Soprano Katie Gilbert graduated with Distinction in 2018 with an MMus in Vocal Performance from Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, and continues to study with Louise Crane. Katie is now Winchester based, having recently moved from South West London during her maternity leave. She works as a performer, teacher, and community singing facilitator, loving the diversity of her work with many different groups of people. (For more on her teaching work click here). She also regularly sings as a solo church cantor.
Last year, she appeared at The Globe, Newcastle-upon-Tyne with pianist David Murray performing a French, Russian (and Geordie!) song recital, and at St Paul's Parkside Church in London in a recital of sacred songs with pianist Kevin Jones.
She has also performed recitals with regular duo partners Konan Tanaka, piano and Sue Whittaker, guitar - moving online for coronavirus - and sang with Piccolo Concerts for children in London, bringing music to life for the younger generation. In 2019 she co-founded the Oizys Ensemble, dedicated to promoting mental health awareness, and with them performed Schubert and Monteverdi in Schott's Music, London in May of that year. Katie also sang in the London Song Festival Lieder Masterclass in November 2018.
During her studies she participated in numerous stage and concert works both internally and externally, most notably as 'Venus' in Monteverdi's 'Ballo delle Ingrate', 'Pauline' in Offenbach's 'La Vie Parisienne', 'Lady Penelope Rich' in Britten's 'Gloriana' (Act II Sc 2) on the stage, and as a soloist in both contemporary and traditional repertoires: Jonathan Harvey's 'Song Offerings' at the Cheltenham Festival with musicians from Ensemble Court Circuit and Lyon and Birmingham Conservatoires, and in Mozart and Fauré's 'Requiems' with the City of Wolverhampton Choir. Katie also won the 2018 Edward Brooks English Song Prize, and was Specially Commended in the 2017 Ashleyan Opera Prize.
BIOGRAPHY
Katie's versatility as a singer is further evident in the numerous solo, duo, early music and chamber recitals she has undertaken: whether opera duets in Derby Cathedral, art song repertoire with piano as part of, for example, the CBSO Debussy Festival 2018, or performing Monteverdi trios with 2 other sopranos and lute/theorbo continuo in Great Malvern Priory and Old St Martin's, Worcester.
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Prior to her studies in Birmingham Katie performed in many solo recitals in Oxford and Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and worked as a singing teacher and community singing group leader, both aspects of her music making which greatly enrich her performance life. Katie has a particular strength in musicianship, sight-singing and fast learning of music: during her undergraduate studies at the University of Oxford (BA (Hons) Music, 1st Class), she was a choral scholar at Exeter college, and sang with Schola Cantorum of Oxford as well as one to a part Renaissance masses with the Oxford Unversity Gregorian Chant Society. In addition, she was until the age of 21 primarily a flautist.
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Art Song
Duo recital
Sacred songs for Voice and Piano
St Paul's Parkside Church, London
Oct 2021
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Duo recital
French, Russian and folk songs for Voice and Piano
The Globe, Newcastle upon Tyne
Apr 2021
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Duo Recital - online
Various repertoire for Guitar and Voice
St Michael in the Northgate (Oxford)
Aug 2020
Duo Recital - online
French, Russian and German song for Voice and Piano
St Michael in the Northgate (Oxford)
Jul 2020
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Solo songs
De Falla, Debussy, Britten
with Piccolo Concerts for children
Emmanuel Church, Holloway and St Margaret's House, Bethnal Green
Feb 2020
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Duo Recital
Various repertoire for Guitar and Voice (Various)
St Paul's Church Parkside, London
2019
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Solo and chamber works
Gretchen am Spinnerade; Lamento d'Arianna (Schubert; Monteverdi)
Oizys Ensemble, Schott's Music, London
2019
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Duo Recital
Various for Voice and Classical Guitar (Including Britten, De Falla, Granados, Villa-Lobos)
The Vaults, Hexham
2018
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Solo Recital
English song, voice and guitar repertoire (Various)
St Martin's in the Bullring, Birmingham
2018
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Solo Songs and Arias
'Non Mi Dir', Proses Lyriques 3&4, op.34 1&10 (Mozart, Debussy, Rachmaninov)
Midday Music, Royal Birmingham Conservatoire
2018
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Soloist
English Song repertoire (Dowland, Gurney, Dove, Howells)
Bournville Music Society
2018
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Soloist
Solo Mélodie (Poulenc)
Bournville Music Society
2017
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Duo Recital
Voice and Guitar (Various)
Christian Community, Stourbridge
2017
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Solo songs and Arias
Various (Various)
Iffley Music Society, Oxford
2016
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Soloist
Three songs from youth, op.23 (Michael J Smith)
Lit and Phil, Newcastle upon Tyne
2015
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Solo recitals
Various (Various)
Lit and Phil, Newcastle upon Tyne
2014
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Regular solo recitals, Oxford
Various (Various)
St Michaels in the Northgate, New College Chapel
2013-2015
Concert/Oratorio
Ensemble and Solo items
'We'll gather lilacs' duet and others with Songs on Wheels
Wimbledon Village Club
2022
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Arias and duets
Various (Including Delibes, Mozart, Humperdinck, Fauré)
Derby Cathedral
2018
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Soloist
Song Offerings (Jonathan Harvey)
Cheltenham Festival
2017
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Soloist
Opera arias and Music Theatre numbers (Puccini, Rogers and Hammerstein)
Stocksfield Festival, Northumberland
2017
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Soloist
'Oh Quante Volte' and 'Deh Vieni non tardar' (Bellini and Mozart)
Philip Bates Trust concert, Sutton Coldfield
2017
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Soprano Soloist
Requiem (Mozart and Fauré)
City of Wolverhampton Choir
2017
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Soprano Soloist
Vespero della BVM and Cantate Domino (Mozart and Monteverdi)
New Choir, Oxford
2016
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Soprano Soloist
Millenium Mass and Kleine Orgelmesse (Paul Patterson and Haydn)
New Choir, Oxford
2016
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Operetta/G&S
Pauline
La Vie Parisienne (in English) (Offenbach)
Royal Birmingham Conservatoire
2018
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Phyllis
Iolanthe (Sullivan)
Kidlington Amateur Operatic Society
2013
Opera
Venus
Il ballo delle ingrate (Monteverdi)
Royal Birmingham Conservatoire
2018
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Mother (Gertrude)
Hansel and Gretel (Act 1 Scenes 1 and 2) (Humperdinck)
Oxenfoord International Summer School
2018
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Lady Penelope Rich
Gloriana (Act II Sc2) (Britten)
Royal Birmingham Conservatoire
2017
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Yvette
La Rondine (Act I Sc1) (Puccini)
Royal Birmingham Conservatoire
2016
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Miss Wordsworth
Albert Herring (Act I Sc 1) (Britten)
Oxenfoord International Summer School
2015
Early Music
Trio
Various Madrigals and solos (Monteverdi and Caccini)
Old St Martin’s - Worcester, Great Malvern Priory
2018
Competitions
Finalist, London Song Festival Lieder Masterclass, Austrian Embassy (2018)
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First prize, Edward Brooks English Song Prize, Royal Birmingham Conservatoire (2018)
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Special Commendation, Ashleyan Opera Prize, Royal Birmingham Conservatoire (2017)