David Ireland

British bass-baritone David Ireland studied at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, before going on to become a member of the National Opera Studio in London and a Harewood Artist at English National Opera.

He is now very much in demand across Europe: last year, he made an acclaimed debut at the Opéra de Lausanne as Bottom in Laurent Pelly’s production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream (a role he repeated at the Seiji Ozawa Matsumoto Festival in Japan last summer), made his delayed debut at the Grand Théâtre de Genève as Baron Douphol La Traviata, and returned to English National Opera as both Figaro Le nozze di Figaro and Alidoro La Cenerentola. He just reprised Bottom A Midsummer Night's Dream for his debut at the Teatro de la Maestranza, Seville.

Future plans will see David return to the Grand Théâtre de Genève for Frank Zappa’s 200 Motels, plus role and house debuts at the Opéra de Dijon (Don Magnifico La Cenerentola), Opera North (Leporello) and the Opéra national du Rhin, Strasbourg (Monterone). In concert, David will appear as soloist in The Dream of Gerontius at the prestigious Three Choirs Festival.

His many other critically-acclaimed stage appearances include Figaro Le nozze di Figaro at Garsington Opera, Quince in two different productions of A Midsummer Night’s Dream at both the Opéra de Lille and the Opera Carlo Felice Genoa, Kecal The Bartered Bride at Garsington Opera, Melot Tristan und Isolde (also at the Opéra de Lille) and Gessler Guillaume Tell with Irish National Opera.

In addition, David has sung Leporello Don Giovanni at Garsington Opera and at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, Figaro Le nozze di Figaro for Welsh National Opera, Kuligin Katja Kabanova at the Opéra National de Lorraine, Gran Sacerdote Nabucco at the Opéra de Montpellier,  Colline La bohème at the Opéra d'Avignon, Duglas La Donna del Lago at the Buxton Festival and, for English National Opera, Doctor Bartolo The Barber of Seville, 3rd Priest in Harrison Birtwistle's The Mask of Orpheus, Colline La bohème,  Sacristan Tosca and The Speaker and 2nd Armed Man/Priest The Magic Flute. 

In the concert hall, David made his BBC Proms debut as soloist in Vaughan Williams' Serenade to Music with Martyn Brabbins and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. He has also sung the Gran Sacerdote Nabucco in concert for Chelsea Opera Group at the Cadogan Hall in London, and Brander La Damnation de Faust at the Three Choirs Festival, as well as a recital of the Vaughan Williams song cycles The House of Life and Songs of Travel at the Opera Carlo Felice Genoa.