Bass-baritone Jonathan Sells was born in South London in 1982. After degrees in Music and Musicology at Cambridge University, he now studies with Raymond Connell on the Opera Course at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in the City of London.
His early stage experience included the Commendatore in Don Giovanni, a role he recently revisited in a concert version under Richard Egarr at the Snape Proms. He has understudied Leporello for British Youth Opera (2006), whilst playing Zaretsky (Eugene Onegin) in the same season. Other non-professional experience includes more Mozart (Count Almaviva), Stravinsky (Trulove in The Rake’s Progress), operetta (Sir Roderic in Sullivan’s Ruddigore and Jupiter in Orpheus in the Underworld) and musical (Wolf in Into the Woods, Maximillian/Captainin Candide). This autumn, Jonathan Sells will take part in a BYO masterclass with Sir John Tomlinson, and perform in Die Zauberflöte at GSMD.
A keen interest in early music was rewarded by Jonathan Sells’ selection by William Christie for Le Jardin des Voix in 2007. This led to solo debuts in six countries in Europe as well as the USA, and further work with Les Arts Florissants. Recently Jonathan sang Charpentier and Lully in the Chapelle Royale at Versailles, and in May 2008 he will perform in Monteverdi’s L’Orfeo at the Teatro Real in Madrid.
Jonathan Sells joined the Britten-Pears Young Artist Programme as a recitalist in 2006, and enjoys frequent opportunities to perform as part of a duo. In 2007 he was invited to Wigmore Hall for the International Song Competition, and took part in the City of London Festival, the Oxford Lieder Festival, the London Song Festival and the London City Festival of Song. He was also invited by Graham Johnson to take part in an ‘1880s’ festival at the Guildhall School.
Jonathan Sells is a member of specialist vocal groups such as Tenebrae and I Fagiolini, and he often sings with the Choir of the Temple Church.
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