Susan Bullock and Jonathan Fisher

Cheshire-born soprano Susan Bullock is known for her fearless artistry, powerful stage presence, and the emotional depth she brings to her performances. Alongside pianist Jonathan Fisher, she brings her deep commitment to storytelling and uncompromising honesty to a programme exploring the influences of opera on late Romantic song.

Wagner’s Wesendonck Lieder uses the poetry of his lover and muse, Mathilde Wesendonck, inspired by the opera Wagner was writing at the time, Tristan and Isolde. Mirroring the opera’s doomed romance, the song cycle reflects the forbidden nature of the relationship between Wagner and his love.

Strongly influenced by the operatic writing of Wagner, the songs of Berg and Duparc share similar dramatic themes of love against the odds, along with orchestral piano writing. Alison Bauld’s Banquo’s Buried is a theatrical portrayal of Lady Macbeth’s sleepwalking scene.

Together, the pair take these songs beyond the parlour, bringing their full dramatic power to life on stage.

Programme
Richard Wagner Wesendonck Lieder
Alban Berg Seven Early Songs
Henri Duparc L’invitation au voyage; Chanson triste; Le manoir de Rosemonde; Phidylé
Alison Bauld Banquo’s Buried

Performers
Susan Bullock soprano
Jonathan Fisher piano