Patrick Ashcroft - Tenor

Patrick Ashcroft

Tenor

Before embarking on a career in music, Patrick completed a PhD. in cosmology at the University of Cambridge. He was a choral scholar of Clare College with whom he toured extensively worldwide and had the opportunity to work with many conductors of international repute. Upon graduation, Patrick won a place on the post-graduate programme at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama where he was generously supported by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, the Lynn Foundation and the John Thaw Foundation.

Since leaving the Guildhall, Patrick has begun to develop a reputation for the difficult and high-lying bel canto rôles of Rossini and Donizetti. In particular, he recently covered Lindoro, The Italian Girl in Algiers for Scottish Opera. He has also sung Fenton to Bryn Terfel's Falstaff, performing as one of Grange Park Opera's Rising Stars, and on tour with Pimlico Opera. In addition, he has also been seen as Almaviva, The Barber of Seville, on tour in the UK and Ireland with Opera UK, and Don Ramiro, La Cenerentola, for Tell Tale Opera which received much acclaim.  He previously covered the same rôle for Scottish Opera Go Round and Scottish Opera on Tour. He has also covered the title rôle in Donizetti's dramatic historical opera Roberto Devereux for the Buxton Festival and sang Bertrando in Rossini's comic opera L'inganno Felice. He is equally at home in other repertoire singing the Suitor in The Sofa (Elizabeth Maconchy) for Independent Opera at Sadler's Wells, a performance that is on general release from Chandos. Patrick gained critical approval for his portrayal of Mr Triquet in Eugene Onegin with English Touring Opera. During the course of that tour he also sang Joseph in J Strauss II's lesser known comedy Wiener Blut. Moreover he has sung Don José, Carmen, in concert; Borsa, Rigoletto; and appeared on stage at the Royal Opera, Covent Garden and Opera Holland Park. Patrick is also no stranger to contemporary compositions and performed Chico Mendes in Martin Read's opera Rainforest.

Patrick is also in demand on the concert platform and has sung Carmina Burana with the CBSO at Symphony Hall, Birmingham. Other performances to date include Acis and Galatea, Handel with Kentish Baroque; Pulcinella, Stravinsky; Messiah, Handel; Creation, Haydn; and Jepthe, Carissimi to name but a handful. He has made his debut at the Windsor festival singing the Nelson Mass, Haydn with the RPO and in the summer of 2006 took part in a concert performance of King Arthur, Purcell at Snape Maltings as a Britten Pears Young Artist.

Future plans include covering Nemorino, L'elisir d'amore for St Albans Chamber Opera, excerpts from Cosí fan tutte, Die Entführung aus dem Serail and Le nozze di Figaro and a contemporary community opera in Basingstoke about the town.

Patrick is grateful for the help and guidance of Justin Lavender.