Simon Halsey is one of Britain's leading young conductors, particularly renowned for his work with choirs. His current posts include Chief Conductor of the Berlin Radio Choir, Chief Conductor of the Netherlands Radio Choir, Chorus Director to the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and Principal Guest Conductor of the Sydney Philharmonia Choirs. He is also Artistic Director of Birmingham's choral festival Voices in the City. CONTACT MANAGER Catherine Petherbridge Artist Manager/ Promotions Manager Stephen Chamberlain Assistant to Artist Manager/ Promotions Assistant Simon is a regular guest conductor working extensively with major orchestras and choirs all over the world. He has toured extensively with the City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus, building particularly strong relationships with the orchestras and festivals in Vienna, Salzburg and Leipzig and his international contacts have yielded prestigious invitations for the CBSC to perform at Festival Vancouver and the Sydney 2000 Olympic Arts Festival, Harbour of Life, in August 2000, of which he was Chorus Director. RELATED LINKS City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus Berlin Radio Choir In 1995 he founded the 150-strong City of Birmingham Symphony Youth Chorus, whose performances have included Britten's St Nicolas, Henze's Raft of the Medusa and Wagner's Parsifal and, in October 1999, Mahler's Symphony No 3 with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra in London and Paris. In 1998 the Chorus made debut appearances at the BBC Proms and at the Salzburg Festival. Simon has worked on over twenty recordings for EMI, Deutsche Grammophon, Chandos, Collins Classics and Conifer. The Collins Classics recording of Tippett's A Child of Our Time, on which he collaborated with the composer, won the Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik. The CBSO recording of Szymanowski's Stabat Mater for EMI won the 1995 Gramophone award for Best Choral Recording and was nominated for a Grammy award in the USA. The CBSO recording of Mahler Symphony no 2 for EMI won the Gramophone award for Best Recording of the Year. As Principal Conductor of the City of Birmingham Touring Opera, Simon has collaborated with director Graham Vick on projects as diverse as Rameau's Les Boréades, Wagner's Ring Saga, Verdi's Falstaff, Britten's Church Parables, recorded for television by BBC2, Britten's The Little Sweep for German TV and Janacek's The Adventures of Vixen Sharp-Ears. He has worked on a number of projects with the Birmingham Contemporary Music Group, including two BBC Proms appearances. At Sir Simon Rattle's invitation, Simon Halsey formed the young professional choir European Voices, which made a sensational debut at the Salzburg Festival at Whitsun 1999 in Rameau's Les Boréades with Sir Simon and a subsequent debut appearance at the BBC Proms. In 2000, European Voices made festival appearances at the Aldeburgh Festival; and at the BBC Proms, with Birmingham Contemporary Music Group in music by Varèse and Weill and with Sir Simon Rattle and the Rotterdam Philharmonic in Wagner’s Parsifal. Simon is consultant editor to Faber Music in the UK and to Hal Leonard in the USA and fronts a prestigious best-selling series of choral publications. He appears regularly on radio and television and is one of the panel members for the Sainsbury's Choir of the Year competition, broadcast on BBC television. January 2002 For further publicity information on this artist, please click here

"The Edinburgh Royal Choral Union looked and sounded jubilant…in a performance as professional and slick as any you would wish to hear…under the tart and efficient direction of Simon Halsey. This was a performance which carefully avoided any sensationalism or attention-grabbing dependence on the big numbers. It was operatic in concept. Halsey gathered together the various chunks logically, moulding these into slick and meaningful extended theatrical scenes. The whole of Part II was full of energy and passion, not least in the final, uninterrupted leap into the famous Hallelujah chorus. The concluding Amen was a satisfying climax to one of the most tasteful performances of the work I have ever heard." Handel Messiah, Edinburgh Royal Choral Union/Usher Hall Kenneth Walton, The Scotsman, 3 January 2001 "The performance possesses high vocal qualities, not least because of the choir European Voices, magnificently prepared by Simon Halsey, which also works hard on its dramatic role." Rameau Les Boréades, European Voices, Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Sir Simon Rattle/Salzburg Festival Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, May 25 1999 "The chorus of European Voices also plays a decisive role. Their flexibility and dramatic intelligence supersede by far the ability and willingness of an old-fashioned opera chorus." Rameau Les Boréades, European Voices, Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Sir Simon Rattle/Salzburg Festival Peter Cossé, Der Standard, May 25 1999 "…the singers of the City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus under Simon Halsey rose heroically to the occasion." Szymanowski King Roger, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, Sir Simon Rattle Roderic Dunnett, BBC Music Magazine September 1999 "Simon Halsey…had moulded receptive voices into a pliable, cohesive force of eloquence." Beethoven Symphony No. 9, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, Sir Simon Rattle BBC Proms, Royal Albert Hall Geoffrey Norris, The Daily Telegraph 17 August 1998 "The City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus delivered Schiller’s words with quite startling fervour." Beethoven Symphony No. 9, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, Sir Simon Rattle BBC Proms, Royal Albert Hall Andrew Clements, The Guardian 17 August 1998 "Here we thrilled to a forward immediacy of tone, spectacular yet unforced direction, gripping dynamic sensitivity and an enviable command of intonation." Mahler Symphony No. 2, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, Sir Simon Rattle Symphony Hall, Birmingham Christopher Morley, Birmingham Post 31 August 1998 "The CBSC was keen, incisive, quick of reflex…one faith, one voice, landing to perfection on the final chord of the cadence each and every time." Britten War Requiem The Independent March 1997