just for fun. She only switched to viola at age sixteen when she wanted to form a string quartet with friends and there were no violists available. The switch turned out to be a perfect move, as she fell in love with the viola and decided to pursue a professional career in music. 'Music was always the most fun thing I was doing.'

Her first move was to America, where she studied the viola at Boston University, and then to the Netherlands, where she did a postgraduate degree at the Sweelinck Conservatory in Amsterdam. Her next career move, though, was completely unexpected. In 1997 she received a phone call inviting her to become part of a string octet for the cutting-edge singer Björk's next album. Not only did Móa appear on that album, Homogenic, but she toured across the world to promote it. While touring with Björk, she happened to meet a musician from Leeds, who is now her partner.and just a few years later, in 2000, an opening in the Orchestra of Opera North proved to be her next great move.

posted 9th January 2006

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Eileen Spencer Violin

Eileen Spencer has been playing the violin since the age of eight, but when she was a teenager, she decided that she did not want to be a professional musician. 'I'd come to believe that the professional music world was a very harsh and competitive atmosphere.' She decided to study sociology at university and become an academic instead. She never stopped playing the violin, though, and as her sociology tutor was a passionate amateur violinist, 'we always ended up talking about the fiddle instead of sociology!' She continued to take private lessons throughout university, played various free-lance gigs, and ended up becoming a member of Opera North in 1979. 'When I look back, I think it worked out just right for me.'

Contrary to Eileen's earlier expectations, she's discovered that she likes the atmosphere of playing in a professional opera orchestra. 'I like the people I work with. I like how supportive they are, and I like talking to them. There's always someone willing to talk about things that are serious, and someone who's willing to just have fun!' She also appreciates the variety of repertoire at Opera North, which challenges the players to constantly stay fresh. 'One day we can be playing early music, and the next day we'll be playing something modern-and different conductors can ask us to play the same piece completely differently. It's always a challenge.' Outside of opera, she enjoys all periods of music, but her favourite operas are all twentieth-century pieces, especially the operas of Britten and Tippett. 'There's something powerful and immediate about modern opera.'

Eileen teaches privately as well as performing in the Orchestra of Opera North, and is on the National Executive Committee of the Musicians' Union, which involves a heavy schedule of travel and reading. When she does have free time, though, she loves to read ('mostly novels, now, not sociology!') and take walks in the countryside.

Murray Greig Trumpet

Murray Greig was only seven years old when he began to play the trumpet. 'I don't remember if I'd even had my second teeth yet!' By age fourteen, he knew he wanted to be a professional musician, and he went on to train at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester (where he could watch Manchester United games on weekends!). As a student at the RNCM, he worked from time to time as an extra player in the Orchestra of Opera North , but his first fulltime job was in the Orchestra of the Royal Ballet in London. In 1989, though, a vacancy for principal trumpet opened up at Opera North, and he was thrilled to get the job. 'It had already become my favourite orchestra. It's such an exciting mix of different kinds of programming, and there's always been such enthusiasm in the orchestra. I knew that was where I wanted to work.'

The orchestra has an intense schedule of both operatic and independent concert performances, something Murray relishes. 'I'd get bored doing only opera or only symphonic work.' He's not likely to get bored any time soon, though, as he also plays in several chamber groups, performs recitals with pianist Jonathan Scott and organist Gordon Stewart and carries out a busy teaching schedule at both the RNCM and Chetham's School of Music in Manchester. Not content with just that, he also went back to university a few years ago and did a Master's Degree on the psychology of music education at the University of Leeds, comparing the conservatory systems in France, England and America. He is as passionate about education as he is about his own performance, and teaching is a vital part of his career.

In his rare free time, he's an avid golfer, and he particularly appreciated the golfing opportunities during Opera North's tours to Ravenna and Barcelona. He was also struck in Ravenna by just how many people are involved in any single opera production. 'It was great to meet all the people in the company that you don't often see when we're working in the UK 'cos we're all to busy doing our own things. The great advantage of playing in an opera orchestra is that you feel that you're part of something really big. Playing alongside the chorus in Nabucco, or solo lines in the closing section of Rosenkavalier, you can really enjoy doing your bit towards such a massive production.'

posted 1st November 2005

David's repertoire is extensive, including the concertos of Brahms, Sibelius, Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Tchaikovsky, Prokofiev, Bruch, Mozart, Bach and Vivaldi, as well as works by Lalo, Saint-Saëns, Vaughan Williams, Dvorák and Schubert. He first performed the Elgar concerto with the ENP in May 1998. He has appeared as guest Leader with many orchestras, including CBSO, BBC Welsh Symphony, Hallé, Northern Sinfonia, Bournemouth Sinfonietta, Royal Opera House, Irish Chamber and Guildford Philharmonic. In March 1999 he led the orchestra of the Royal Opera on its concert tour of the USA.

In 1995 he recorded The Lark Ascending (Vaughan Williams) for Naxos with David Lloyd-Jones and the ENP.

David has, since 1990, been Music Director of the Sinfonia of Leeds, conducting some six concerts with them each season. Together with Sir Ernest Hall, they have completed recordings of Bartók's three piano concerti and that of Lutoslawsky in 1994/5 and the Chopin Concerti in 1999. David has also conducted the Cleveland Chamber Orchestra, the City of Leeds Youth Orchestra, and at the Royal Northern College and Chetham's School, Manchester. He has also made visits to the State of Kazakhstan and has held the position of Principal Guest Conductor with its National Symphony Orchestra. Last year he conducted a masterclass with the National Youth Orchestra violin section and has been invited to direct the Helix Ensemble in Loughborough.

Posted 2004.