Conductor

Graham Lea-Cox records for Sanctuary Classics (UK)-Enquiries: [email protected]://www.corradodeinnocentiis .com*********************Graham Lea-Cox was born in Zimbabwe (then Rhodesia) and began his professional musical career as a boy-chorister in the Choir of Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford. After completing High School in Zimbabwe, he entered the Royal College of Music (RCM) in London as an Exhibitioner and subsequently went on to Oxford University, from where he graduated with a BA (Hons) degree in Music. His studies included conducting (with Norman Del Mar in London and Herbert Blomstedt in Los Angeles), violoncello (with Antonio Butler, RCM) and organ (with Richard Popplewell, RCM and André Marchal, France). In opera he trained as a repetiteur at the RCM Opera School and at English National Opera.On graduating from Oxford he was appointed Artistic Director of the Texas Boys' Choir (Dallas, USA). As Artistic Director and conductor of this US secular Choir School and its professional Touring Choir, he made five trans-national tours of the US, as well as tours to Japan and Hong Kong. Whilst in the USA he prepared choruses for several major orchestras, including the Dallas Symphony and the New York City Opera (in Los Angeles). Early conducting debuts were at Carnegie Hall, New York and the San Antonio International Music Festival in the USA, in which country he has directed performances at many of the major concert halls.Graham's London orchestral debut, conducting the Orchestra of St. John's, Smith Square, was followed by an invitation to work as assistant to Arnold Östman at the Teatro Regio in Parma, Italy and a subsequent operatic conducting debut in Sweden, with Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro. After touring and working in the USA, Italy and Sweden, he undertook Studentships in Prague and at the Netherlands Opera in Amsterdam (Wagner, Die Walküre). He was invited back to the Netherlands Opera as assistant to Chief Conductor, Hartmut Haenchen, in Alban Berg’s Wozzeck.In the United Kingdom over several years, Graham directed the English Performing Arts Ensemble which he founded with members of London’s leading orchestras, and the Elizabethan Singers of London - one of London’s longest established Chamber Choirs. He has performed and toured in Europe and the USA widely with both ensembles and has been a British Council Artist in residence to Sweden, the Czech Republic and Zimbabwe. He has coached several major opera singers in preparation for their operatic and concert engagements and for some years worked closely with the leading American mezzo-soprano, Kathleen Kuhlmann.Since then, Graham Lea-Cox has conducted and performed widely in Europe, Scandinavia and Africa, in recording, radio broadcast and concert. Over several seasons he has conducted the West German Radio Orchestra (WDRSO Köln) and the Cape Philharmonic Orchestra, South Africa. Directing the Hanover Band, one of the UK’s leading period instrument orchestras, his world-premiere recordings on ASV (now Sanctuary Classics) have received outstanding international acclaim. Combined with his newly prepared performing editions from the original eighteenth century sources, this series has made an important contribution to the critical re-assessment of previously ignored 18th and 19th century British composers.Graham’s seasons have included Centenary celebrations of the great Russian composer, Dmitri Prokofiev, programmes of symphonic works by Handel, Arne, Boyce, Clementi, Sterndale Bennett, SS Wesley, Schumann, Dvorak, Shostakovitch, Faure, Dukas and Glazunov. He has broadcast in live concert with the WDR Symphony Orchestra (Köln) on German Radio 3 and with the Cape Philharmonic in South Africa on the South African Broadcasting Corporation. These concerts included the premieres of several major orchestral works by leading contemporary South African composer Hendryk Hofmeyr.Encouraging young people in their study and appreciation of music is expressed through his work as often as possible. In the UK through the 1990s, he conceived and directed a 5 year Educational project, Explorations, with the English Performing Arts Ensemble, and as Artistic Director and Conductor, directed events at the Royal Festival Hall and Queen Elizabeth Hall, London. From this work a national UK charity was established, the English Performing Arts Educational Trust, dedicated to assisting young people, professionals and the public at large towards a greater common appreciation of the Performing Arts. Graham has directed similar projects internationally, for example in the USA and for the British Council in Zimbabwe. He has lectured on Performance Practice and Contemporary Music at the Universities of Pretoria, KwaZulu-Natal (Durban) and UNISA (South Africa) and this year delivered a key-note address to the South African Music Teachers Conference at the University of Rhodes, Grahamstown. ............................................................ ..................................... May 2007

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