Rhiwbina Living Issue 48

my first-ever singing teacher that
I had in Cardiff to give me some
guidance. Everyone was shocked
when they found out that I don’t
speak Welsh. I was lucky that the
panel had all worked internationally.
I won £5k which went straight
towards my Masters degree in
London."
Effectively taking two years out
had allowed Sarah to build on her
skill levels and enrich herself with
experience that was put to good
use when she started her Masters
degree.
"It really paid off because
throughout my masters at the Royal
Academy of Music, everything I
auditioned for, I got. I’d developed
my experience and technical ability
in those two years and it’s all helped
propel me into this professional
career."
After completing her Masters,
Sarah set about making her next
move.
"I'd decided that I didn’t want
another year off and that I wanted to
go into an opera school or a Young
Artist Programme. I auditioned for
several places and was offered a
place at the Guildhall Opera School
but then I also got an audition at
the Bavarian State Opera and went
there thinking ‘absolutely not a
chance’. I didn’t feel that I was ready.
"I got through to the second
round and then to my surprise,
they offered me a place. Out of 900
people, they only took three of us.
I’ve worked really hard and have
never taken anything for granted."
Her residency in Munich is set to
last one year, but more often than
not, young artists are kept on for a
second year.
"This one opportunity in Munich
has made a big difference to my
life. You have to have so much
resilience in this trade. More
importantly, you need to believe
in yourself. Even when I was doing
A Level Music, I realised that this
industry is a very subjective one.
Not everybody’s going to like you
but there will be somebody out
there who will. And you’ll always
end up in the right place if you stay
true to yourself and you know what
you want, especially from an early
age. If I didn’t get any parts that I'd
auditioned for, I’d tell myself that
it wasn’t for me. You have to fail in
order to learn."
Sarah's attitude to both her work,
and life, speaks volumes about her
tenacity and focus.
"I was very academic but I’ve never
needed the qualifications that I’ve
achieved. In auditions, no one asks
me whether I got a First or not. In
the singing world, you might have a
really great degree but you may not
necessarily have a career in it. If you
want to have a career in any of the
arts, you need to be clear on what
you want in life."
For now, Sarah is focusing on
honing her skills.
"Classical singing is a fine art
similar to ballet. You learn to
use your voice and body in the
most efficient way in order to be
heard over an orchestra without
amplification.
"I will be nervous for my first
official opera in Munich. I always get
nervous but I do enjoy the set up
of the stage and the audience. You
can see the first few rows of people
before they disappear in the dark
but when I’ve got a costume on and
I’m armed with stage directions,
I feel less nervous because I feel
less exposed than when I sing in
concerts or recitals. The closer the
audience is, the more nervous I get.
"It’s perfectly natural for me to
get nervous but I think what’s
changed is the way I view it. I see
it more as excitement now, rather
than worrying about what might go
wrong. Nerves can help as long as
they’re kept at a manageable level."
As well as keeping nerves under
control, there's also the challenge
of remembering all the words:
"When I was younger, I used to
learn the words no problem but the
older I get, the harder I find it. I now
write out what I’m learning, over
and over. I speak it out if I’m walking
down the street – it’s like a constant
engagement with what I’m doing. I
don’t feel like I can have time away
from it.
"With opera, when you go into
production, it helps sometimes
when you have to sing a line with a
certain stage direction. The music
is also a helpful association when
trying to memorise the words. You
end up remembering them forever."
Sarah performs at the National Eisteddfod 2017
interview
Emboldened with skills,
experience and talent, Sarah is
looking to develop her career even
further.
"My proudest achievement to
date is being offered a place on the
Young Artist Programme that I'm
now working through. I’ve learnt
how to pronounce German, French,
Italian, Welsh, Russian and Czech
but I’ve never learnt languages. If
there’s one thing I’d love to get out
of being in Germany, it’d be to learn
the language."
And to prove that life works in
circles, Sarah recounts a story that
proves how far she'd come in just
ten years.
"Recently, Mr Phillips from
Whitchurch High School invited me
to do a Christmas concert with the
Cardiff and Vale Youth Orchestra
at Hoddinot Hall and it turned out
to be exactly ten years later than
the last time I sang with the same
orchestra. It was nice to go back
with so much more experience
and it was nice to indulge in the
nostalgia.
"It’s been a great privilege winning
lots of awards and I do feel very
supported. The Arts Council of
Wales, the Ryan Davies Memorial
Trust, the John Fussell Trust
and the Hartsheath Charitable
Trust, all Welsh funding bodies,
have all played their part and I’m
hoping that this is the start of my
professional career."
Looking ahead, there are still a few
achievements on the to-do list.
"I would really love to compete in
Cardiff Singer of the World and also
sing with Welsh National Opera.
But in the meantime, and in terms
of my immediate career, I’m just
going to keep taking everything in
and working hard while I’m here in
Munich."
Find out more about Sarah at
www.sarahgilford.com
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