PROGRAMME
This is just a selection of the songs and music on offer this evening
Henry Purcell – Sound the Trumpet
Duke Ellington – My solitude
Alma Mahler – Laue Sommernacht
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart – Che sapete
INTERVAL
Edward Elgar – Sea Pictures – II In Haven III A Sabbath Morning at Sea IV Where Corals Lie
Mel Bonis – Songe
Gareth Glyn = Bwydo’r Adar
Jacques Offenbach – Belle nuit, O nuit d’amour from Barcarolle
George Gershwin – The Man I love
Giacomo Rossini – The Cat Duet
BIOGRAPHIES
Alaw Grug Evans soprano
Alaw Grug Evans is a soprano from Carmarthenshire in South-West Wales. A first-class Music graduate from The Queen’s College, Oxford, she is now studying for her Master’s degree postgraduate at the Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM). This year, she is generously supported by the Dobie Award, and was the recipient of the Maurice Pearton Scholarship during her undergraduate studies.
Recent professional highlights include Lucy (The Telephone, Menotti), performed at the British Embassy in Rome, Cupid (King Arthur, Purcell) and soprano soloist (Cantata 150, Bach), both with New Chamber Opera. She is also a named soloist on That Sweet City (album, Choir of The Queen’s College 2024). Her interest in music has always been propelled forward by her Welsh heritage. Contributing to the National Eisteddfod as both a singer and composer, she won the Principal Composer Prize in 2021 and was spotlighted by Classic FM for her work.
An experienced ensemble singer, Alaw has worked with various groups across the UK, including Kantos Chamber Choir, The Delius Singers, and Coro Spezzato. Alaw is delighted to be a member of the RNCM Songsters this year.
Alaw Grug Evans appears by kind permission of the RNCM.
Merel-Magali Cox mezzo soprano
Dutch mezzo-soprano Merel-Magali Cox is studying for a Master’s degree at the RNCM with Mary Plazas, supported by Help Musicians, Het Cultuurfonds, James & Mary Glass Scholarship, Peter Snook and Eva Turner Award. Past roles have included Cherubino (Le Nozze di Figaro), Linette (L’amour des trois oranges), Solomon (Solomon), Woodpecker (The Cunning Little Vixen) and Idamante (Idomeneo, abridged). An RNCM Songster, she was a finalist in the Frederic Cox Award and won the RNCM Song Cycle Competition. She has performed with ensembles such as The Mancunium Consort, VOCES8 Scholars Ensemble, and Edvard Grieg Korene, with tours coming up through Europe and Colombia.
Merel-Magali Cox appears by kind permission of the RNCM.
Jenny Sykes piano
Jenny Sykes is a pianist from Wiltshire. She has recently completed her Master of Music in Piano Accompaniment at the Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM), with distinction, under the tutelage of Harvey Davies. Since receiving her First-Class Bachelor’s degree in Music from Newcastle University, Jenny has worked as a freelance accompanist and piano teacher. She has also conducted and performed as a clarinettist with the Corsham Wind Band Association.
Jenny enjoys performing both as a soloist and a collaborative pianist. Recent highlights include recitals with RNCM Songsters at Manchester Cathedral and Buxton Opera House, Mozart’s Piano Concerto No 20 with Newcastle University Symphony Orchestra and Rhapsody in Blue for solo piano at the King’ Hall, Newcastle University, as well as masterclasses with Julius Drake, Roger Vignoles and David Owen Norris. As part of the Sykes-Zhang duo she was a runner up in the 2026 RNCM Piano Duo Prize, and winner of the Bessie Cronshaw and Frost Brownson Song Cycle prize alongside soprano Bonnie Staude.
Jenny is delighted to be a member of the RNCM Songsters this year, performing in concert series across Greater Manchester and in Buxton. She has also been involved with the RNCM Children’s Opera and Community Opera, continuing her passion for community engagement and working with aspiring young musicians.
Jenny Sykes appears by kind permission of the RNCM.