Recital:
Katherine Clarke – viola, voice

The Programme

Katherine Clarke – viola, voice

‘Cantare et trepidare’ for singing viola
I. Ad mortem festinamus peccare desistamus
II. Mariam, matrem virginem
III. Stella splendens in monte
IV. Imperayritz de la ciutat joyosa
V. Ad mortem festinamus peccare desistamus

Cello Suite No 1 arranged for solo viola
i. Prelude
ii. Allemande
iii. Courante
iv. Sarabande
v. Menuets I & II
vi. Gigue
arranged Simon Rowland-Jones

Sarabanda

Viola Spaces
No 4 ‘Nine Fingers’ (pizzicato)

The Artist

Katherine Clarke is a talented viola player who specialises in performing works for singing violist. An innovator in this unique performance style, she has commissioned many new pieces including Three Wind Songs by Garth Knox, with funding from Arts Council England and the Nicholas Boas Charitable Trust. With arrangements from Hildegard of Bingen to Franz Schubert, Katherine has established herself as the leading singing viola player in the UK, showcasing the depth and range of the viola and voice to an exceptional standard. With more commissions on the way, she will continue to perform and contribute to this unusual and exciting repertoire.

Having completed her undergraduate studies at the Royal College of Music, Katherine went on to achieve a Distinction in her Master’s in Performance at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama in 2017, with scholarships from the Goldsmiths’ Company and the Guildhall School Trust.

Katherine is a keen chamber musician and has performed with various ensembles at St John’s Smith Square, LSO St Luke’s, the National Gallery and the British Museum, and has recorded at Abbey Road Studios. In 2019 she participated in a residency at Snape Maltings with Illuminate Women’s Music, before touring the UK and recording a concert for the BBC Radio 3 New Music Show. In 2017 she was chosen to take part in the London Sinfonietta Academy, where she performed alongside players of the London Sinfonietta, the world’s leading contemporary music ensemble. Katherine also took part in the Lucerne Festival Academy 2018, where she rehearsed contemporary orchestral, ensemble and chamber music repertoire before performing at the Lucerne Festival, as well as at the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg.

As a dedicated orchestral player Katherine has performed in a number of top London venues such as the Royal Festival Hall, the Barbican and Milton Court Concert Hall, and she has worked with many conductors including Sir Roger Norrington, Sir Neville Marriner and Sir Simon Rattle.