Future and Recent Engagements 2014 Next year already has an exciting concert planned – I’ve been asked by Terry Edwards to be the soprano soloist in Britten’s War Requiem with the Watford Philharmonic Society at the Watford Colosseum.  Other plans so far include a collaboration with John Hancorn in Lewes of workshops/performances to commemorate the Battle of Lewes and the centenary of the outbreak of WW1. 2013 This year is turning out to have an unexpectedly south-east-Asian theme, as I’ll be going to Singapore for 5 weeks over the summer to examine for the ABRSM.  On my return in September I’ll be performing in two concerts (Birmingham and London) of Britten’s Peter Grimes with London Voices, before being whisked back to China to tour the piece, along with the War Requiem.  The concerts will be conducted by Vladimir Jurowski in the UK and Charles Dutoit in China, so it promises to be music-making of the highest quality. The spring has been dominated by rehearsals of Verdi’s Aida with Kentish Opera (taking place in May) – it’s fantastic to be returning to the title role for a second time and I am totally loving the music.  Later in the year I hope to be returning to another role – Mimi in La Bohème – having recently been cast by New London Opera Players in their on-going touring production. There are some nice concerts in the diary too – I’ll be performing at the Kentish Opera 60th Anniversary dinner alongside my Radames in Aida, Carlos Fidalgo (look out for this name in future!).  It’s a real privilege to be asked to sing at this occasion as they must have had hundreds of singers to choose from.  Then I’ll be returning to perform with Sevenoaks Philharmonic Choir and their conductor Robyn Sevastos at the Sevenoaks Stag – a lovely programme of Vaughan-Williams’ Dona Nobis Pacem (which I’ve never sung before) and the Tippett Negro Spirituals from A Child of Our Time.  Then later in the year I have been asked to perform my first bit of Wagner – the Liebestod from Tristan and Isolde – with the Farnham Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Mark Fitzgerald.  The programme will also include Aida’s aria, Ritorna Vincitor as this year is the bicentenary of both Wagner and Verdi’s births. The Paddock Singers, based in my home town of Lewes, East Sussex, is continuing to flourish and I’ve now set up the Paddock Youth Singers, who will make their debut at the concert in June. Later in the year we will also be performing evensong at Chichester Cathedral. 2012 2012 was another busy year.  In the spring I was fortunate to have the opportunity to perform a new role – Rosalinde in Strauss’ Die Fledermaus for Kentish Opera.  It was a hectic time as I was also examining for the ABRSM in various parts of the South East of England and sharing the directorship of the Paddock Singers, and I also took part in two fantastic concerts with London Voices at Snape Maltings over Easter.  The repertoire was Beethoven’s 9th Symphony and Schoenberg’s Friede auf Erden, so it was a real pleasure to sing such wonderful music in such a great venue. The summer was taken up with more London Voices work, this time in a huge production of Stockhausen’s Mittwoch aus Licht with Birmingham Opera, as part of the Cultural Olympiad.  The music was inevitably weird but totally enjoyable and very satisfying to learn, and I was really happy to be given a big solo part with lots of top C’s!  Graham Vick was directing the whole thing (six hours worth...) in a former chemical warehouse in Birmingham – so it was a totally memorable and rewarding experience and was made all the more enjoyable by being with such a lovely group of singers. This work dovetailed straight into a contract with Scottish Opera, covering Janice Kelly in the role of Sarah in James MacMillan’s Clemency – it was great to be singing his music again – he writes so well for the voice and it’s a fantastic piece. In the autumn I took over the direction of the Lewes-based Paddock Singers and we worked towards a very successful Christmas concert, in which we premiered some lovely carols by local singer/composer Paul Austin Kelly.  Hopefully this has cemented the choir’s reputation for championing the works of local composers. There were various other concerts during the year (including Rossini’s Petite Messe Solenelle in Cornwall) and several film sessions at Abbey Road with London Voices throughout the autumn, including The Hobbit, The Croods and Escape from Planet Earth. The year finished with me making my “acting” debut (grander than it sounds!) in performances of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, with Jack Shepherd as Scrooge! 2011 During 2011 soprano Ruth Kerr gave performances throughout the UK and Europe. On the opera stage she sang the role of Tatyana in Eugene Onegin for Kentish Opera – her sixth role for this highly imaginative and vibrant company – and was described in reviews as “Excellent... faultless both in singing and acting”. She also returned to the Royal Opera House’s Linbury Theatre to cover the role of Sarah in James MacMillan’s new opera, Clemency, and was thrilled to have the opportunity to sing for the Dress Rehearsal. The autumn brought a welcome return to the role of Violetta in La Traviata with touring company, Opera Interludes, with very well-received performances in both the UK and France. On the concert platform Ruth sang Brahms’ Requiem for Sevenoaks Philharmonic Choir at the Sevenoaks Stag Theatre, Mendelssohn’s St Paul for Bromley Choral Society and Mendelssohn’s Elijah for the Eastbourne Choral Society. She has also regularly performed the fantastic duet Barcelona to audiences of thousands with the unparalleled Queen tribute band, One Night of Queen, with shows in England, Scotland, Denmark and Spain. 2011 also saw Ruth Kerr being appointed as an Examiner for the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music (ABRSM) – an illustrious and respected body of musicians who carry out music examinations of all standards and all instruments throughout the world. In addition, she has continued to be in demand as a Vocal Workshop leader throughout the South East of England and as a conductor for the Lewes-based Paddock Singers.   Return to top