To listen to Marcus sing, Click on the song title link in the story
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| | | Marcus Swietlicki Recital - 2 November 2019 |
Marcus sings with Michael on piano
The
Autumn chill and rain was outside, but St. Mungo’s church
was warm and welcoming for the 100 plus audience on
Saturday 2nd November for an evening of classical and scottish songs,
presented
by 20 year old tenor, Marcus Swietlicki.
Accompanied by
Michael Barnett on piano, Marcus sang a range of songs to entertain the
audience of around a hundred, from Penicuik and beyond, who came along to hear this talented tenor
singer.
The first Act of the evening began with 'Empio per Farti Guerra', an aria from Handel’s 1724 opera Tamerlano.
Marcus welcomed
us all to the recital before moving on to a Mozart aria 'Dalla Sua
Pace' from Don Giovanni. Marcus plays the part of Don Ottavio, who is
so in love with his lover, that whatever she does he will do also.
 Marcus selected a new composer for us to hear. Gaetano Donizetti ,who wrote 'Una Furtiva Lagrima (A furtive tear) is sung by Nemorino when he finds that the love potion he bought to win the heart of his dream lady, Adina, works.
Michael Barrett then took centre stage to introduce his piano solo, playing the second of Robert Schumann's romantic pieces ' Drei Romanzen No2 in F#' .Written in 1839, as a Christmas present to his then fiancé, Clara Wieck, whom he married a year later.
Marcus returned to sing three Franz Schubert compositions, from Die Schöne Müllerin (The beautiful mill), a series of songs
based on poems by Wilhelm Müller.
A young journeyman miller wanders happily
through the countryside where he falls in love with the miller's beautiful daughter (the
"Müllerin" of the title). She is out of his reach as he is only a
journeyman. He tries to impress her, but her response seems tentative.
The young man is soon supplanted in her affections by a hunter clad in
green, the color of a ribbon he gave the girl. In his anguish, he
experiences an obsession with the color green, then an extravagant
death fantasy in which flowers sprout from his grave to express his
undying love.In the end, the young man despairs and presumably drowns
himself in the brook.
The
first piece, 'Eifersucht und Stoltz' (Jealousy and proud). was composed in 1823. This was
followed by 'Die Leibe Farbe', (The beloved colour) and ended with 'Die Bose Farbe' (The loathsome colour).
Completing the first act Marcus sang 'Pourquoi me Reveiller'
(Why should I wake up), from the opera Werther, by the French composer
Jules Massenet. Marcus plays the part of Werther who is in love with
Charlotte. After reading her some poetry of Ossian Pouquoi me
Revellier, he realises she too loves him.They
embrace for a moment, but she quickly bids him farewell. Werther leaves
with thoughts of suicide, to which he eventually succeeds.
For Act 2 Marcus introduced a complete change of style, from classical to Songs of Scotland. Many were from the Songs of Burns, starting with Feary Song by Broughton.
A change of composer, this time the Norwegian Edvard Grieg, who Michael talked about before Marcus sang 'I Love Thee'
Michael once again took the floor for a piano solo, this time a piece by the Polish composer Paul Zilcher, whom he talked about, before playing his 'Dance of the Midges'. As can be expected this is a fast 'buzzing', if somewhat brief piece of music.
Marcus returned to introduce
and sing a selection of songs made famous by that well known Scots
entertainer Kenneth McKellar. The first song was written by Burn's in
1787 'There Was a Lad' about a lad from Kyle called Robin.
Everyone knew the Burn's 'O My Love is Like a Red Red Rose, which he wrote as a poem in 1794. Moving on swiftly we heard Marcus sing another well known burn's song
'The Bonnie Lass o' Ballochmylie' written in 1786.
To
complete our evening we turned to a Harry Gordon, real name Alexander
Gordon (1893-1957), who was a popular Scottish entertainer,
comedian and impressionist, touring throughout Scotland and further
afield. From the 1920s through the 1950s Gordon also produced a large
number of recordings, including several under assumed names. He was
known as the Laird of Inversnecky, a fictional Scottish town he used in
his comic routines. Marcus sang his composition 'Down in the Glen'
 A
great round of applause and calls for 'more' Marcus and Michael
took their places for the encore with a good old scottish favourite ' Campbletown Loch I wish you were whisky'
which was followed by a thunderous applause.
An amazing evening that was well appreciated by the audience, with Penicuik rotary President Norman Glendinning offering the Vote of Thanks.
We wish Marcus well as he continues his studies toward a professional classical tenor singer.
| A former pupil of Penicuik
high School, Marcus is currently in his 3rd year at the Royal
Conservatoire of Scotland on the B.Mus vocal Studies course, tutored by Professor
Stephen Robertson.
In 2019 Marcus was delighted to be
awarded first place at the Leonie Kyser Prize for Singing competition at the Royal
Conservatoire of Scotland, and in 2018 was awarded 3rd place at the prestigious Kathleen Ferrier
Society Bursary for Young Singers.
Also in 2018 he was
delighted to receive the Royal
Conservatoire of Scotland Winnie Busfield Singing Award.
In 2017 Marcus was awarded a Royal
Conservatoire of Scotland Trust Entrance Award Scholarship, an din 2016
was awarded winner of the Rotary club Young Musician Competition,
Scotland and NE England final.
Marcus
also enjoys an active career as tenor soloist performing various
engagements around the UK. Recent performances include Handel's
Messiah, Haydn's Harmoniemesse, and Rossini's Petite Messe Solennelle.
Opera
Credits include the Scottish opera Young Company, a Young Artist at the
New Generation Festival, Florence, performing as a chorus member for
Mozart's Don giovanniand Walston's Henry the V.
Marcus rehearses
He was also a chorus
member for the recent RCS opera production of Puccini's Gianni Schicchi
and Poulenc's Les Mamelles de Tirésia. Marcus also played the role of
inmate 1 in the recent RCS production of Heggie's opera Dead Man
Walking.
Marcus is a grateful recipient of a Dewar Arms award, and a Cross Truss award.
Thank you to the Rotary Club of Penicuik for arranging this recital.
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Published - 4 November 2019
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