Morgan Pearse

Baritone

Management

Helen Hogh
[email protected]

Fiona Wells
[email protected]

Representation:

  • - Worldwide
  • - Europe
  • - UK

Biography

Already established as one of the most exciting baritones of his generation, Morgan has appeared on global opera and concert stages in many exciting debuts including title roles in The Barber of Seville at English National Opera, Don Giovanni at the Verbier Festival and recently a critically acclaimed new production of Le Nozze di Figaro at the Zurich Opera. Previously, Morgan has enjoyed success with performances of Valens in Theodora in the Karlsruhe Händelfestpiele, the title role in Le Nozze di Figaro and Papageno in Die Zauberflöte for the Badisches Staatstheater, Belcore in L’Elisir d’Amore and Escamillo in Carmen, both with the State Opera of South Australia, Masetto in Don Giovanni and Belcore in L’Elisir d’Amore for NZ Opera, covering the title role in Billy Budd for the Bolshoi Theatre, Sid in Albert Herring for the Buxton Festival as well as Nero in Kaiser’s Octavia and Almiro in Pasquini’s Idalma, both for the Innsbruck Festival of Early Music.  Recent and future engagements include Scarpia / Tosca for Opera Holland Park,  Enrico / Lucia di Lammermoor for the State Opera of South Australia and Opera Holland Park and Achilla / Giulio Cesare with the English Concert.

Equally at home in concert repertoire, Morgan has had engagements with diverse ensembles including the Academy of Ancient Music, Apartment House, Australian String Quartet, Birmingham Philharmonic Orchestra, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra. Britten Sinfonia, Cheltenham Bach Choir, English Chamber Orchestra, Gabrieli Consort, Huddersfield Choral Society, Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, King’s College Choir Cambridge, London Philharmonia, Moscow Musica Viva Chamber Orchestra, Netherlands Radio Philharmonic, Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, Real Orquesta Sinfonica de Sevillia, RTVE Madrid, Russian National Orchestra and Zurich’s La Scintilla and Philharmonia Orchestras. He performed the Sea Symphony with the BBC Symphony under Sakari Oramo and recently celebrated the milestone of his 113th performance of Handel’s Messiah with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra under Jeanette Sorrell in January 2024.  Future concerts include further Messiahs in Copenhagen, London and Melbourne as well as engagements with the Gabrieli Consort, Adelaide Symphony Orchestra and Tasmania Symphony Orchestra.

He has appeared at venues including Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw, Barcelona’s Palau de la Música, Copenhagen’s Koncerthuset, Hamer Hall, Melbourne Recital Hall, Purcell Room, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Royal Festival Hall, St John’s Smith Square, Sydney Opera House, UKARIA and Wigmore Hall, as well as the Buxton International, Edinburgh Fringe, Gower, Innsbruck alte Musik, Karlsruhe Händel, Newbury Spring and Verbier Festivals.

Morgan appears on several recent recordings including the Gramophone award winning Academy of Ancient Music’s Dussek Mass Solemnelle and Handel’s Brockes Passion with the same ensemble. Additional recordings include the orchestral premiere of Eleanor Alberga’s The Soul’s Expression and Bernard van Dieren’s Chinese Symphony and with BBC National Orchestra Wales and live recordings singing Figaro in ENO’s Barber of Seville for SKY Arts, Escamillo in SOSA’s production of Carmen and the critically acclaimed recording of Pasquini’s Idalma from the Innsbruck Festwochen der alte Musik.

Whilst a member of the renowned Houston Grand Opera studio programme, Morgan performed the roles of Papageno in Die Zauberflöte, Yamadori in Madama Butterfly and Anthony in Sweeney Todd.  He went on to perform the role of Figaro in The Ghosts of Versailles for Wolf Trap Opera, the title role in Owen Wingrave for Sydney Chamber Opera, Pompeo in Benvenuto Cellini for English National Opera, the title role in Imeneo as well as Minos in Arianna in Creta, both with the London Handel Festival, Apollo in L’Orfeo in an Australian national tour of the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra, Principal Baritone in Dioclesian with Pinchgut Opera and the world premiere of Underground Man in Notes from Underground with Sydney Chamber Opera.

Morgan’s awards include winning the prestigious Cesti Competition, RCM Lies Askonas prize and being the gold medallist in the Royal Overseas League’s Music Competition. He is extremely grateful for the continual support of the Hon. Ros Kelly, Old Sydneians’ Union, John Hosier Trust, Opera and Arts Support Group, Ian Potter Cultural Trust and Sir Robert Askin Travelling Operatic Scholarship.

This biography is for website use only. For a full and updated biography, please email [email protected]

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Reviews

  • Tosca with Opera Holland Park

    Most impressive of the three leads is Morgan Pearse as Scarpia. Combining his ample, forthright voice with a fearsome demeanour and a finely articulated overview, he embodies one of opera’s great villains in a manner that makes him without question the baritone you love to hate.

    George Hall The Stage / May 2024
  • Tosca with Opera Holland Park

    Baritone Morgan Pearse sang splendidly in London last week in Vaughan Williams’ Sea Symphony, without sounding like a Scarpia-in-waiting. But this Scarpia has been stripped of his Barony, along with his vocal clichés – no hammy snarling here. Pearse’s focussed tone, clear diction and precise intonation are blessings in any role, but added to his stage manner as a smiling devil in a well-cut Italian suit, he was villainous enough to earn some pantomime boos at the curtain.

    Roy Westbrook Bachtrack / May 2024
  • Vaughan Williams' Sea Symphony with BBC SO

    Morgan Pearse has a well-focussed and articulate baritone.

    Roy Westbrook Bachtrack / May 2024
  • The Barber of Seville, ENO London

    And, Pearse’s effortless vocal projection added to our sense of a man-about-town at ease with himself and in calm control of the situation, as when Figaro commandingly interrupted the chaotic maelstrom of the Act 1 Finale.

    Claire Seymour Opera Today
  • HGO's Sweeney Todd

    Only Mr. Pearse, as love-smacked Anthony, has the requisite fire of youth and stirring voice to give his ballads spontaneity and lyricism

    D. L. Groover Houston Press

News

  • Morgan Pearse wins 7th Cesti competition
    27.08.16

    Morgan Pearse wins 7th Cesti competition

  • Baritone Morgan Pearse joins Ingpen and Williams
    12.01.16

    Baritone Morgan Pearse joins Ingpen and Williams