Summary
Emma Matthews AM (née Lysons; born 1970) is an English-born Australian lyric coloratura soprano, noted for operatic roles, but also popular on the concert stage. A Principal Artist with Opera Australia, Matthews has received more Helpmann Awards than any other individual artist, nine Green Room Awards, the Mo Award and the Remy Martin Australian Opera Award.
Emma Matthews | |
|---|---|
| Born | Emma Lysons 1970 (age 53–54) Manchester, England |
| Nationality | Australian |
| Occupation | Soprano singer |
| Years active | 1991–present |
| Organisation | Opera Australia |
Life and career edit
Born Emma Lysons in Manchester, England, she grew up with three younger sisters in Fiji, where her father worked as a maritime pilot,[1] and Vanuatu before moving to Cairns, Queensland, Port Hedland, Western Australia, and finally Perth.[2] There she attended Perth Modern School[3] before studying musical theatre at the Western Australian Conservatorium of Music (part of the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, WAAPA), but was persuaded by a teacher to switch to opera. She sang with the Gilbert and Sullivan Society of Western Australia in 1990.[4] Since her 1991 professional debut with the West Australian Opera and appointment to Opera Australia in 1993, she has appeared in every state of Australia, notably with the State Opera of South Australia, Victorian State Opera and Opera Queensland, in Adelaide, Melbourne as well as frequent appearances at the Huntington Estate Music Festival for Musica Viva from 1994. In 2017 Matthews was appointed Head of Classical Voice at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts.[5]
She is married to Stephen Matthews, a former chorister and later a stage mechanic with Opera Australia.[2]
Matthews was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia in the 2023 King's Birthday Honours for "significant service to the performing arts, particularly opera".[6]
Roles edit
Her first roles took advantage of her sweet light coloratura voice (capable of a top F6), her good looks, and her acting ability.[7] She has appeared for Opera Australia as:
- Damigella in L'incoronazione di Poppea (Monteverdi) in 1993
- Ilia in Idomeneo (Mozart)
- Hero in Béatrice et Bénédict (Berlioz)
- Papagena and Pamina in The Magic Flute (Mozart)
- Oscar in Un ballo in maschera (Verdi)
- Sophie in Der Rosenkavalier (Richard Strauss)
- Marie in La fille du régiment (Donizetti)
- Nannetta in Falstaff (Verdi)
- Rosina in The Barber of Seville (Rossini)
- Blonde and Konstanze in Die Entführung aus dem Serail (Mozart)
- Morgana in Alcina (Handel)
- Almirena in Rinaldo (Handel)
- Servilia in La clemenza di Tito (Mozart)
- Cherubino in The Marriage of Figaro (Mozart)
- Sophie in Werther (Massenet)
- Adele in Die Fledermaus (Johann Strauss)
She has later taken on more challenging roles, often being compared with Joan Sutherland who, with her husband Richard Bonynge, was something of a friend and mentor.[8]
- Ismene in Mitridate, re di Ponto (Mozart) (produced by Graham Vick) for the 2001 Sydney Festival
- Stasi in Die Csárdásfürstin (Kálmán)
- Genovieffa in Suor Angelica (Puccini)
- all four heroines (Stella, Olympia, Antonia, Giulietta) in The Tales of Hoffmann (Offenbach)
- Zwaantie in Batavia (Richard Mills) 2001 world premiere
- Lulu in Lulu (Alban Berg)
- Bystrouškain/Sharpears, the Vixen in The Cunning Little Vixen (Janáček) for Opera Australia
- Philomele in The Love of the Nightingale (Richard Mills) – 2007 world premiere
- Cleopatra in Giulio Cesare (Handel)
- Juliette in Roméo et Juliette (Gounod)
- Lakmé in Lakmé (Delibes)
- Lucia in Lucia di Lammermoor (Donizetti)
- Giulietta in I Capuleti e i Montecchi (Bellini)
- Gilda in Rigoletto (Verdi)
- Violetta in La traviata (Verdi)
Matthews has also been well received in concerts, with a repertoire from Mozart's Requiem, Haydn Masses, and Handel's Messiah to works by Brahms, Poulenc and Villa Lobos, and Mahler's Symphonies No. 2 and No. 4. She appeared with José Carreras in Sydney 2008, then on New Year's Eve in Mozart's Great Mass in C minor with Sir Charles Mackerras and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra.
Screen appearances edit
She appeared, billed as Emma Lysons, in the 1995 Alan John opera The Eighth Wonder about the Sydney Opera House, broadcast on ABC TV the night following its world premiere.[9][10]
Discography edit
Albums edit
| Title | Details |
|---|---|
| Handel Arias (with New Zealand Chamber Orchestra & Donald Armstrong) |
|
| Emma Matthews in Monte Carlo |
|
| Lakmé, Opera Australia |
|
| Stars of Opera Australia compilation (Matthews in two selections from La Traviata concert on floating stage, Sydney Harbour, 24 March 2012.) |
|
| Giuseppe Verdi, La Traviata as Violetta (on floating stage, 24 March 2012.) |
|
| Mozart Arias (with Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra & Marko Letonja) |
|
Awards and nominations edit
ABC Symphony Australia Young Performers Awards edit
The ABC Symphony Australia Young Performers Awards The ABC Young Performers Awards is a classical music competition for young people that ran annually from 1944 to 2015, and again from 2017.
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | Emma Matthews | ABC Young Performers Award | Won |
ARIA Music Awards edit
The ARIA Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of Australian music. They commenced in 1987.
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Emma Matthews in Monte Carlo | Best Classical Album | Nominated | [14] |
| 2014 | Mozart Arias (with Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra & Marko Letonja) | Nominated |
Green Room Awards edit
- For her parts in Lulu, Clemenza di Tito, Rinaldo, The Marriage of Figaro, Batavia, Signor Bruschino, Julius Caesar and Lakmé. [citation needed]
Helpmann Awards edit
The Helpmann Awards is an awards show, celebrating live entertainment and performing arts in Australia, presented by industry group Live Performance Australia since 2001.[15] Note: 2020 and 2021 were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Emma Matthews - Lulu | Helpmann Award for Best Female Performer in an Opera | Won | [16] |
| 2005 | Emma Matthews - The Mikado | Helpmann Award for Best Female Actor in a Musical | Nominated | [17] |
| Emma Matthews - Der Rosenkavalier | Helpmann Award for Best Female Performer in a Supporting Role in an Opera | Nominated | ||
| 2006 | Emma Matthews - Lakmé | Best Female Performer in an Opera | Won | [18] |
| Emma Matthews - Romeo & Juliet | Nominated | |||
| 2007 | Emma Matthews - The Love of the Nightingale | Best Female Performer in an Opera | Won | [19] |
| 2008 | Emma Matthews - Les Contes d'Hoffmann | Best Female Performer in an Opera | Nominated | [20] |
| Emma Matthews - Arabella | Best Female Performer in a Supporting Role in an Opera | Won | ||
| 2010 | Emma Matthews - La sonnambula | Best Female Performer in an Opera | Won | [21] |
| 2011 | Emma Matthews - Partenope | Best Female Performer in an Opera | Won | [22] |
| 2012 | Emma Matthews - La Traviata | Best Female Performer in an Opera | Won | [23] |
| 2013 | Emma Matthews - Lucia di Lammermoor | Best Female Performer in an Opera | Nominated | [24] |
| 2014 | Emma Matthews - The Turk in Italy | Best Female Performer in an Opera | Nominated | [25] |
Mo Awards edit
The Australian Entertainment Mo Awards (commonly known informally as the Mo Awards), were annual Australian entertainment industry awards. They recognise achievements in live entertainment in Australia from 1975 to 2016. Emma Matthews won one award in that time.[26]
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result (wins only) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Emma Matthews | Classical Performer of the Year | Won |
References edit
- ^ "Top Five – Emma Matthews". The Sun-Herald. Sydney. 27 July 2008. Archived from the original on 6 July 2011 – via emma.com.au.
- ^ a b Michael Shmith, "Looking after Lulu", The Age, 9 November 2002, Saturday Extra, p. 3
- ^ Jessica Warriner (1 January 2018). "Perth Modern School celebrating 50 years of musical excellence at Perth Concert Hall". Perth Now. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
- ^ "Gilbert & Sullivan Society of W.A. Programmes" (PDF). Slwa.wa.gov.au. Retrieved 14 August 2013.
- ^ Clive Paget (24 July 2017). "Emma Matthews to head Classical Voice at WAAPA". Limelight. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
- ^ "Ms Emma Matthews". Australian Honours Search Facility. 12 June 2023. Retrieved 11 June 2023.
- ^ "Dial Em for murder". The Sydney Morning Herald. 13 September 2003. Retrieved 14 September 2009.
- ^ "Emma Matthews in lead role of Opera Australia's new work". The Daily Telegraph. Sydney. Retrieved 21 November 2010.[dead link]
- ^ The Eighth Wonder (1995) (TV) at IMDb
- ^ "The Eighth Wonder [video recording] – performance details". Trove. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
- ^ Sandra Bowdler. "Emma Matthews Sings Handel". Andante Magazine. Archived from the original on 24 October 2005.
- ^ "Emma Matthews in Monte Carlo" (PDF). Buywell.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 July 2011. Retrieved 14 August 2013.
- ^ "Lakmé", Opera Australia 2012, Naxos Records
- ^ ARIA Award previous winners. "ARIA Awards – Winners by Award". Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). Retrieved 9 July 2022.
- ^ "Events & Programs". Live Performance Australia. Retrieved 4 October 2022.
- ^ "2004 Helpmann Awards Nominees & Winners". Helpmann Awards. Australian Entertainment Industry Association (AEIA). Retrieved 8 October 2022.
- ^ "2005 Helpmann Awards Nominees & Winners". Helpmann Awards. Australian Entertainment Industry Association (AEIA). Retrieved 8 October 2022.
- ^ "2006 Helpmann Awards Nominees & Winners". Helpmann Awards. Australian Entertainment Industry Association (AEIA). Retrieved 8 October 2022.
- ^ "2007 Helpmann Awards Nominees & Winners". Helpmann Awards. Australian Entertainment Industry Association (AEIA). Retrieved 8 October 2022.
- ^ "2008 Helpmann Awards Nominees & Winners". Helpmann Awards. Australian Entertainment Industry Association (AEIA). Retrieved 8 October 2022.
- ^ "2010 Helpmann Awards Nominees & Winners". Helpmann Awards. Australian Entertainment Industry Association (AEIA). Retrieved 8 October 2022.
- ^ "2011 Helpmann Awards Nominees & Winners". Helpmann Awards. Australian Entertainment Industry Association (AEIA). Retrieved 8 October 2022.
- ^ "2012 Helpmann Awards Nominees & Winners". Helpmann Awards. Australian Entertainment Industry Association (AEIA). Retrieved 8 October 2022.
- ^ "2013 Helpmann Awards Nominees & Winners". Helpmann Awards. Australian Entertainment Industry Association (AEIA). Retrieved 8 October 2022.
- ^ "2014 Helpmann Awards Nominees & Winners". Helpmann Awards. Australian Entertainment Industry Association (AEIA). Retrieved 8 October 2022.
- ^ "MO Award Winners". Mo Awards. Retrieved 16 March 2022.
External links edit
- Emma Matthews at IMDb
- "Ms Emma Matthews, Senior Lecturer, Head of Classical Voice", Edith Cowan University
- "Story Details". Sunday Arts. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 17 August 2008. Archived from the original on 10 November 2012. Retrieved 9 September 2009.
