About
With his warm timbre and stylish lyricism, Irish tenor Graham Cooper is already drawing international attention as an accomplished soloist. Graham enjoys a diverse repertoire ranging from the renaissance and baroque to classical, romantic and the present day. He has a particular love for baroque music, participating in solo masterclasses with Peter Koiij and Philippe Herreweghe and regularly performing Bach and Monteverdi with Collegium Vocale Gent. Upcoming highlights include his debut in the Berlin Philharmonie Kammermusiksaal with Mozart's C-minor mass and performing alongside Christoph Prégardien in Concertgebouw Bruges with Terra Nova Collectiv.
Parallel to his studies in neuroscience at Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Graham studied singing with Lothar Odinius, John Norris and Burkhard Fritz. He has also benefitted from masterclasses with Christianne Stotjin, Sir Thomas Allen, Arnold Bezuyen, Julia Kleiter, Peter Kooij, Philippe Herreweghe, and Jard van Nes. Graham’s first staged experience was performing the roles of Prince Yamadori with Bath Opera in Puccini’s Madame Butterfly and both Don Curzio and Basilio in Edinburgh Studio Opera’s production of Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro. He has since performed in Milhaud’sTrois Opéras-Minute in Musikakademie Rheinsberg, multiple productions of the Komische Oper Berlin, including the chorus of Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice and Kats-Chernin's Nils Holgersson, and Opera Ballet Vlaanderen in the chorus of Schumann’s Szenen aus Goethe’s Faust. He has also enjoyed semi-staged performances of Handel’s Esther and Messiah with the Irish Baroque Orchestra and Sestina as a soloist. Recent highlights include performing the role of Ferrando in Escales Lyriques’ Cosi Fan Tutte in Théâtre Les Cytises and jumping in as DUP Soloist in Abomination - A DUP Opera in Theatre Royal Brighton.
Graham also impresses as a Lied singer, having won a special prize in the Triomphe de l’Art competition and second prize in the Clara Schumann Competition with pianist Stephanie Daelemans. The duo are enjoying a busy concert and competition schedule with recent highlights including a special collaboration with Klarafestival BOX in Brussels and participating in the Udo Reinemann International Masterclass in the 2023/24 season.
As a concert soloist Graham has sung Bach’s Cantata BWV 99 “Erschüttre Dich, Nur Nicht” with Philippe Herreweghe in the Concertgebouw Brugge and premiered James Wood’s Apokalypsis in, amongst other venues, St Bavo Kathedrale Gent and Muziekgebouw Amsterdam. He has also convinced as the Evangelist in Bach's Weihnachtsoratorium, von Herzogenberg’s Die Geburt Christi, a tour of Charpentier’s Music for the Sun King with players from the Irish Baroque Orchestra, and a world premiere of Anne-Marie O’Farrell’s Civil War Cantata with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra under the baton of Ciarán Crilly as well as enjoying regular performances of the standard repertoire of composers ranging from Bach to Mendelssohn.
Graham works regularly with world-class orchestras such as the Orchestre des Champs-Élysées, Salzburg Camerata, Antwerp Symphony Orchestra and the Irish Baroque Orchestra in collaboration with conductors including Philippe Herreweghe, Harry Christophers, Eamonn Dougan, Sophie Jeannin, Peter Whelan, and David Bates.
Also an accomplished ensemble singer, Graham has already performed in all of the major concert halls in Europe and enjoys an exciting concert schedule, singing regularly with Collegium Vocale Gent, Resurgam, Zürich Chamber Singers, and Vocal Consort Berlin. He also sings with Sestina, Chamber Choir Ireland, Balthasar Neumann Chor, Echo Vocal Ensemble. 2023/24 highlights include a tour of Bach’s Matthäuspassion with the small ensemble of Collegium Vocale Gent.