Join us for a captivating evening of song and conversation with acclaimed bass Sion Goronwy, hosted by Rhys Meirion. Eirian Owen will be accompanying on the piano.
Sion Goronwy
Sion Goronwy graduated from University of Wales, Aberystwyth with a bachelor’s degree in history, before continuing his studies at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama and the International Opera School at the Royal College of Music.
Recent engagements: Bass roles The Nose (Royal Opera House); Quince A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Stadttheater Klagenfurt); Hans Schwarz Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, Snug A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Glyndebourne Festival Opera); Snug (Teatro Massimo Palermo & The Grange Festival); Grand Visier & Doctor Al Wasl Don Basilio Barber of Seville (WNO).
Concert engagements have seen him feature as guest soloist with orchestras including London Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Opéra National de Lyon, Kristiansand Symfoniorkester, and the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House with conductors including Sir Andrew Davis, Kazushi Ono, Vladimir Jurowski, Robin Ticciati, Steuart Bedford, Jonathan Cohen, Leo McFall, Daniel Cohen, Terje Boye Hansen, and Alexander Soddy.
Eirian Owen
Eirian Owen was born in Llanuwchllyn near Bala. A gifted pianist from a very young age she graduated with first class honours in music from the University of Wales, Bangor and holds the ARCM diploma in piano accompamiment, together with a postgraduate diploma awarded by the University of Manchester. She spent the early years of her career as head of the music department at Ysgol y Gader (High School) Dolgellau before her appointment to the staff of the renowned Chethams School of Music in Manchester where she served for twenty years as staff accompanist and piano tutor.
She was appointed accompanist for Cor Godre’r Aran in 1970 and, subsequently, unanimously elected as musical director to succeed Tom Jones in 1975. In 1999 she was awarded the distinction of Honorary Druid by the National Eisteddfod’s Gorsedd of Bards and served as a choral adjudicator at the same event in 1999 and 2005. In January 2005 she was awarded an honorary MA degree by the University of Wales in recognition of her distinguished service to music.
Rhys Meirion
Welsh tenor Rhys Meirion has enjoyed international success in opera and recording and national success in broadcasting.
His roles include Rodolfo in La Boheme, Pinkerton in Madam Butterfly, Alfredo in La Traviata, Nemorino in L’Elisir d’Amore, Nadir in The Pearl Fishers, Marcello in Leoncavallo’s La Boheme, Duke in Rigoletto, Tebaldo in Capuletti e Montecchi, Tamino in The Magic Flute, Ernani, Sailor in Tristan und Isolde, Faust, Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni, Rinuccio in Gianni Schicchi, Italian Singer in Der Rosenkavalier, Froh in Das Rheingold, Zinovy in Lady Macbeth of Mtzensk, Fenton in Falstaff and more.
Rhys Meirion is a regular presenter on the television and radio in Wales. Tv series on S4C include Deuawdau Rhys Meirion, Corau Rhys Meirion and Canu Gyda Fy Arwr. Rhys also presents the iconic series Ar Eich Cais on BBC Radio Cymru.
Tickets:
£12.50 in advance/ £15 on the door
£10 i children and pensioners