Helen Brown began her vocal training in Perth with Molly McGurk. She then travelled to Paris and London to continue her studies. After working with Noelle Barker, Paul Hamburger and David Mason, Helen made her operatic debut for the Opéra- Théåtre de Massy singing the roles of Laoula from L’Etoile by Chabrier and La Princesse from L’Enfant et les Sortileges by Ravel. She continued to live and work in Paris, where she performed roles such as Arminda from La Finta Giardiniera by Mozart and Titania, the title role of Purcell’s The Fairy Queen. After gaining a place on English National Opera’s prestigious performance skills course, “The Knack”, directed by Mary King, Helen relocated to London. There she created the role of Jessica in Alec Roth’s A Medecine for Melancholy at ENO Works. She also toured extensively with the baroque ensemble “L’Estravaganza” directed by Patrick Dunn. While singing in Charpentier’s Medée at Dartington in 1998, Helen met the pianist David Wickham who is now her husband. The duo has performed many times in London and continue to perform in Perth. They have given recitals for WAAPA, the Kalamunda Music Society and the Joondalup festival.
David Wickham is one of Australia’s pre-eminent accompanists. He was a lecturer at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, principal coach for West Australian Opera, and a member of the music staff of the Australian Opera Studio, where he was music director for many productions. “David Wickham led from the front with a superb display of musicianship, playing the orchestral reduction with extraordinary flair and directing at the same time.” Opera Opera described him as “one of the finest exponents of keyboard skill when dealing with orchestral transcriptions”.He has broadcast numerous recitals for ABC Classic FM and BBC Radio 3. The West Australian described David as “a musician whose fingers knew no fears, and who could shape even the subtlest nuances of the vocal line.” As a freelance repetiteur David worked for English National Opera, Welsh National Opera and Scottish Opera, also spending nine seasons with Garsington Opera. He has also worked on many productions for West Australian Opera.His Perth-based song recital series SwanSongs has received critical acclaim, showcasing artists such as Gregory Yurisich, Lisa Gasteen, Cheryl Barker, Emma Matthews and Sara Macliver.
Enjoy a complimentary wine and the intimacy of superb chamber music in the comfortable environment of the newly opened Steinway & Sons Showroom (246 Railway Parade, West Leederville).