Bethany Horak-Hallett & Natalie Burch

How to Be Alone

Hildegard - O beata infantia
Edvard Grieg - En Svane
George Butterworth - O fair enough are sky and plain
Franz Schubert - Im Abendrot
Clara Schumann - Ich Stand in Dunkeln Träumen
Clara Schumann - Ich hab- in deinem Augen
Clara Schumann - Die Stille Lotusblume
Nico Muhly - Quiet Music
Henri Duparc - Phidyle
Dilys Elwyn-Edwards - Cloths of Heaven
Alexander von Zemlinksy - Sie kam zum Schloss Gegangen
Gustav Mahler - Ich bin der Welt

Through themes of solitude, personal contentment, and reflection, Natalie Burch and Bethany Horak-Hallett present a programme that creates a moment of peace, calm, and tranquil meditation.

Butterworth’s yearnings for a fairer life, Clara Schumann’s moments of quiet stillness, and Mahler’s revelling in the solitary beauty of the natural world all speak to an appetite for a slower, more peaceful pace of life; something Natalie and Bethany hope to offer in this turbulent time for society.

Returning to her alma mater, Leeds University, Rising Star of the Enlightenment Bethany is ‘among the best young singers in Britain today’ (Bachtrack). This year has seen her Garsington Opera debut as Dorabella in John Cox’s production of Così fan Tutte, national tours with the Royal Northern Sinfonia and Southbank Sinfonia, and venue debuts at Queen Elizabeth Hall, Bridgewater Hall, and the Barbican. She looks forward to her ENO debut covering the role of Mercédès in their revival production of Carmen, international tours with the Monteverdi Choir/Sir John Eliot Gardiner and Dunedin Consort/John Butt and her recital debut at the Wigmore Hall.

An alumnus of Chetham’s School of Music and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, Natalie Burch is a dedicated song pianist and curator, interested in the political and social intersection of music and its audiences. She regularly presents recitals at festivals across the country, is an advocate for increasing female representation in the song-piano world and is co-founder of the Devon Song Festival, which returns in 2023 following a hiatus. Much in demand as a song specialist, Natalie regularly collaborates with a number of award-winning artists. Recent and future projects include her debut at the Aldeburgh Festival alongside Lotte Betts-Dean and James Way, a performance of Ukranian composer Valentin Silvestrov’s Silent Songs at the Oxford Lieder Festival and the release of her debut disk with Camilla Harris on Linn Records.

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