Praised for her crystal-clear voice, British soprano Sarah Gilford is a recent Song Prize finalist at BBC Cardiff Singer of the World 2021 and an alumnus of the prestigious Opernstudio at the Bayerische Staatsoper. In the 2021/2022 season, she was a member of the ensemble at the Stadttheater Klagenfurt.
Sarah Gilford begins the new season as Juliette in Korngold’s Die tote Stadt at the Bergen Opera in a new production staged by Calixto Bieito. In December, she can be heard as a soloist in Beethoven’s 9th Symphony alongside the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at the Barbican Center before she joins the Armenian National Symphony Orchestra for a New Year´s gala concert. In Munich, she can be heard in Mahler´s 2nd Symphony later this season.
Winner of the 2024 “Bolko von Hochberg Song Competition”
2023/24 season
In the 2023/24 season, Sarah Gilford could be heard as Woglinde in Wagner’s Götterdämmerung at the Theater in Klagenfurt as well as in Handel’s Messiah, also at the Theater Klagenfurt. She also made her role debut as the Governess in Isabelle Kettle’s new production of Britten’s The Turn of the Screw at Theatre Royal in Bath. She sang Beethoven’s 9th Symphony with the Filarmonica Arturo Toscanini in Parma and also made her debut at the Hamburg State Opera as First Niece in Peter Grimes and her debut as Dalinda in Handel’s Ariodante with Les Arts Florissants under the baton of William Christie at the Grand Théâtre de Genève.
Elias, Werther, Rigoletto
Highlights of previous seasons include Mendelssohn’s Elijah with the Berlin Philharmonic and her debut as Sophie in Werther at the Royal Opera House Covent Garden under the baton of Sir Antonio Pappano. She also made her debut at Wigmore Hall in London with pianist Ewa Danilewska. At the Stadttheater Klagenfurt, she sang Susanna in Le Nozze di Figaro, Soprano I in Rihm’s Jakob Lenz, and Gilda in Rigoletto. In addition, she could be heard in recitals in Madrid, Rome, and London as part of the Imogen Cooper Musical Trust. At the Bavarian State Opera, Sarah Gilford performed roles including the title role in Thomas’s Mignon at the Cuvilliés Theatre, as Giannetta in L’Elisir d’Amore, as Taumännchen in Hansel und Gretel, and as Barbarina in Le nozze di Figaro.
