Member Article

Return to "spiritual home" for tenor

A former Durham Cathedral choral scholar has been persuaded to give Newcastle concert goers a chance to hear the voice which has won him a New York debut later this year. Tenor Michael Bracegirdle is to be a special guest for the North East Promenaders Against Cancer who are staging the annual Suzanne Manuell concert on 12 April.

The event at Newcastle Civic Centre’s Banqueting Hall was launched 13 years ago by the soprano Suzanne Manuell, and funds are donated to cancer research at the RVI and patient care in the North East.

Michael said: “I’m delighted to have the chance to support such a vital cause, and also return to the area which was my home for eleven years. It is still very much my spiritual home.”

The singer’s rise in the opera world comes after he decided to abandon a successful business career for his first love: music. He combined his four years as a choral scholar in the Durham Cathedral Choir with studies for an economics degree and went on to qualify as a chartered accountant and subsequently worked as a finance director in different parts of the UK.

The turning point came five years ago when he joined a local choir. Seven months later he won a place at the Royal Northern College of Music and in 2006 he won the Emmy Destinn Award for Young Singers in Prague.

Rosalynde Walker, founder of NEPAC, said: “We’re all very fortunate to have the chance to enjoy listening to such talented artists as Michael and Suzanne, and appreciate their support for research to make a difference for cancer patients in the region.”

Full details of the Suzanne Manuell concert are on www.nepac.org.uk.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .