Gwynne Howell
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Gwynne Howell (born June 13, 1938) is a Welsh bass, particularly associated with Verdi and Wagner roles.
[edit] Life and career
Born in Gorseinon, Wales, he studied at the RMCM, where he sang Leporello in concert, and Hunding, Fasolt, and Pogner in staged performances.
He joined the Sadler's Wells Theatre in 1968, and the Royal Opera House in 1970. He was also a regular guest at the English National Opera and the Welsh National Opera. His roles have included most of the major bass roles of the Verdi and Wagner repertories, such as: Miller, Sparafucile, Ferrando, Padre Guardiano, Phillip II, Landgrave, Hans Sachs, Gurnemanz, etc.
He took part in the premiere of two of Peter Maxwell Davies 's works, Taverner and The Doctor of Myddfai.
Howell possessed a voice of mellow, well rounded timbre, which make him a natural in basso cantante roles, where his authority and quiet dignity provided many memorable performances. He can be heard in studio recordings, as Jero in L'assedio di Corinto, Miller in Luisa Miller, and as Capuleti in a live recording of I Capuleti e i Montecchi, opposite Agnes Baltsa and Edita Gruberova, under Riccardo Muti, at Covent Garden, in 1984.
[edit] Sources
- Grove Music Online, Max Loppert, Oxford University Press, 2008.
