Gerald English

Gerald English (6 November 1925 – 6 February 2019) was an English tenor. He performed operatic and concert repertoire, was a recording artist, and was a sometime academic.

He gave many premiere performances of works by composers such as Igor Stravinsky, Hans Werner Henze, Benjamin Britten, Michael Tippett, and Andrew Ford, often under their own direction. He also sang under the batons of Ernest Ansermet, Ralph Vaughan Williams, Sir John Barbirolli and Sir Thomas Beecham. He sang opera for the Glyndebourne Festival, The Royal Opera at Covent Garden, La Scala, and in Sydney, Adelaide, Manchester, Edinburgh, Florence, Rome, Paris, Buenos Aires, Vienna, Barcelona, and Sadler's Wells. He also performed in concerts in America, as well as in cities like Brussels, Rome, Cologne, Stockholm, Lisbon, Amsterdam or Rio de Janeiro.

Personal life Gerald Alfred English was born in 1925 to Alfred English who as a chemist was employed as a manager at Reckitt & Colman. His mother was Ethel née Gambrell, who was a tailor, and he had two sisters, Margot and Yvonne. His father wanted him to be a mathematician. His family moved to France when he was two years old, and he was based in northern France for 14 years, although from the age of 13 he was attending King's School, Rochester in England.

English had three significant relationships, mostly in Australia, and ten children. His first marriage in 1954 was to Jane or Jennifer Ryan who gave him four children and played viol in some of his Baroque music recordings. They were divorced. Although English worked internationally, he was based in the United Kingdom, and then in Australia. where his continental upbringing proved of value in singing idiomatic French. In 1952 he sang Boyce's The Heavens Declare and Purcell's Bell Anthem, besides Thomas Tallis's Mode III Hymn Tune, in St Sepulchre's, London, with the Deller Consort. During this time, he also began to build a reputation as a recitalist, gaining particular authority as an interpreter of the songs of Gabriel Fauré.

English received good notices for his interpretations in works by contemporary composers such as Tippett,

In 1993 he was awarded one of the prestigious Australian Creative Artists' Fellowships, In 1995, he persuaded 13 Australian composers to each write a piece, to be showcased at the Gerald English Birthday Concert in honour of his 70th birthday. Sir Charles Groves, Bernard Haitink, Vernon Handley, Hans Werner Henze, John Hopkins, Hiroyuki Iwaki, Otto Klemperer, Raymond Leppard, Sir Anthony Lewis, Witold Lutosławski, Peter Maag, Lorin Maazel, Sir Charles Mackerras, Bruno Maderna, Igor Markevitch, Jean Martinon, David Measham, Krzysztof Penderecki, David Porcelijn, Georges Prêtre, André Previn, Sir Simon Rattle, Sir Malcolm Sargent, Eric Schmid, Markus Stenz, Igor Stravinsky, Sir Michael Tippett, Edo de Waart,

Orchestras Gerald English sang solo with

Australia and New Zealand

Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, Brisbane Symphony Orchestra, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, West Australian Symphony Orchestra, Christchurch Symphony Orchestra, New Zealand Radio Orchestra,

Asia

Singapore Symphony Orchestra, Hong Kong Symphony Israel Philharmonic, Tel Aviv Chamber Orchestra

Europe

Austria

Austrian Radio Orchestra,

Czechoslovakia

Czech National Orchestra, Prague Symphony Orchestra, Prague Chamber Orchestra,

Germany

Philharmonisches Staatsorcherester Hamburg, Radio Symphony Orchestra Saarbrucken, WDR Radio Orchestra Cologne, Collegium Auriem,

France

Orchestre de Paris, Orchestre national Bordeaux Aquitaine, French National Radio Orchestra,

Belgium

Brussels Radio Symphony Orchestra Liege, Namu,

Netherlands

Concertgebouw, Amsterdam, Rotterdam Philharmonic,

Spain Orqesta Ciudad de Barcelona, Orchestra Nacional Spain, Madrid Symphony Orchestra, Alhambra Concerts, Barcelona Concerts, San Sebastian Concerts.

Portugal

Lisbon National Orchestra, Oporto Opera Orchestra, Gulbenian Centre Orchestra,

Italy

Turin Opera House Orchestra, La Scala Orchestra, Orchestra Sinfonica de Milano, Orchestra de Milano RAI RAI Roma, Orchestra Santa Cecilia Roma, Naples, Florence Opera Orchestra,

UK

London Symphony Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra, London Sinfonietta, English Chamber Orchestra, Bournemouth Sinfoietta, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra, The Philaharmonia, Royal Philharmonic, Mozart Players, St. Martin in the Fields, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Halle Orchestra, Royal Liverpool Phiaharmonic,

Other Hungarian State Orchestra

Dubrovnik Orchestra

North America

Montreal Symphony Orchestra, Cleveland Symphony Orchestra, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, Ottawa Symphony Orchestra.

South America

Orquesta Filharmonica de Buenos Aires, Argentina, Brazil Rio de Janeiro Radio Symphony Orchestra.