OPERATIF! Biographies

OPERATIF!

Since formation in 1994, OPERATIF! has given Queenslanders of all tastes, ages and budgets a wide variety of wonderful experiences of Opera, Operetta and Song. OPERATIF! as a full-time, self-started enterprise is unique. Proudly based in Queensland it provides regular work opportunities for many fine local artists.

For the corporate world OPERATIF! has performed for tens of thousands of overseas visitors, convention and conference delegates and VIP guests at functions such as the Premier's "Queenslander of the Year" Awards, the opening of the Conrad Treasury Casino and Hotel, and the Queensland Tourism Awards.

In addition to concerts, OPERATIF! has produced and staged intimate operas for events such as the Brisbane Festival and in venues including the Cremorne and QUT Theatres, Brisbane. All have received wide critical acclaim and the last of these, Madam Butterfly, received standing ovations. This production commanded a return season, at the Suncorp Theatre with over 2000 people attending the season.

No strangers to outdoor concerts, OPERATIF! has performed at many such special events, including Opera in Noosa Amphitheatre, Opera in the Outback at Undara, Opera in Buderim Forest and Music Beneath the Stars, Ormiston House. OPERATIF! was invited to perform on board The Norwegian Star, when this luxury cruise ship made its inaugural voyage to Australia. In 2005 OPERATIF! performed at an inaugural event "Opera in the Ruins" on Norfolk Island .Since then the event has grown each year to now become a major event on the outdoor opera calendar in the South Pacific. It is now completely owned and managed by OPERATIF! and has been renamed Opera in Paradise.

Since 2011 they have also run Music Lovers Tours to Europe and Asia, with the first, to Italy in September 2012, completely sold-out. 'Joie de Vivre' ( Paris, South of France & Barcelona ), 'Along the Road to Mandalay' ( exclusive, musical cruise in Burma ) and 'Southern Passion' ( Amalfi Coast, Southern Italy and Sicily ) are now on sale.
Read about Music Lovers Tours or Opera in Paradise
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CORE ARTISTS

Jennifer Parish - Soprano

Born and educated in Melbourne, Jennifer studied at the Victorian College of the Arts, before beginning her professional career with Victoria State Opera.

As a young company member, Jennifer worked with visiting vocal coaches and at the invitation of David Harper, went to London and subsequently Germany for intensive periods of study.

Australia was always home however and Jennifer returned to settle in Brisbane where she sang with Opera Queensland, Queensland Symphony and Queensland Pops Orchestra. Realising that work opportunities for professional opera singers were scant, in 1994 she launched OPERATIF! onto the Brisbane music scene via a concert with colleagues at Old Government House. The popularity and demands of what quickly grew into a full-time company have occupied much of Jennifer’s time ever since.

In OPERATIF! productions, Jennifer received wide acclaim in the taxing role of Magda Sorrel in Menotti's "The Consul" for the 1996 Brisbane Festival and in 1997 shone as Puccini's tragic heroine, Madam Butterfly, in a specially devised production sung in English, first in 1997 for the 4MBS Festival and reprised in 1998 for a major season in the Suncorp Theatre.

Despite much acclaim for the small-scale operas OPERATIF! produced, necessary Arts funding was elusive and the decision was taken to concentrate on concerts and special events, teaming with other talented colleagues to take the glory of Opera and Song to broad and diverse audiences in S E Queensland and beyond. HEAR JENNIFER

Stewart Cameron - Baritone

Stewart Cameron was born in Auckland, New Zealand where he gained a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Italian Literature and Language before winning his country's biggest opera competition, the N.Z. Herald Aria.

Granted a scholarship to the Opera School at the N.S.W. Conservatorium of Music he moved to Sydney and studied under the direction of Myer Fredman, learning more than a dozen major baritone roles and taking leads in operas including "La Clemenza di Tito" and "Pelleas and Melisande".

After graduating, Stewart moved to London to study with renowned vocal coach David Harper. He also studied repertoire in Cologne with the internationally renowned conductor, Simone Young. Whilst overseas Stewart performed regularly on the opera and concert stage, including taking the title role in Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro for the Cornwall Festival.

Now based in Brisbane, Stewart has performed the role of Papageno in The Magic Flute for Wellington City Opera (NZ) and has appeared as a soloist with all of Queensland’s major orchestras, including QSO, QPO and Pops, and also in operas as a principal with OPERATIF! and Opera Queensland.

Stewart performed the role of John Sorrel in the highly acclaimed production of ‘The Consul’ for the Brisbane Festival.The following year he sang the role of Consul Sharpless, in Madam Butterfly, a production devised by OPERATIF! for a local Festival and later reprised the following year for a mainstream ( and sold-out ) season at Suncorp Theatre. Two years ago he was the featured soloist in The Best of British with The Queensland Pops Orchestra at the Concert Hall,QPAC

Currently, Stewart concentrates much of his energy on the running of, and performing with OPERATIF! in the company’s busy annual calendar of concerts. OPERATIF's Music Lovers Travel and special events are a booming part of their business. Recently he was one of two Queenslanders to be invited to contribute to the world-wide 'Sustainable Futures in Music : The Opera Project", a long-running assessment of the future of opera, run by the International Music Council of Paris and the Music Council of Australia.

VISIT STEWART'S WEBSITE

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John Woods- Pianist/Accompanist

JOHN WOODS was born in Stirling, Scotland. After studying piano and bassoon at The Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama he was awarded scholarships from The Scottish Arts Council and The Ralph Vaughan Williams Trust to specialise in piano accompaniment at The Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester. He has since worked at the R.N.C.M. and The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts. In 1992 he joined the staff of The Queensland
Conservatorium, Griffith University as an accompanist and vocal coach, preparing many of its operas, including the Australian premiere of Britten's "Billy Budd", as part of the 1993 Brisbane Biennial Festival.

Engagements have taken him throughout Great Britain, Europe and Australia, accompanying singers and instrumentalists on the concert platform and in radio and television broadcasts. He has worked with some of the finest singers of the present generation including Joan Rodgers, Amanda Roocroft, Simon Keenlyside and in particular, Jane Eaglen. In Australia he has appeared in concert with Lisa Gasteen, Jeffrey Black. Joanna Cole and Rosario la Spina.

He has accompanied master classes given by several distinguished singers including Dame Joan Sutherland, Dame
Janet Baker, Dame Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Sir Peter Pears and Luigi Alva, whom he has also accompanied in recital.

As Musical Associate for Granada Television, John Woods has credits on a wide range of arts and drama programmes
which include "The Dame Joan Hammond Masterclasses", "Coronation Street", "Sherlock Holmes" and "Lost Empires"
- the eight-hour serialisation of the J.B. Priestley novel in which he worked with the late Sir Laurence Olivier.

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RECENT and FUTURE GUEST ARTISTS

Lynne Sterling Jordan - Pianist/Accompanist

As a young student Lynne Sterling Jordan gained a sound foundation in piano with the Sisters of Mercy in Toowoomba. Whilst studying at the Queensland Conservatorium of music, Lynne was a finalist in the ABC Concerto competition three years running.

She went on to play both piano and harpsichord with the Queensland Orchestra for several years under Patrick Thomas and since these early days has enjoyed a diverse and always busy performance career.

Lynne’s aptitude as an accompanist was evident early on when, whilst still a student herself, she joined the staff at the Conservatorium, accompanying vocal students. She remained on staff working with singers and students of accompaniment for some 20 years.

Lynne has played for dignitaries including Her Majesty the Queen and has worked with noted Australian conductors including Richard Mills, Tommy Tycho and the late Brian Stacey. Often sought after as an accompanist for major vocal competitions, including, for many years the Marion Marty, Lynne has also been called upon by major production companies, including Cameron Mackintosh and Robert Frost, to prepare and accompany their singers.

Lynne has worked with some of Australia’s greatest voices, including Margreta Elkins and the late Donald Smith. She has worked extensively with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation in television and radio productions.

Continuing to enjoy a multifaceted professional career, Lynne now travels extensively as an adjudicator, examiner and performer. She joined OPERATIF! in 1995 as accompanist and has been instrumental in the company’s development and success. In 2008 she accepted the position of President of the Queensland Accompanists Guild. HEAR LYNNE

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David Hibbard - Bass

Australian bass David Hibbard graduated from the Queensland Conservatorium of Music in 1981. As a young artist he gained experience singing minor roles with the State Opera of South Australia before study in New York with Daniel Ferro and in England with Sir Peter Pears.

A contract with the English National Opera saw him as a principal in Die Meistersinger, Julius Caesar and Rossini’s, Moses in Egypt as well as in Simone Boccanegra for the Glyndeboune Festival Opera. He returned to Australia in1988 to appear with The Australian Opera in a number of roles including Fiesco in Boccanegra, Ramphis in Aida, Monterone in Rigoletto, The Speaker in The Magic Flute and Publio in La Clemenza di Tito.

In 1990, after receiving the German Operatic Award from Opera Foundation Australia, he commenced a contract with Cologne Stadtsoper, performing roles by a wide variety of composers before, in 1992, being appointed first Bass with the Bremen Stadts - Theater where he performed Fiesco in Simon Boccanegra, Padre Guardiano in La Forza del Destino, Sparafucile, Baron Ochs, Prince Gremin, Colline and Alvise Badoero in La Gioconda.

Since returning to Australia in 1994 to sing Sarastro for the Western Australian Opera, he divides his time between Europe and Australia.

A highlight in recent years has been the role of Fafner in the acclaimed State Opera of South Australia’s Ring Cycle. When his busy schedule allows, David is delighted to lend his talents to OPERATIF! HEAR DAVID

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Spiros Rantos ( violin ) and Bracchi Tilles ( piano )

When it comes to musical journeys, violinist Spiros Rantos and pianist Brachi Tilles have had one of the sweetest. It was at a train station in Vienna, the city of music, where Greek-born Spiros Rantos and Israeli-born Brachi Tilles first met and started their musical partnership. Brachi a graduate of Tel-Aviv University, also studied in Italy and the USA whilst Spiros has studied in Athens, Vienna and USA and taught in major music institutions in both Vienna and Graz.

They have performed and recorded in most of the musical centres of the world including two years of successful seasons at the Musicverein and the Vienna Concert Hall. In 1976 they visited Australia for a six-month Artists-in-Residence program at the (then) Victorian College of the Arts and so enjoyed their time that they decided to stay here! From 1978 to 1985 they taught at the University of Southern Queensland. They then spent a decade in Melbourne before settling in Brisbane where Spiros was a senior lecturer at the University of Queensland.
Their playing combines Viennese finesse with Mediterranean temperament.....central European refinement with Southern charm and warmth. This gives a special magic to their performances.

As artists who have played all over the world, the pair believe music is ‘always a ‘trip’, be it a spiritual one or a visit to different cultures and times.

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Benjamin Fifita Makisi - Tenor

Benjamin is a Tenor of Samoan and Tongan Descent who has been affectionately dubbed the ‘Polynesian Pavarotti’ because if his stature, stage presence and his strong, pure voice.

He graduated with a Bachelor of Music (Performance) from Victoria University, Wellington, New Zealand and also a Master of Performance (Opera) from University of Sydney Conservatorium of Music. He has won many awards and International competitions including Australia’s prestigious Sydney McDonald’s Aria Competition in 2002.

Benjamin has appeared in many musicals and has sung lead roles for both Opera New Zealand and Opera Australia.

He has performed for HRH Prince Charles at the Aotea Center, Auckland and has sung for many dignitaries including former Prime Minister of NZ Hon. Helen Clarke, former Prime Minister of Australia Hon. John Howard, HRH King Ta’ufahau of Tonga and at the funeral of the late Sir Edmund Hillary.

Benjamin continues to pursue his goal of working as an International Opera singer and hopes to inspire under-privileged children and to combine his operatic abilities with his Pacific Heritage music, to encourage the importance of being a Pacific Islander through his cultural identity. Benjamin has been a guest artist with OPERATIF! on several occasions and is featured on their latest CD, Serenade. HEAR BENJAMIN
READ MORE ABOUT BENJAMIN

Hayley Sugars

Hayley Sugars holds a Bachelor of Music Honours from the USQ and a Master of Music from Queensland Conservatorium. She has enjoyed scholarship and competition success including as winner of The National Lieder Competition, finalist in the National Operatic Aria and the Australian National Oratorio Competitions, and second in the S. E. Qld Aria and Concerto Competition.
Hayley joined Opera Qld Chorus in 2005, was a member of the company’s Developing Artist Program in 2007 and became a Young Artist in 2008.

Hayley has performed extensively on the concert platform and sung in master classes for Yvonne Kenny, Richard Miller, Neil Semer and Richard Bonynge. She recently sang the role of Cherubino in the concert performance of Marriage of Figaro for Brisbane Festival. Hayley has just won the German-Australian Opera Grant worth $64,000, which will enable her to perform at the and study in Wiesbaden, Germany in 2011 and 2012. Read more

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Dominic Walsh- tenor

Dominic is one of Queensland's most promising tenors and was thrilled to be perform for the first time with OPERATIF! last year in 'The Celts are Coming. He is a Young Artist with Opera Queensland.

Dominic studied at the University of Southern Queensland graduating with an Associate Degree in Music (2008). Presently studying with Margaret Schindler at the Queensland Conservatorium Griffith University. For Opera Queensland: Understudied Giuseppe in La traviata, First Prisoner in Fidelio. Performed in the Chorus of The Elixir of Love, La traviata, Rigoletto, Aida. Member of Young Artist Program (2010 and 2011). Other engagements: First Priest and First Armed Man in The Magic Flute (University of Southern Queensland), Prince Charming in Cendrillon, Jonathan in Saul (Queensland Conservatorium Griffith University). Concert repetoire: Mozart’s Requiem, Bach’s St John Passion and Magnificat, Haydn’s Nelson Mass, Handel’s Messiah, Puccini’s Messa di Gloria. Has performed extensively as member of Musica Antiqua Collegii and St Stephen’s Cathedral Choir. Recent engagements: 'Return of The Celts' for OPERATIF, 'Dixit Dominus' for Sunshine Coast Chorale and understudying Ferrando in Così fan tutte (Opera Queensland).in 2012 he tool the role of Nanki-Poo in Opera Queensland's The Mikado. Dominic is currently studying at the Guidhall School of Music, London.

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