Baritone Tristan Entwistle on the passion of opera
Meet Sydney’s finalist in the Australian Singing Competition.
Northern District Times
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For Tristan Entwistle music — and particularly opera — says what words cannot.
The 24-year-old baritone will soon put his passion for opera on the line in the finals of the IFAC Handa Australian Singing Competition.
As the only baritone and only NSW finalist, Entwistle will be up against four sopranos in the finals at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music on Saturday, September 8.
This year marks his first time in the finals of the competition, which is open to opera and classical singers under the age of 26.
The competition’s lucrative prizes — with a combined value of nearly $200,000 — come at the perfect time for Entwistle, who plans to move to Germany next year with his fiance to further his operatic career.
Entwhistle grew up in a musical family — his mum teaches piano and flute and his dad plays in a band — and was surrounded by classical music from a young age.
“I started off as a violinist, I was four or five years old — I did violin all through high school and that was going to be my thing,” he said.
In high school he started singing in choirs and theatre productions, and when he developed tendinitis in his violin arm in his final year his focus turned to singing.
He was accepted into the Sydney Conservatorium of Music — graduating last year with a masters degree — and has “never looked back since”.
“Opera seemed like the obvious choice between my passion for classical music and passion for theatre,” he said.
Entwistle loves the passion that comes across in opera; the sweeping, consuming emotion of some arias.
“I think there’s a level of emotion that you can’t show with words alone … music says what words can’t,” he said.
The 2018 IFAC Handa Australian Singing Competition Finals Concert is open to the public and will be held at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music on Saturday, September 8.