Surrey Mozart Players

Philip Ellis
www.philipellisconductor.com

This concert will be conducted by Philip Ellis who was appointed as Music Director of the Surrey Mozart Players in March 2023.  

Since winning first prize in the Leeds Conductors’ Competition in 1991, Philip Ellis has worked extensively throughout the UK conducting many concerts with the Philharmonia, London Philharmonic, Royal Philharmonic, Hallé, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, BBC Philharmonic, BBC National Orchestra of Wales, BBC Concert Orchestra, Ulster Orchestra, London Mozart Players, English Chamber Orchestra, Orchestra of Opera North, City of London Sinfonia, Northern Sinfonia and over 400 concerts with English Sinfonia.  He is a passionate supporter of Music Education and has worked extensively with amateur orchestras, community and youth groups throughout his career.  He is very much looking forward to a long and exciting collaboration with Surrey Mozart Players as their new Music Director, working together with this wonderful orchestra on the next stage of their already distinguished musical journey.

He made his international debut conducting the Singapore Symphony Orchestra in 1987, leading to engagements with Hong Kong Philharmonic, Netherlands Radio Symphony, Belgian National Orchestra, Flanders Symphony, St Petersburg Philharmonic, St Petersburg Symphony, National Orchestra of Mexico, Western Australian Symphony, Sydney Symphony, Melbourne Symphony, Würtembergische Philharmonie Reutlingen, Neue Philharmonie Westfallen and many broadcast concerts with the BRTN Philharmonic (Brussels) for radio and television.

Philip Ellis works extensively as a conductor for dance.  As conductor for Birmingham Royal Ballet since 1989, he has conducted the majority of their productions.  He also regularly guest-conducts for international ballet companies: The Royal Ballet at Covent Garden, La Scala Ballet in Milan, Paris Opera Ballet at the Opera Garnier, The Australian Ballet, Finnish National Ballet, Royal Swedish Ballet, Dutch National Ballet, Mikhailovsky Ballet, National Ballet of Canada, Hong Kong Ballet, Tokyo Ballet, Korean National Ballet and Gothenburg Ballet.

On CD, he has recorded Prokofiev Peter and the Wolf and Saint-Saëns Carnival of the Animals with the Philharmonia. Copland Rodeo, Appalachian Spring, Billy the Kid, El Salon Mexico and a series of Concert Classics discs with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. Contemporary Clarinet Concertos for Nimbus with Emma Johnson and Tchaikovsky Rococo Variations with Dimitri Ferschtman, recorded live in concert from the Concertgebouw Hall in Amsterdam.   

In his free time, he is a keen artist, particularly interested in portraiture - working in a wide range of media. A selection of his work can be seen on his website www.philipellisconductor.com and on instagram @philellisart. 

Janice Watson

Janice Watson is one of the worlds’ major sopranos, renowned for the beauty of her sound. A flautist originally, she began taking singing seriously at the instigation of tenor Phillip Langridge. She studied firstly with Johanna Peters at the Guildhall in London, then later with Renata Scotto. There followed a period at the Ravel Institute in Ciboure, culminating in a Concert performance of Sheherezade with Michel Plasson and the Toulouse Symphony Orchestra. Then at the age of 23 she won the Kathleen Ferrier Award and the Royal Overseas League, which launched her into the upper levels of the singing profession.

Janice has performed in most of the major opera houses of the world including; Covent Garden, Metropolitan Opera New York, Chicago, Santa Fe, San Francisco, Vienna, Paris, Lyon, Amsterdam, Berlin, Hamburg, La Scala Milan, Naples, Turin, Sydney, Beijing, Tokyo, and has been a regular guest with both English National Opera and Welsh National Opera.

Conductors she has worked with include; Riccardo Chailly, Ed Gardner, Sir Charles Mackerras, Sir Bernard Haitink, Neeme Jervi, Trevor Pinnock, John Elliot Gardiner, Franz Welser-Möst, Danielle Gatti, Robin Ticciati, David Atherton, David Parry, David Hill, Richard Hickox, Franz Bruggen, Gustavo Dudamel, Antonio Pappano, Andre Previn, Kurt Masur, Mark Elder, Donald Runnicles, Martin Brabbins, Vassily Sinaisky, and Sir Andrew Davis.

Roles include; Countess (Nozze di Figaro), Ellen Orford, Arabella, Daphne, Ariadne, Marschallin, Salome, Musetta, Katja Kabanova, Jenufa, Blanche & Stella (Streetcar named Desire), Alice Ford, Leonore, Elisabetta (Don Carlos), Elsa (Lohengrin), Elisabeth (Tannhaüser), Sieglinde, Isolde, Kundry, Madame Lidoine (Carmelites) Hecuba (King Priam).

Janice has also done many recordings. Her performance of Ellen Orford in Peter Grimes for Chandos with Richard Hickox and LSO won her a Grammy, and she has received 2 further nominations. Other recordings include Elisabeth (Don Carlos) and Jenufa for Chandos, A Poisoned Kiss, Owen Wingrave, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Dvorak Stabat Mater, Beethoven Missa Solemnis & Ah Perfido, Poulenc Gloria and Stabat Mater, Bernard Hermann’s ‘Citizen Cane’-Saalambo’s Aria with the Scottish National Orchestra. A recent recording of Delius Mass of Life and Prelude & Idyll for Naxos was recently CD of the week both on Radio3 and in Gramophone magazine.

Concert work includes the Britten Spring Symphony at The Tanglewood Festival in Boston, Die Walküre in Hong Kong, a concert tour of the Far East with the BBC Symphony Orchestra, many performances of the Britten War Requiem, Vaughan-Williams’ Sea Symphony, Mahler Symphonies, Strauss 4 Last Songs, Walton’s Facade (Janice has performed the Speaking role in duet with Sir Andrew Davis),  Rachmaninov’s “The Bells”, Beethoven Masses, Mozart Mass in C and Requiem, and many Oratorios by Handel and Mendelssohn. Janice has sung many times at the Royal Albert Hall Proms and the Edinburgh Festival.

 © Music International
https://musicint.co.uk/ 

To follow

Venue Location

The concert takes place at Holy Trinity Church in the centre of Guildford.

Holy Trinity Church
High Street
Guildford
GR1 3RR

By Road

Guildford is reached via the A3 (London or Portsmouth directions).  

By Train

The church is approximately 10 minutes walk from Guildford Mainline Station which is served by regular trains to/from London Waterloo and Victoria, Portsmouth, Reading, Gatwick Airport, Haselmere and Ascot.

Parking

The nearest car park is:

Castle Car Park, Sydenham Road, GU1 3RW (for Holy Trinity & Trinity Centre)

Accessibility

A ramp is available at one of the entrances to the church.  Please contact us on surreymozartplayers@gmail.com if you have any specific requirements.

Refreshments

Drinks will be available before the concert and during the interval.