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The Scottish mezzo-soprano, Kathleen McKellar-Ferguson, is a graduate of the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in both piano (with Lawrence Glover) and singing (with Elizabeth Izatt). After finishing her teacher training she pursued post-graduate studies in singing at the Royal College of Music in London with Marion Studholme. On leaving college she received a Countess of Munster Scholarship and since then she has studied with Margaret Hyde.
Kathleen McKellar-Ferguson's international concert career has taken her to, most notably, the Gstaad Festival (L.v. Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 conducted by Yehudi Menuhin), Festival of Sacred Music in Czestochowa, Poland, Mozart Festival in Vienna (W.A. Mozart's Requiem), Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale della RAI in Milan, Tokyo Philharmonic (George Frideric Handel's Messiah and L.v. Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 in the Suntory Hall), Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestra of Euskedein Spain, St Petersburg Camerata (Messiah in the Hermitage theatre and the Symphony Hall) and Orchestra of the Theatre Royal de le Monnaie in Brussels (Gustav Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde) to name but a few.
In the UK Kathleen McKellar-Ferguson has sung with many of the leading orchestras including the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, English Chamber Orchestra, London Bach Orchestra, Ulster Orchestra at The Queens Festival in Belfast, Bournemouth Sinfonietta, and the Orchestra of St John’s Smith Square. Recordings include L.v. Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (also performed atthe Royal Festival Hall at the 75th birthday concert of Sir Yehudi Menuhin in the presence of Her Majesty the Queen Mother), Lily Boulanger’s Au fond de l’Abime at the Three Choirs Festival broadcast live for Radio 3 and G.F. Handel's Messiah in the Royal Albert Hall, London with the BBC Concert Orchestra and Huddersfield Choral Society.
Kathleen McKellar-Ferguson sang many song recitals with her accompanists Peter Bailey and Merion Powell. Highlights include Theatre Royale de la Monnaie, Queens Festival (Belfast) and in 1991 her Wigmore Hall debut in London. She has also made numerous broadcasts for BBC religious department and for BBC television a Christmas Day Celebration. In 1996 she released a recording of Scottish folk songswith Peter Bailey.
Operatic Roles include Florence Pike in Benjamin Britten's Albert Herring at the Aldeburgh Festival, Marcellina and Cherubino in W.A. Mozart's Marriage of Figaro for Pavillion Opera and Clonter Opera, Mercedes in Georges Bizet's Carmen for Clonter Opera, Maketaten in Akhnaten for ENO, Suzuki in Madam Butterfly for a tour of the Middle Eastand for Opera Forum in the Netherlands, Second Lady in W.A. Mozart's Magic Flute for the Theatre Royale de la Monnaie in Brussels and at the Aix-en Provence Festival with Les Arts Florissants under Sir William Christie, and Bradamante
in G.F. Handel's Alcina for Flanders Opera in Antwerp under Jos van Immerseel and for Zürich Opera under Nikolaus Harnoncourt (1994).
Whilst in London Kathleen McKellar-Ferguson taught singing at the Purcell School and at St Paul’s Girls school. She now lives in Scotland with her husband Grant and teaches singing at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. |
