Andri Róbertsson reports from Switzerland
Posted on 18 December 2014
He had caught Dame Kiri’s attention 3 years earlier and was invited to attend several master classes with her as well as singing as her guest at special concerts. Dame Kiri continued to mentor him over the next 3 years including his attendance at the 2009 Solti Te Kanawa Accademia di bel canto.
In 2013 when Andri was offered an opportunity to attend the National Opera Studio the Kiri Te Kanawa Foundation (UK) agreed to support him with a Tuition Scholarship to cover his tuition fees.
“I am at the Opera Studio in Zürich this year. They work you very hard here so I am busy. This year I am doing Der König in a children’s opera called Die Gänsemagd, Brabantishe Edle in Lohengrin and Sprecher in Die Zauberflöte. I am also in a new modern opera called Fälle. And on top of that I am covering both Figaro in Le Nozze and Dulcamara in L’elisir d’Amore. And then I am travelling to Amsterdam, Valence, Paris and other places doing a revival of the Bach show I did at the Aix en Provence festival in the summer.
The Aix en Provence festival have also made me a HSBC Laureate of the festival, so I have a three year contract with them, including recitals and publishing of a CD. They also want to create a long term relationship with me like that, which is good.
The lessons I had with Janice Chapman in the spring, with financial support of the Foundation, were really good and have helped me forward in my singing I feel. So I am busy, which is good! My grandma always tells me not to complain when I have too much to do, because that’s better than to have nothing to do!”