Patrick Mcguigan
Singing teacher who shaped future careers of opera stars
PATRICK MCGUIGAN, the baritone who has died aged 86, enjoyed a successful performing career before going on to become one of the most inspiring vocal teachers of his generation.
As an early recruit by Sir John Manduell for the newly created Royal Northern College of Music in 1973, over the next quarter of a century Mcguigan not only moulded the creative personalities of many of this country’s leading singers, but also played a major role in establishing the college as a noted centre of musical excellence, its reputation spreading far beyond the confines of Manchester.
Patrick Joseph Mcguigan was born in Dublin on February 8 1933 and educated at the O’connell School from 1953 until 1957, after which he studied with Adelio Vianni at the Royal Irish Academy of Music.
He then refined his vocal technique in the company of Tino Pattiera in Vienna and Herbert Caesari in London before, in 1960, enrolling at the Royal Manchester College of Music. There he came under the influence of the great singing teacher Frederic Cox. It was Cox who instilled in Mcguigan the academic rigour that brought a raft of awards, most notably the 1962 Ricordi Prize.
Combining a powerful yet flexible vocal range with a commanding stage presence, Mcguigan made his professional debut playing Golaud in Debussy’s Pelléas et Mélisande at the 1965 St Pancras Festival.
Alongside appearances with the English Stage Company at the Royal Court Theatre, he served as Principal Baritone at Sadler’s Wells Opera. Later with Welsh National Opera, Glyndebourne Touring Opera and Kent Opera his sensitive interpretations endeared him to audiences nationwide. Likewise, his sense of humour and generous spirit won him the high regard of colleagues.
In 1973 Mcguigan’s virtuoso contribution as the onstage baritone in John Mccabe’s first ballet, The Teachings of Don Juan, won particular praise. Commissioned by Northern Dance Theatre, this highly unusual work takes as its subject not the misadventures of Don Giovanni or Don Juan but the Yaqui (from Mexico) Indian shaman, Don Juan Matus.
No less innovative was Mccabe’s earlier setting of CS Lewis’s Christian allegory, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, which premiered at Manchester Cathedral in April 1969. Mcguigan starred as Aslan, his wife, Caroline Crawshaw, as the White Witch.
Meticulous and expecting the highest standards, Mcguigan taught at the Royal Manchester College of Music from 1965 until 1973. Appointed a principal lecturer at the new Royal Northern College of Music, he served as Head of Vocal Studies from 1995 until retirement in 1999.
Never concealing his overriding preoccupation with voice production and individual voices, what made him stand out was his unerring ability to recognise and encourage individual talents.
Whether it be the celebrated bass, Sir John Tomlinson, or the popular tenor Russell Watson, whose career Mcguigan helped rescue after serious illness, countless pupils sought his help and advice long after finding success.
In later years Mcguigan proved no less successful as an operatic producer, be it at the Royal Northern College of Music or with professional companies further afield. He also found himself in regular demand as a jurist at singing competitions and as a keynote speaker at a wide range of seminars, workshops and master classes.
It was at the Royal Manchester College of Music that Mcguigan first met his future wife, then a fellow student, the Yorkshire-born soprano Caroline Crawshaw. They married in 1966 and she survives him, together with their two daughters.
Patrick Mcguigan, born February 8 1933, died August 27 2019