Andrew Foster-Williams

Bass-baritone

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Andrew Foster-Williams biography 2425.docx English

“Andrew Foster-Williams [is] outstanding as the easily manipulated, nervy Gunther.”
(Financial Times, Hugo Shirley)

Andrew Foster-Williams possesses a vocal versatility that allows him to present repertoire ranging from the masterpieces of Bach and Handel, through the classics of Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven to more recent masters such as Britten, Debussy, Wagner and Mahler on both the opera stage and concert platforms alike.

In a career initially built on strong Baroque credentials, Andrew Foster-Williams has in more recent seasons embraced a more dramatic repertoire with successes as Don Pizarro (Fidelio) at Theater an der Wien and Philharmonie de Paris, as Captain Balstrode in Christoph Loy’s striking staging of Peter Grimes also at Theater an der Wien and in two new productions at La Monnaie, as Kurnewal in Ralf Pleger’s staging of Tristan und Isolde and as Donner in Romeo Castellucci’s Das Rheingold both conducted by Alain Altinoglu. His performances highlight a dramatic capacity that has earned the respect of many stage directors as he “holds the attention of the audience with the energy of someone who has great experience, and with sensational vocal ability, which he uses with total freedom…” (Opéra).

Other recent successes as Lysiart in Christof Loy’s staging of Euryanthe at Theater an der Wien under Constantin Trinks, as Nick Shadow (The Rake’s Progress) at Opéra National de Lorraine conducted by Tito Muñoz, as Gunther (Götterdämmerung) at Opera North under the baton of Richard Farnes and, marking his house debut at Opernhaus Zürich, as the Four Villains in a new production of Les contes d’Hoffmann under Antonino Fogliani have further enhanced an already highly regarded operatic profile.

Recognised for his facility in the French operatic repertoire, he has since reprised the Four Villains in a new production at Gothenburg Opera and in Barrie Kosky’s fantastical staging at Komische Opera Berlin and has appeared as Goloud (Pelléas et Mélisande) at Theater Basel under Erik Nielsen. He sang the title role in Saint-Saens Henry VIII and L’Ombre de Virgile in Benjamin Godard’s Danté both with the Müncher Rundfunkorchester conducted by Ulf Schirmer and appeared in a specially curated performance to mark the 400^th anniversary of the death of Cervantes at Opéra National de Bordeaux with music from Ravel’s Don Quichotte à Dulcinée and Massenet’s Don Quichotte conducted by Marc Minkowski.

Performances in Andrew Foster-Williams’ 2024/25 season include Gunther (Götterdämmerung) in the final chapter of La Monnaie’s Der Ring des Nibelungen under Alain Altinoglu, a reprise of Captain Balstrode in Christoph Loy’s staging at Opéra de Lyon conducted by Wayne Marshall, and a return to Opernhaus Zürich as the Four Villains under the baton of Antonino Fogliani. Concert appearances include Vaughan Williams’ Dona nobis pacem with Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra conducted by David Hill.

An impressive line-up of concert invitations has taken Andrew Foster-Williams to some of the most celebrated orchestras and conductors of our day. These include the Cleveland Orchestra/Franz Welser-Möst, Salzburg Mozarteum/Ivor Bolton, San Francisco Symphony/Michael Tilson Thomas, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra/Richard Egarr, Hong Kong Philharmonic/Edo de Waart, Gulbenkian Orchestra/Lorenzo Viotti, London Philharmonic Orchestra/Vladimir Jurowski and the Sibelius Festival/Dalia Stasevska. Foster-Williams offers a diverse concert repertoire including Bach’s St John Passion, Britten’s War Requiem, Schönberg’s Gurrelieder, Janáček’s Glagolitic Mass, Brahms’ Ein deutsches Requiem, Handel’s Messiah and Mahler’s Symphony No.8.

Boasting an extensive discography, releases include Beethoven’s Cantata on the Death of Emperor Joseph II with San Francisco Symphony (Tilson Thomas) on SFSMedia, and The Seasons with Gabrieli Consort & Players (McCreesh), released on Signum and shortlisted for the 2017 Gramophone Awards. He features on several releases in the Opéra français series of the Palazzetto Bru Zane label, including Joncières’ Dimitri, Gounod’s Cinq-Mars, Saint-Saëns’ Proserpine, and Gounod’s Faust — winner of the Opera of the 19^th Century category at the Opus Klassik 2020 awards. Performances captured on DVD include the Gramophone Award winning The Fairy Queen with Glyndebourne Festival Opera (Christie).