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Clive Bayley sings regularly with the major opera companies in a repertoire ranging from Monteverdi to Mozart, Verdi, Puccini, Berg, Britten, Birtwistle, Wagner and Ligeti. He made his debut with the Royal Opera, Covent Garden, in the world-premiere of Harrison Birtwistle's Gawain and has since appeared there as Biterolf in Tannhäuser, Colline/La Bohème, Hans Foltz/Die Meistersinger, Castro/Fanciulla del West, Carbon in Alfano’s Cyrano de Bergerac, Thoas/Iphigenie en Tauride, Sylvano/La Calisto and Hunding/Die Walküre. He has had notable successes with Opera North, in their British premiere production of Verdi's Jerusalem, as Sparafucile/Rigoletto, Ebn Hakia/Yolanta, the Grand Inquisitor/Don Carlos, Raleigh in Phyllida Lloyd's acclaimed production of Gloriana, (recorded on CD and for television), Ferrando/Il Trovatore, Arkel/Pelléas and Mélisande, Wurm/Luisa Miller, the Doctor/Wozzeck, Biterolf/Tannhäuser, Antinous/Il ritorno d’Ulisse in Patria and Osmin/Die Entführung aus dem Serail; with Grange Park Opera King Marke/Tristan & Isolde, Vodnik/Rusalka and King of Clubs/The Love for Three Oranges; with English National Opera in Billy Budd, Wozzeck, Cadmus/Semele,
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Clive Bayley sings regularly with the major opera companies in a repertoire ranging from Monteverdi to Mozart, Verdi, Puccini, Berg, Britten, Birtwistle, Wagner and Ligeti. He made his debut with the Royal Opera, Covent Garden, in the world-premiere of Harrison Birtwistle's Gawain and has since appeared there as Biterolf in Tannhäuser, Colline/La Bohème, Hans Foltz/Die Meistersinger, Castro/Fanciulla del West, Carbon in Alfano’s Cyrano de Bergerac, Thoas/Iphigenie en Tauride, Sylvano/La Calisto and Hunding/Die Walküre. He has had notable successes with Opera North, in their British premiere production of Verdi's Jerusalem, as Sparafucile/Rigoletto, Ebn Hakia/Yolanta, the Grand Inquisitor/Don Carlos, Raleigh in Phyllida Lloyd's acclaimed production of Gloriana, (recorded on CD and for television), Ferrando/Il Trovatore, Arkel/Pelléas and Mélisande, Wurm/Luisa Miller, the Doctor/Wozzeck, Biterolf/Tannhäuser, Antinous/Il ritorno d’Ulisse in Patria and Osmin/Die Entführung aus dem Serail; with Grange Park Opera King Marke/Tristan & Isolde, Vodnik/Rusalka and King of Clubs/The Love for Three Oranges; with English National Opera in Billy Budd, Wozzeck, Cadmus/Semele, Arkel, the four Villains/Les Contes d’Hoffmann, Ferrando/Il Trovatore, Collatinus/The Rape of Lucretia (also shown on BBC2 TV), Hunding, Sparafucile/Rigoletto, War & Peace, Narbal/Les Troyens, Sarastro/The Magic Flute, Raimondo/Lucia di Lammermoor; Bluebeard/Bluebeard’s Castle, and Dikoy/Katya Kabanova; and with Welsh National Opera as Rocco/Fidelio, the Doctor/Wozzeck and Antinous/Time/Neptune/Ulisse. He appeared with Glyndebourne Festival Opera as Calchas/Iphigénie en Aulide and Louis VII/ Euryanthe, which was also performed at the BBC Proms, Trulove/The Rake’s Progress, and with Glyndebourne Touring Opera as Rocco/Fidelio.
Abroad Clive Bayley has sung with the opera houses in Geneva, Amsterdam, Seattle, San Francisco, where he sang as Astramadors in the US première of Le Grand Macabre, at the Bregenz Festival, and in Lisbon, Lausanne, Toulouse, Munich and Copenhagen. He sang in concert with Les Arts Florissants and William Christie on tour in performances of Monteverdi’s Marian Vespers, Il Sant’ Alessio, which was recorded for Erato, Couperin motets, a recording of Purcell Welcome Songs, Lully’s Psyche, and a programme of Monteverdi madrigals. In Munich he has sung regularly with the Bayerische Staatsoper, where his performances have included Arkel/Pelléas et Mélisande, Ulisse, Titurel/Parsifal, Sylvano/La Calisto, Geronte/Manon Lescaut and Achilla/Giulio Cesare. With the Opera National du Rhin, Strasbourg, he has sung Fasolt in David McVicar’s new production of Das Rheingold and Hunding, and with Frankfurt Opera Claggart in Richard Jones’s production of Billy Budd.
Clive Bayley also has a very busy concert career which includes highlights such as St. Peter/The Apostles with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra under Sakari Oramo and scenes from Der Freischutz with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment under Mark Elder, Leonard Bernstein's Candide with the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by the composer making his final appearance in the United Kingdom, and – also with the London Symphony Orchestra - Les Troyens at the BBC Proms and in Birmingham under Sir Colin Davis; Walton's The Bear with the Northern Sinfonia, Don Fernando in concert performances of Fidelio with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra under Walter Weller, concert performances and a recording for Chandos of Billy Budd with the London Symphony Orchestra under Richard Hickox, Beethoven Symphony No. 9 with the English Northern Philharmonia and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Hunding in Die Walküre and the Grand Inquisitor in the Study Scene from Don Carlos with the Hallé Orchestra under Mark Elder, concerts at the Spoleto Festival, a Kurt Weill double-bill on tour in Italy with the London Sinfonietta; Philip Glass’s Symphony No. 5 with the Bayerische Rundfunk Orchestra under Ulf Schirmer; and the Fisherman in Kurt Weill’s The Royal Palace at the BBC Proms. His recordings for Chandos include the Bonze/Madama Butterfly, Ferrando/Il Trovatore, Commendatore/Don Giovanni, Pistol/Falstaff, Timur/ Turandot ,the Voice of Neptune/Idomeneo and the Monk/Don Carlos.
Engagements in the 2011/12 season include Don Basilio/Il Barbiere di Siviglia and Dikoy/Katya Kabanova with Welsh National Opera; the 4 Villains in the new production of The Tales of Hoffmann and Daland/The Flying Dutchman with English National Opera; Doctor/Wozzeck with Bayerische Staatsoper in Munich and Hunding/Die Walküre with Opera North.
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2011/12
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Reviews
"Clive Bayley is the four villains, demonstrating once again that he is a versatile and imposing a bass as any in the world at present."
The Tales of Hoffmann, Michael Tanner, The Specator
"…it was an evening for male singing. Clive Bayley sang the best I have heard him as Daland."
ENO, The Flying Dutchman - Colin Clarke, Seen & Heard International
"Clive Bayley (Daland) [is] superb."
ENO, The Flying Dutchman - Warwick Thompson, Bloomberg Business Week
"Clive Bayley is a fine Daland..."
ENO, The Flying Dutchman - Barry Millington, London Evening Standard
"Clive Bayley brings exemplary musicality and diction to his portrayal of Daland, highlighting the character's mercantile nature."
ENO, The Flying Dutchman - Christian Hoskins, musicomh.com
"As Daland, Clive Bayley combines a voice of particular strength and sweetness with a witty and studied stage presence. His diction is remarkably crisp without ever appearing intrusive, and he is persuasive both as loving father and venal businessman."
ENO, The Flying Dutchman - Sarah Perry, Exuent Magazine
"Clive Bayley explores Senta’s father Daland’s greed in a bass that grows ever more impressive."
ENO, The Flying Dutchman - George Hall, The Stage
"Senta did more than convincingly suggest the plain girl dreamer socially stifled by a selfish and overly protective father, Daland (the excellent Clive Bayley)."
ENO, The Flying Dutchman - Edward Seckerson, The Independent
"Clive Bayley ....one can luxuriate in not only the sound but the articulation of the delivery"
ENO, The Flying Dutchman - Frame Scourer
"Clive Bayley, a black-voiced bass, is outstanding vocally and dramatically as the four villains."
The Tales of Hoffman, ENO - Tully Potter, Daily Mail
"Bayley is no less versatile as the roué Lindorf, a shambling Coppelius, a Bela Lugosi-style Dr Miracle and a showman-prestidigitator Dappertutto, singing his famous Diamond aria in velvety, saturnine tones "
The Tales of Hoffman, Hugh Cunning – The Sunday Times
"Bayley showed his merit by turning in a thrillingly creepy performance as Dr. Miracle. […] Clive Bayley gave a performance of a lifetime as the four villains, turning in a radically different character in each act; but also singing the role quite fabulously. If the higher lying passages were a strain for him, he didn't show it. I don't think I have heard this singer do anything better. "
The Tales of Hoffman, Robert Hugill – Planet Hugill Classical Music
"This was a world class performance, clear, smooth, emotional and velvety... If you see his name on a cast list anywhere, go to the performance. Even if it is an opera you dislike, simply to hear him."
Tristan und Isolde, Grange Park, Hampshire. The Wagnerian.
"Clive Bayley is a powerful Hunding, with a more jet-black voice than any contemporary German bass."
Michael Tanner, The Spectator
"In recent outings, Dr Bartolo has shamelessly stolen the show. This time that honour fell to Clive Bayley whose Don Basilio – pigtail reaching below his backside – was expertly judged, an out-and-out caricature, but never overplayed."
The Barber of Seville - WNO - Rian Evans, The Guardian
Discography
Repertoire
Berg Wozzeck Doctor Chandos
Bernstein Candide (Conductor Bernstein) Various roles Deutsche Grammophon
Berkeley Baa Baa Blacksheep Bagheera Collins
Britten Billy Budd Dansker Chandos
Donizetti Don Pasquale Notary Chandos
Landl Il St. Alessio Demonio Erato
Monteverdi Vespers Bass 2 Erato
Mozart Don GiovanniIdomeneo Commendatore Voice of Neptune Chandos
Mussorgsky Boris Godunov Varlaam’s aria Chandos
Puccini Madama ButterflyTurandot BonzeTimur Chandos
Verdi FalstaffIl Trovatore PistolFerrando Chandos
Walton Troilus & Cressida Calkas Chandos
Various Dennis O’Neill Recital Disc
Giappone in La Romanzesca e l’Uomo Nero Opera Rara