Bernadette Greevy
| Bernadette Greevy | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Bernadette Greevy |
| Born | 3 July 1940 |
| Origin | Dublin, Ireland |
| Died | 26 September 2008 (aged 68) |
| Genres | Classical |
| Occupation(s) | Singer |
Bernadette Greevy (3 July 1940 – 26 September 2008) was an Irish mezzo-soprano. She was founder and artistic director of the Anna Livia Dublin International Opera Festival. She was the first artist-in-residence at the Dublin Institute of Technology's Faculty of Applied Arts.
Bernadette Greevy was born in Clontarf, Dublin, and was one of seven children. She went to school at the Holy Faith Convent in Clontarf and later studied in Dublin with Jean Nolan and at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London with Helene Isepp.
Greevy made her first appearance on the operatic stage at the age of 18 in the role of Siebel in Gounod's Faust at Dublin's Gaiety Theatre. She appeared in Julius Benedict's opera, The Lily of Killarney at Dublin's Olympia Theatre in 1960, alongside Veronica Dunne, John Carolan and Denis Noble with conductor Fr. John O'Brien and the Glasnevin Musical Society. In 1961, she made her professional operatic debut as Maddalena in the Dublin Grand Opera Society's production of Verdi's Rigoletto. She appeared at the Wexford Festival in 1962 as Beppe in Pietro Mascagni's L'amico Fritz. She made her Royal Opera House début in 1982 as Genevieve in Claude Debussy's Pelléas et Mélisande.
However, Greevy never developed the acting skills necessary for true operatic success, and made her musical mark instead in the world of oratorio and song recitals. She was introduced to works such as Elgar's The Dream of Gerontius and Handel's Messiah by Sir John Barbirolli, and later recorded music by Mahler, Bach and Haydn.
...
Wikipedia