Burry Port Opera star at Llandybie on Saturday

by Robert Lloyd

Opera Star Gary Griffiths will be performing at a special concert at Llandybie Memorial Hall on Saturday (March 22).

The exciting baritone from Burry Port has found time in a busy international schedule for a charity concert in aid of Fight for Sight.

Gary will be singing alongside Côr Merched Tybie and Côr Meibion Dyffryn Aman.

The concert is being organised by Cerith Owens of Llaneli-based Loud Applause Productions, who said: “This represents a great opportunity to hear Gary Griffiths in concert as he is in great demand internationally and his jet-setting all around the world as hi career takes flight.

“Gary will be making his Llandybie appearance after completing a spell in The Marriage of Figaro in New Zealand.”

Gary was the winner of the Welsh Singers competition in 2012 and represented Wales in the 2013 BBC Cardiff Singer of the World competition.

The Tybie ladies choir, Côr Merched Tybie, will be under the baton of Desna Pemberton.

The choir has raised thousands of pounds for various charities and it was their request that the concert be in aid of ‘Fight for Sight’ a charity which pioneers eye research.

The very popular Côr Dyffryn Aman will be appearing under the musical direction of Ian Llewelyn.

The concert starts at 7pm.

Tickets are in high demand and are available from the South Wales Guardian office or by contacting 01269 593618.

About Gary Griffiths

Gary Griffiths studied at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama where he was the 2009 winner of the coveted Gold Medal Competition. At the Welsh National Opera, where he began as an Associate Artist, he made a critically acclaimed debut in 2011 as Guglielmo (Così fan tutte).

His roles with the company include Cecil (Maria Stuarda), Masetto (Don Giovanni), Claudio (Béatrice et Bénédict), and Schaunard (La Bohème), for which he was awarded the Wales Theatre Critics’ Award for best Male Opera Singer 2013. He made his international debut as Figaro (Le Nozze di Figaro) for New Zealand Festival Opera in 2014. Earlier appearances include Belcore (L’elisird’amore) and Germano (La Scala di Seta) for British Youth Opera and Dog and Innkeeper (The Cunning Little Vixen) for Grange Park Opera; Count Almaviva (Le Nozze di Figaro), Dr Malatesta (Don Pasquale), L’Incognito (L’Assedio di Calais), Le Comte (Chérubin), Mr. Gedge (Albert Herring) Arsenio (La

Spinalba) and Marquis de la Force (Dialogues des Carmelites) for the Guildhall School Opera.

He made his London Symphony Orchestra debut in 2013 under the baton of Valery Gergiev at the maestro’s 60th Birthday Gala concert at the Barbican Hall, singing ‘Trojan Soldier’ in Les Trojans (Berlioz). Other concert performances include Mozart Requiem with the Orchestra and Chorus of Welsh National Opera at St David’s Hall under Christoph Poppen, Belshazzar’s Feast at the Barbican Hall with the Guildhall Symphony Orchestra under Martyn Brabbins and Handel’s Messiah with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales under Nicholas Kramer.

A committed recitalist, appearances include the Oxford Lieder Festival with Sholto Kynoch, the Wigmore Hall with Sir Thomas Allen and Malcolm Martineau, King’s Place with Iain Burnside, Cowbridge Music Festival with Joseph Middleton, the Lower Machen Festival with Caradog Williams and the Ravinia Festival with Marcelo Ameral. His recordings include two collaborations on former Royal Harpist Catrin Finch’s new album ‘Lullabies’ with Julian Lloyd Webber for Deutsche Grammophon.

Television appearances include Noson Lawen (S4C) Dechrau Canu Dechrau Canmol

(S4C) and the Shan Cothi Show (S4C). Radio appearances include a live broadcast on the ‘In Tune’ programme with Iain Burnside (BBC Radio 3).

Future plans include Ned Keene (Peter Grimes) for Grange Park Opera, Count Almaviva ( Le Nozze di Figaro) for Wiesbaden State Opera, The Executioner (Ines del Castro) for Scottish Opera and concerts with The Halle, BBC NOW and the Berliner Kantorei.

Weblinks –

http://www.garygriffiths.net/

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