Jeremy Silver

Director Opera UCT

MA (Cantab.), LRAM

Jeremy Silver studied languages and music at Clare College, Cambridge and conducting at the Royal College of Music. He furthered his operatic studies at the National Opera Studio in London where, fifteen years later, he formed part of the artistic leadership team.

Jeremy has worked extensively in South Africa with all the country’s major symphony orchestras, as well as conducting La bohème and Le nozze di Figaro for Cape Town Opera and Lucia di Lammermoor with Gauteng Opera. As principal conductor of Opera Africa (2004-2007), he conducted productions of I Capuleti e i Montecchi, La traviata and Rigoletto at the State Theatre, Pretoria, as well the South African opera Princess Magogo at Het Muziektheater, Amsterdam.

A selection of other productions includes Rinaldo, Serse, Alcina, Orfeo ed Euridice, L’incoronazione di Poppea and the Mozart Da Ponte operas (Longborough Festival Opera); Pelléas et Mélisande (Glyndebourne Touring Opera); Madama Butterfly (English National Opera); Ariadne auf Naxos (English Touring Opera); Aida, Carmen (Royal Albert Hall); La Rondine, Lucia di Lammermoor, Le Nozze di Figaro (Opera Holland Park); Les Huguenots, Tosca (Opéra-Théâtre de Metz), Turandot (National Theatre, Malaysia) and Die Fledermaus (Yale Opera). For English Touring Opera he also conducted two exciting Donizetti rediscoveries, L’assedio di Calais and Il furioso all’isola di San Domingo in performing editions resulting from his considerable editorial work on both scores.

Jeremy served on the resident music staffs of English National Opera and Scottish Opera, and worked in addition as assistant conductor with Glyndebourne Festival Opera and Opera North.

Jeremy is currently Music Director of the Melting Pot Choral Festival, where, in addition to the choral competition, he runs a yearly conducting course. He is also an Associate Artist at Longborough Festival Opera.