Tadpole Music

Peter Auty received his musical training in the Choir of St. Paul's Cathedral, London, which he joined shortly after his 8th birthday. Before he left, aged 13 and a half, he had become Senior Chorister and sang in many special services. He made a number of recordings with the Cathedral Choir, including the gold-winning LP "Rejoice" which was later released on CD. He was one of the lead singers on the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra's recording of greatest hits of the pop group "Police". This LP was entitled "Arrested" and Peter's contribution, "Walking on the Moon" was later released as a single.

His best known solo performance, however, was undoubtedly in 1982 when he recorded "Walking in the Air" for Howard Blake's soundtrack to The Snowman, a highly successful animated film directed by Dianne Jackson and based on the book by Raymond Briggs. Peter was invited to sing the role at the Barbican Theatre with Bernard Cribbins and an LP was made as well as a single of Peter's song.

For a while during the early eighties, Peter's voice was a household sound when he sang for a British Rail television commercial: "This is the Age of the Train"!

He was a songman at Bristol Cathedral and York Minster before studying at RSAMD with Peter Alexander Wilson. In 1987 he emerged as an operatic tenor with the National Opera Studio and made his debut with British Youth Opera as Tom Rakewell (Rake's Progress) returning as Rodolfo (La Boheme) in 1998. For Opera North he has sung Remendado (Carmen), Jenik (The Bartered Bride) and Rodolfo (La Boheme). Peter has sung Malcolm (Macbeth) for Opera Zuid and for the Glyndebourne Festival. For Mid Wales Opera and for Opera de Massy he has sung the title role in Gounod's Faust.

For the Royal Opera House he has sung several roles including Fenton (Falstaff), Michelis (The Greek Passion), Nathaniel (Les Contes D'Hoffman), Matteo Borsa (Rigoletto), Malcolm (Macbeth) and he sang the tenor solos in Stravinsky's Les Noches for the Royal Ballet.

In 2002 he went on tour with Glyndebourne Touring Opera singing Don José (Carmen).

UPDATE

Peter Auty was a company principal of the Royal Opera, Covent Garden from 1999-2002 where his roles included Roderigo (Otello), Gtoasn (La Traviata) and Malcolm (Macbeth). He returned as a guest artist in 2003/4 to sing Arturo (Lucia di Lammermoor).

Also in demand as a concert artist Peter Auty's recent engagements have included appearances with the London Symphony Orchestra (Sir Colin Davis), the Orchestra of the Age of Englightenment (Mark Elder), the London Philharmonic Orchestra (Lothar Zagrosek) and the Iceland Symphony Orchestra (Vladimir Ashkenazy). Peter Auty has featured as the tenor in BBCTV's Flashmob 2.

For more information, visit Ingpen and Williams website.

David Harrison was educated at Brentwood School, Essex and the Royal College of Music where he studied organ with Ralph Downes and Harold Darke and the piano with Edwin Benbow. He taught in schools in the south of England and in Scotland where he was also organist of Dumferline Abbey. From 1976 to 1997 he was Head of Music at Papplewick School in Ascot and since retirement has lived near Worcester, assisting as deputy organist at Worcester Cathedral and Malvern Priory as well as playing in his own parish church at St. Edburga's, Leigh. He is also the Editor of the Worcester Three Choirs Festival Programme Book