Dominic Harlan is a pianist, performer, workshop leader, presenter and composer. Through his workshops, recitals and presentations, he has introduced countless people of all ages, backgrounds and abilities to the worlds of opera, music-theatre, concert performances and composition.
He studied piano at the Royal Academy of Music with Alexander Kelly, Lois Phillips and Malcolm Martineau, during which time he made his Wigmore Hall debut partnering Dame Gwyneth Jones. He has since performed throughout the UK, Europe, Japan, India, The Gulf and North America, with singers and instrumentalists that include Alexander Baillie, Narimichi Kawabata, Errollyn Wallen, Daniel Norman, Matthew Sharp, Sophie Daneman, Philip Smith, Stephan Loges and Sarah Gabriel. He has given live broadcasts for BBC Radio 3 and Classic FM, and recorded discs for Warner Sunset, Naxos and Avie.
As a musical director, Dominic’s recent work includes Modern Major General, (Proteus Theatre), Ain’t Misbehavin’- The Fats Waller Musical Show (Oxford Theatre Company) and his own arrangement of The Magic Flute (Brighton Festival/ Glyndebourne Education). In June 2012 he will musically direct, act and sing in Manchester Lines, a new musical play for Manchester Library Theatre, written by Jackie Kay with music by Errollyn Wallen.
Dominic’s introduction to workshop leading came through Streetwise Opera, which produces professional productions while giving centre stage to a cast who have experienced homelessness. He became musical director for three critically acclaimed Streetwise productions: Britten’s Canticles, Ceremony of Carols and Mahler’s Rückert Lieder. Now irreversibly drawn to projects involving music and performers from all walks of life and experience, Dominic began his career in music education: he is currently artistic director of Glyndebourne’s Opera Experience workshop programme and devises and leads workshops for some of the country’s leading arts institutions including Wigmore Hall, Opera North, Garsington Opera, Opera Holland Park and English National Opera. He also runs workshops for the European organisation RESEO, Netherlands Opera and most recently, Muziekcentrum van de Omroep (MCO), Amsterdam.
As a composer/educator, Dominic frequently devises music theatre pieces in collaboration with vocal groups that include both amateur and professional singers. These include Limelight (Opera North), Apollo Rides Again (Wigmore Hall) Orpheus (English Touring Opera) and We are Stardust (Wigmore Hall). His musical Photo-Me was devised with young people at The Stables Theatre, Milton Keynes, and went on to being staged professionally at Riverside Studios, London, as part of Tête á Tête: The Opera Festival.
www.dominicharlan.com
