Jane Glover

Last updated


Jane Glover

DBE
Born (1949-05-13) 13 May 1949 (age 74)
NationalityBritish
Education Haberdashers' Monmouth School
Alma mater St Hugh's College, Oxford
Occupations
Organizations
Awards Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire
Website www.jane-glover.com

Dame Jane Alison Glover DBE (born 13 May 1949) is a British conductor and musicologist.

Contents

Early life

Born in Helmsley, Glover attended Haberdashers' Monmouth School for Girls. Her father, Robert Finlay Glover, MA (TCD), was headmaster of Monmouth School and it was through this connection that she was able to meet Benjamin Britten and Peter Pears aged only 16. She later described the meeting:

"I was beside myself with the prospect of hearing them perform. On the afternoon of the concert, the doorbell rang at the headmaster's house, and I went to answer it. There on the step, looking for all the world as they did on one of my record sleeves, distinguished, elegant and with the kindliest of eyes, were Peter Pears and Benjamin Britten my hero."

After reading Music as an undergraduate at St Hugh's College, Oxford, she went on to complete a DPhil on 17th-century Venetian Opera. Dr Glover has published a 1978 biography of Francesco Cavalli, and included material derived from her doctoral thesis.

In 1990, after a sizeable donation, the Glover Music School [1] was opened at Monmouth School by Jane Glover, in memory of her father. Her brother, Richard Glover, served as Master Haberdasher (2015–16).

Career

Glover first conducted at Oxford as a student, in a production of Athalia, and went on to conduct the first performance in modern times of Cavalli's Rosinda for the Oxford University Opera Club in October 1973. [2]

She made her professional debut at the Wexford Festival in 1975 with the first modern performance of Eritrea [3] and joined Glyndebourne in 1979. She was music director of Glyndebourne Touring Opera from 1981 to 1985. She has been both principal conductor and principal guest conductor of the Huddersfield Choral Society and continues to work with the choir on a semi-regular basis. [4] She conducted the world premiere of Il Giardino by Stephen Oliver at the Batignano Festival in 1977. [3]

During the 1980s, Glover regularly broadcast on BBC Television including hosting the television series Orchestra with Jane Glover in 1983 and Mozart – His Life with Music in 1985.

Glover was the Music Director of the London Mozart Players from 1984 to 1991. Glover was a BBC governor from 1990 to 1995. [5] She conducted the Ken Russell production of Princess Ida for ENO at the Coliseum Theatre in 1992. [6] Since 2002, she has been Music Director of the Chicago ensemble Music of the Baroque.

Glover is a Fellow of the Royal College of Music and was the artistic director of opera at the Royal Academy of Music between 2009 and 2016. On 18 March 2011, she conducted the world première of Sir Peter Maxwell Davies's opera Kommilitonen! at the Academy. [7]

In December 2013, she became the third woman ever to conduct at the Metropolitan Opera of New York, leading Mozart's The Magic Flute in the production of Julie Taymor. [8] She has been a regular collaborator with choreographer Mark Morris.

In January 2023, Glover first guest-conducted the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra (FWSO). In February 2024, the FWSO announced the appointment of Glover as its next principal guest conductor, the first female conductor ever named to the post, effective 1 August 2025. [9]

Honours

Glover was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2003 New Year Honours and a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 2021 New Year Honours for services to music. [10]

Writings and recordings

In September 2005, Macmillan published Glover's book Mozart's Women: His Family, His Friends, His Music. The book investigates the extent to which the women surrounding Mozart – his mother, sister, wife and his wife's sisters – influenced his development as a composer. In 2018, her Handel in London: The Making of a Genius, was published, which charts the composer's work as "immigrant musical genius, composer, performer and impresario", placed in the social and political context of London of the time. [11]

Her recordings include Cavalli ( La Calisto - extracts), Handel ( Messiah ; Water Music suites 1-3), Haydn (Symphonies 80, 87, 89, 101, 102, 103, 104; 'Harmoniemesse' and 'Schöpfungsmesse', Mozart (Symphonies 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 35, 36, 38, 39, 40, 41; Divertimenti K. 136-K. 138 & Serenade K. 525, "Eine Kleine Nachtmusik"; Serenade for 13 Wind Instruments K361; Requiem K.626), Mendelssohn (Violin Concerto Op. 64; "A Midsummer Night's Dream" incidental music), Britten (Les Illuminations; Nocturne; Sinfonietta).

Works

Related Research Articles

Ileana Cotrubaș is a Romanian operatic soprano whose career spanned from the 1960s to the 1980s. She was much admired for her acting skills and facility for singing opera in many different languages.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">English Chamber Orchestra</span> British symphony orchestra

The English Chamber Orchestra (ECO) is a British chamber orchestra based in London. The full orchestra regularly plays concerts at Cadogan Hall, and their ensemble performs at Wigmore Hall. With a limited performance size, the orchestra specializes in 18th-century music and was created to perform Baroque Music. The orchestra regularly tours in the UK and internationally, and holds the distinction of having the most extensive discography of any chamber orchestra and being the most well-traveled orchestra in the world; no other orchestra has played concerts (as of 2013, according to its own publicity) in as many countries as the English Chamber Orchestra.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Colin Davis</span> English conductor

Sir Colin Rex Davis was an English conductor, known for his association with the London Symphony Orchestra, having first conducted it in 1959. His repertoire was broad, but among the composers with whom he was particularly associated were Mozart, Berlioz, Elgar, Sibelius, Stravinsky and Tippett.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Mackerras</span> Australian conductor

Sir Alan Charles MacLaurin Mackerras was an Australian conductor. He was an authority on the operas of Janáček and Mozart, and the comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan. He was long associated with the English National Opera and Welsh National Opera and was the first Australian chief conductor of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. He also specialized in Czech music as a whole, producing many recordings for the Czech label Supraphon.

Raymond John Leppard was a British-American conductor, harpsichordist, composer and editor. In the 1960s, he played a prime role in the rebirth of interest in Baroque music; in particular, he was one of the first major conductors to perform Baroque opera, reviving works by Claudio Monteverdi and Francesco Cavalli. He conducted operas at major international opera houses and festivals, including the Glyndebourne Festival where he led the world premiere of Nicholas Maw's The Rising of the Moon, the Metropolitan Opera and the Royal Opera House. He composed film scores such as Lord of the Flies and Alfred the Great.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Janet Baker</span> English mezzo-soprano

Dame Janet Abbott Baker is an English mezzo-soprano best known as an opera, concert, and lieder singer.

Dame Felicity Ann Emwhyla Lott, is an English soprano.

Sir John Michael Pritchard, was an English conductor. He was known for his interpretations of Mozart operas and for his support of contemporary music.

David Atherton is an English conductor and founder of the London Sinfonietta.

Susan Gritton is an English operatic soprano. She was the 1994 winner of the Kathleen Ferrier Award and has sung leading roles in a wide-ranging repertoire from Handel and Mozart to Britten, Janáček and Strauss.

Paul Goodwin is an English conductor and former oboist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sarah Connolly</span> English mezzo-soprano

Dame Sarah Patricia Connolly is an English mezzo-soprano. Although best known for her baroque and classical roles, Connolly has a wide-ranging repertoire which has included works by Wagner as well as various 20th-century composers. She was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2010 New Year Honours and a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 2017 Birthday Honours for services to music.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra</span> American symphony orchestra

The Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra (FWSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in Fort Worth, Texas. The orchestra is resident at the Nancy Lee and Perry R. Bass Performance Hall. In addition to its symphonic and pops concert series, the FWSO also collaborates with the Fort Worth Opera, Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, Southwestern Seminary Master Chorale. and the Children's Education Program of Bass Performance Hall. The FWSO also presents the Concerts In The Garden summer music festival at the Fort Worth Botanic Garden.

Rae Woodland was a British soprano who studied with Roy Henderson. Her debut was as Queen of the Night at Sadlers Wells. She sang in many European festivals, and debuted at Covent Garden in La sonnambula with Joan Sutherland and Luciano Pavarotti. She was first asked to sing for Benjamin Britten on the English Opera Group's tour of Russia, and played many roles for him subsequently. She also created roles for Gottfried von Einem, Nicholas Maw and Sir Arthur Bliss, and made many live broadcasts for the BBC, from the RAH Proms to Friday Night is Music Night. She retired from the opera stage in 1984. She then taught singing at the Royal Academy of Music in London, and at the Britten-Pears School in Snape Maltings on the invitation of Sir Peter Pears.

April Rosemary Cantelo is an English soprano.

Rachel Nicholls is an English soprano in opera and concert.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roberta Alexander</span> American operatic soprano

Roberta Alexander is an American operatic soprano. She began her career as a lyric soprano in 1975 and spent the next three decades performing principal roles with opera houses internationally. Particularly celebrated for her performances of Mozart heroines, she was a leading soprano at the Metropolitan Opera from 1983 to 1991. In addition to principal Mozart roles like Countess Almaviva, Elettra, Fiordiligi, and Donna Elvira, she had particular success with the parts of Mimì in Puccini's La bohème and the title role in Janáček's Jenůfa. More recently she has performed secondary character roles on stage, including performances at the Grand Théâtre de Provence in 2013, La Scala in 2014, and La Monnaie in 2015. She performed the Fifth Maid in Strauss's Elektra at the Met in 2016 and Curra in Verdi's La forza del destino at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, in 2019.

Christopher Moulds is an English conductor of classical and baroque operas.

Ying Fang is a Chinese operatic soprano. A principal soprano at the Metropolitan Opera in Manhattan, she won the Golden Bell Award at the Guangdong Singing Competition in China in 2009, first prize at the Gerda Lissner International Vocal Competition in 2013, and the Lincoln Center Segal Award in 2015. Her performances have been featured on the television program Great Performances at the Met and in movie theaters for the Metropolitan Opera Live in HD. In 2015 Opera News stated that "Ying Fang sings with exquisite simplicity and directness. The twenty-eight-year-old soprano never forces her sound or indulges in coloratura 'flash.' She is incapable of vulgarity; her dignity is unshakeable, and her powers of persuasion are sovereign."

Patricia Johnson is an English operatic mezzo-soprano. She made an international career and is known for her dramatic voice and her stage presence. She appeared in leading roles of the repertory, such as Carmen and Eboli, and created new roles, such as the Baronin Grünwiesel in Henze's Der junge Lord, and the Princess in Nicolas Nabokov's Love's Labour's Lost.

References

  1. "Music | Monmouth School for Boys". Habsmonmouth.org. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  2. Musical Times, Vol, 114, 1560, February 1973.
  3. 1 2 Adam, Nicky (ed). Jane Glover. In: Who's Who in British Opera. Scolar Press, Aldershot, 1993.
  4. Allan Kozinn (31 March 2002). "Working Her Way Through Handel". The New York Times . Retrieved 12 October 2007.
  5. Butler, David; Butler, Gareth (November 2005). British Political Facts Since 1979. Springer. p. 278. ISBN   9780230554764 . Retrieved 17 January 2018.
  6. Jacobs, Arthur. Princess Ida - English National Opera at the London Coliseum, November 14. Opera , January 1993, Vol.44 No.1, p107-110.
  7. George Hall: Review of the première, in The Stage Accessed 24 February 2018
  8. Anthony Tommasini (17 December 2013). "A Rollicking Treat Infused With Grace and Gravitas". The New York Times. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  9. "Jane Glover Appointed Principal Guest Conductor of Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra" (PDF) (Press release). Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra. 26 February 2024. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
  10. "No. 63218". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 December 2020. p. N7.
  11. Canning, Hugh. Review of Handel in London: The Making of a Genius. Opera , January 2019, Vol 70 No 1, p114-115.

Interviews

Cultural offices
Preceded by Music Director, Glyndebourne Touring Opera
1981–1985
Succeeded by
Preceded by Music Director, London Mozart Players
1984–1991
Succeeded by
Preceded by
Thomas Strecker Wikman
Music Director, Music of the Baroque
2002–present
Succeeded by
incumbent