Fear No More Brindley Sherratt & Julius Drake

• Franz Schubert (1797 - 1828): Fahrt zum Hades, D. 526:
• 1 Schubert: Fahrt zum Hades, D. 526 05:14
• Der Schiffer, D. 536:
• 2 Schubert: Der Schiffer, D. 536 01:56
• 3 Gesänge, D. 902:
• 3 Schubert: 3 Gesänge, D. 902: No. 1, L’incanto degli occhi 03:34
• Auf der Donau, D. 553:
• 4 Schubert: Auf der Donau, D. 553 03:24
• Der Tod und das Mädchen, D. 531:
• 5 Schubert: Der Tod und das Mädchen, D. 531 02:39
• Richard Strauss (1864 - 1949): 6 Lieder, Op. 56:
• 6 Strauss: 6 Lieder, Op. 56: No. 3, Im Spätboot 04:34
• Modest Mussorgsky (1839 - 1881): Songs and Dances of Death:
• 7 Mussorgsky: Songs and Dances of Death: No. 1, Lullaby 04:50
• 8 Mussorgsky: Songs and Dances of Death: No. 2, Serenade 04:24
• 9 Mussorgsky: Songs and Dances of Death: No. 3, Trepak (Russian Dance) 05:02
• 10 Mussorgsky: Songs and Dances of Death: No. 4, Commander-in-Chief 05:31
• John Ireland (1914 - 1992): Sea Fever:
• 11 Ireland: Sea Fever 02:24
• Gerald Finzi (1901 - 1956): Let Us Garlands Bring, Op. 18:
• 12 Finzi: Let Us Garlands Bring, Op. 18: No. 3, Fear no more the heat o' the sun 05:36
• Ivor Gurney (1890 - 1937): By a Bierside:
• 13 Gurney: By a Bierside 04:28
• Michael Head (b. 1961): 6 Sea Songs:
• 14 Head: 6 Sea Songs: No. 2, Limehouse Reach 02:36
• Peter Warlock (1894 - 1930): Captain Stratton's Fancy:
• 15 Warlock: Captain Stratton's Fancy 01:59
• Total Runtime 58:11

Info for Fear No More

Brindley Sherratt’s pre-eminence as an operatic bass is the result of two daring career shifts. Initially trained as a trumpeter, he gave up his first instrument as a student to become a singer. Yet even then, it was only in his mid-thirties that he left the professional security of a position in the BBC Singers to explore the world of opera.

Now, the voyage of discovery continues as Sherratt turns to the intimate medium of the song recital. With the superb pianist Julius Drake as collaborator, in Fear No More Sherratt draws on all of his accumulated technical and expressive wisdom to traverse death-haunted songs by Schubert, Mussorgsky and Richard Strauss before arriving at a final group of five twentieth-century English songs in which consolation and acceptance are the keynotes.

Brindley Sherratt, bass
Julius Drake, piano

Brindley Sherratt
British bass Brindley Sherratt is one of today’s most respected singers. Revered for his extraordinary vocal and stage presence, he is noted all over the world for roles such as Claggart Billy Budd, Gurnemanz Parsifal, Hunding Die Walküre and Sarastro Die Zauberflöte, a role he has performed over a hundred times.

Highlights of his 2023/24 season include a double appearance at the Bayerische Stataosper as Rocco Fidelio and as Astradamors in a new production of Le Grand Macabre by Krzysztof Warlikowski; Zebul in Oliver Mears’ new production of Jeptha at Royal Opera House; a highly anticipated return to the Metropolitan Opera as Sarastro Die Zauberflöte; and his role debut as Hagen Götterdämmerung with the London Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Vladimir Jurowski. He can also be heard in Act 1 of Die Walküre at theTeatro dell’Opera di Roma conducted by Omer Meir Wellber; Mussorgsky Songs and Dances of Death with the Orquesta y Coro Nacionales de España in Madrid; and a recital at Wigmore Hall with pianist Julius Drake.

Last season, Sherratt made his Opéra National de Paris debut as Sarastro Die Zauberflöte, a role which he also reprised at the Royal Opera House. He also appeared as the Doktor Wozzeck in new productions at the Royal Opera House and the Festival d’Aix en Provence and Swallow in Stefan Herheim’s acclaimed production of Peter Grimes at Bayerische Staatsoper. On the concert platform, he was seen as Gurnemanz Parsifal with the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Edward Gardner; Harapha in Handel Samson at the BBC Proms with the Academy of Ancient Music conducted by Laurence Cummings; Beethoven Missa Solemnis at the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence conducted by Thomas Hengelbrock and Sarastro Die Zauberflöte at the Edinburgh International Festival under the baton of Maxim Emelyanychev.

Further engagements include a hugely acclaimed debut as Gurnemanz in semi-staged performances of Parsifalwith the Orchestra of Opera North conducted by Richard Farnes; Hunding in Richard Jones’ new production of The Valkyrie for the English National Opera; Claggart Billy Budd, Sarastro, Sparafucile Rigoletto, Gremin Eugene Onegin, Fafner in The Ring Cycle, Ramfis Aida , Il Commendatore Don Giovanni and Timur Turandot, all at Royal Opera House; Ochs Der Rosenkavalier for the Glyndebourne Festival and the Welsh National Opera; Marke Tristan und Isolde for the Glyndebourne Festival; Sarastro at the Wiener Staatsoper, Hamburgische Staatsoper and for the Dutch National Opera and Glyndebourne Festival; Claggart for the Teatro Réal in Madrid, at the Glyndebourne and Aldeburgh Festivals and at the BBC Proms; Geronte di Ravoir Manon Lescaut for the Metropolitan Opera; Bottom A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence; Doctor Wozzeck at the Lyric Opera of Chicago and Arkel Pelléas et Mélisande for the Opernhaus Zurich, Oper Frankfurt and Glyndebourne Festival. His many roles for the English National Opera include Sarastro, Pimen Boris Gudonov and Fiesco Simon Boccanegra. He has also sung Judge Turpin Sweeney Todd at the Opernhaus Zurich; Banco Macbeth for the Opéra de Bordeaux; Pimen for the Opéra de Nice; Balducci Benvenuto Cellini and Hobson Peter Grimes in Salzburg; Rocco in Seville; Pogner Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg for the Welsh National Opera and Fasolt Das Rheingold and Filippo Don Carlo for Opera North.

Highly in demand on the concert platform, he has appeared at the Bregenz, Edinburgh, Lucerne, Salzburg and Three Choirs Festivals and at the BBC Proms. He works regularly with leading orchestras and conductors and recent engagements have included the Dallas Symphony Orchestra conducted by Fabio Luisi; Orchestra of the Royal Opera House with Pappano; the Philharmonia with Sir Andrew Davis; the Hallé Orchestra with Sir Mark Elder; the Mahler Chamber Orchestra with Harding; the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra with Bicket; the Monteverdi Choir with Gardiner; the Scottish Chamber Orchestra with Nézet-Séguin and the Orchestre des Champs-Elysées and Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen with Langrée.

He has recorded the roles of Polyphemus Acis and Galetea (Nimbus); Somnus/Cadmus Semele and Ariodate Serse (Chandos); Ubaldo in Donizetti’s Imelda de Lambertazzi and Goffredo in Bellini’s Il Pirata(Opera Rara); Rocco Fidelio (Glyndebourne Live) as well as Judas in The Apostles with the Hallé Orchestra and Sir Mark Elder; Beethoven Missa Solemnis with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe and John Nelson and Haydn Masses and Bach Cantatas with the Monteverdi Choir and Sir John Eliot Gardiner.

Born in Lancashire into a family of strong singers, he initially studied trumpet at the Royal Academy of Music, and is now a Visiting Professor at both the Royal Academy and the Royal College of Music.

Booklet for Fear No More