Welcome to the Songmakers line-up! How does it feel to be part of a vocal quartet?
I love performing in groups, especially quartets. It is so enjoyable to blend voices with other people and make really lovely harmony. It is something I fell in love with when I was a chorister at St. Andrew’s Cathedral, Sydney. In opera, duets, trios and quartets come up quite a bit, and they are always lots of fun.
This is your third collaboration with Songmakers Australia. What do you like about working with them?
Songmakers Australia are a wonderful group of voices and minds. Performing with them has always been a highlight for me. Their experience and attention to detail has always been inspiring. It is also really fun to perform with them, which is probably the most important thing.
The first program in 2016 includes works by Mozart, Beethoven and Schumann. What is your favourite piece in the program?
I really do enjoy performing Beethoven’s An die ferne Geliebte. It is such a wonderful work with plenty of places to shine, but Schumann’s Spanisches Liederspiel is just beautiful. And as it will be with the other Songmakers, it really will be lot’s of fun.
How is this different from your other work?
Well, it’s not really all that different. I’m still singing the same way I always do, just maybe aligning myself a little more with the other singers. We are all soloists, so I guess it really comes down to blending well and giving a little more attention to the overall balance of our voices.
Andrew Goodwin's first performance with Songmakers Australia for 2016 will be in "Songs to a Distant Beloved" on April 13 at Melbourne Recital Centre. The performance will feature Beethoven's "An die ferne Geliebte" on the bicentenary of its composition.
Tickets available via the Melbourne Recital Centre Box Office. Discover more about Andrew at www.andrewgoodwintenor.com.