Isobel Buchanan

Isobel Buchanan was born in Glasgow and won a scholarship to The Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in 1971.  Whilst there, she won the Governors’ Recital Prize for Singing and was named ‘Student of the Year’ in 1974.
The following year, Isobel auditioned for Richard Bonynge and Joan Sutherland who offered her a three year contract with The Australian Opera. Her professional debut was in January 1976 singing the role of Pamina in Mozart’s The Magic Flute, a role which she repeated many times in her career.

Other roles with The Australian Opera included Fiordiligi, The Countess, Zerlina, Micaela, Norina, Gilda, Amelia (Simone Boccanegra), Helena (Midsummer night’s Dream), and Zerlina (Fra Diavolo).

Isobel made her British debut at Glyndebourne in 1978 singing Pamina in the John Cox/David Hockney production of Die Zauberflote and returned there to repeat the role in 1980.  In 1981 she sang La Contessa in Le Nozze de Figaro, directed by Sir Peter Hall.  She was also privileged to sing the same role on the opening night of the 50th anniversary of the company in 1984.

In 1978, Isobel sang Michaela for the Vienna Staatsoper, as a last minute replacement in a production by Franco Zefirelli and performing with Placido Domingo, Elena Obratsova and Yuri Mazurok.  Carlos Kleiber conducted this legendary premiere, which was broadcast live throughout Europe-and which has since been released on CD and video.

Her debut with the Royal Opera House was as a Blumenmadchen in Parsifal, conducted by Sir Georg Solti. The following year she sang Sophie in Werther with Alfredo Kraus and Teresa Berganza.   She repeated the role on stage and took part in the recording with Jose Carreras and Frederica Von Stade with Sir Colin Davis conducting.  In the same year she made her debut with Scottish Opera as Mimi under the baton of Sir Alexander Gibson and returned to the company to sing Ilia in Idomeneo and Susanna in Le Nozze de Figaro.

Other roles have included The Governess in The Turn of the Screw in Cologne, Paris and Munich, Zerlina and Adina (L’Elisir D’Amore ) for the Lyric Opera of Chicago with Pavarotti and Bergonzi; Donna Elvira in Australia and Monte Carlo with Ruggiero Raimondi and Blanche in Dialogues of the Carmelites with Joan Sutherland and Richard Bonynge.

Isobel has appeared with all the major British orchestras and has enjoyed very successful collaborations with many of the world’s leading conductors, notably Solti, Haitink, Andrew Davis, Colin Davis, Celibidache, Pritchard, Marriner, Bonynge, Kleiber and Menuhin.

Having made numerous recordings, she has also sung in Chicago and at the Carnegie Hall with Solti and in 1981 the B.B.C. made a documentary film about her career to date, directed by Michael Radford. She has also had her own television series and has appeared as a guest on other T.V. and radio shows, including Face the Music and The Michael Parkinson Show.

Isobel leads a busy life, dividing her time between family and career, but living, for the most part in Devon with her actor husband, Jonathan Hyde and their two daughters.