Johanna Peters (3 January 1932 – 27 May 2000) was a Scottish

mezzo-soprano A mezzo-soprano or mezzo (; ; meaning "half soprano") is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range lies between the soprano and the contralto voice types. The mezzo-soprano's vocal range usually extends from the A below middle C ...

who played a prominent role in British operatic life during her 40-year career, first as singer, and later as a distinguished voice teacher at the

Guildhall School of Music The Guildhall School of Music and Drama is a conservatoire and drama school located in the City of London, United Kingdom. Established in 1880, the school offers undergraduate and postgraduate training in all aspects of classical music and jazz ...

. As a singer, she was particularly known for her intelligent portrayal of a wide variety of character parts and created the roles of Hippolyta in

Benjamin Britten Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976, aged 63) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, other ...

's ''

A Midsummer Night's Dream ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' is a comedy written by William Shakespeare 1595 or 1596. The play is set in Athens, and consists of several subplots that revolve around the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. One subplot involves a conflict amon ...

'' and The Widow Sweeney in

Nicholas Maw John Nicholas Maw (5 November 1935 – 19 May 2009) was a British composer. Among his works are the operas '' The Rising of the Moon'' (1970) and ''Sophie's Choice'' (2002). Biography Born in Grantham, Lincolnshire, Maw was the son of Clarence ...

's '' The Rising of the Moon''. For many years she and her companion,

Anne Wood Anne Wood, CBE (born 18 December 1937) is an English children's television producer, responsible for creating shows such as ''Teletubbies'' with Andrew Davenport. She is also the creator of ''Tots TV'' and ''Rosie and Jim''. She was a recipien ...

, ran their own small touring company, Phoenix Opera. Britten–Pears Foundation Archive
Johanna Peters
. Retrieved 29 October 2013.

References

1932 births 2000 deaths Operatic mezzo-sopranos 20th-century Scottish women singers 20th-century British women opera singers British arts administrators Women arts administrators {{UK-opera-singer-stub