Associate Professor Michael Halliwell

BA DipEd Witw BA S.Af. MA PhD Natal DipOp Lond OpCtr GradCertHigherEd Sydney

Associate Professor Michael Halliwell

Michael Halliwell is the principal baritone of the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. Literature and Opera are his twin passions and his academic expertise includes the adaptation of literature into opera. He is currently working on a book on the adaptation of drama into contemporary opera. He lectures in vocal studies and opera and is an expert on the operatic adaptation of the plays of Shakespeare.

Recent publications include a double CD of songs from the Boer War with David Miller, When the Empire Calls, released by ABC Classics in 2005. His book Opera and the Novel: The Case of Henry James, was published by Rodopi in 2005.

Born in South Africa, Halliwell studied music and literature at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg. While still a student, he was awarded two scholarships to study at the London Opera Centre and with Otakar Kraus, as well as with Tito Gobbi in Florence. He went on to become principal baritone with the Netherlands Opera; Hamburg State Opera; Nürnberg Opera. While in Europe he sang over 50 major roles in many leading European Opera houses working with many of the most prominent conductors and directors. More recently, he has presented masterclasses and concerts in Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong, Taipei and Cape Town. He has also made numerous recordings including a CD of Kipling settings, Soldier, Soldier, with David Miller (Artworks, 2001).

Awarded his Ph.D in 1995 for his study of the adaptation of fiction into contemporary opera, Halliwell joined the Conservatorium as Lecturer in Vocal and Opera Studies in 1996. From 2000-2004 he was chair of Vocal and Opera Studies, and from 2004-2006 he was Pro-Dean and Head of School. He has given papers on music and literature at many international conferences in Australia, South Africa, the United States, Britain, Germany and Austria, and has published widely. He recently gave a series of lectures on Shakespeare and Opera at Cambridge University.