Exciting emerging tenor Itamar Hildesheim joins Jocelyn Freeman for a slightly haunted recital inspired by Clara Schumann’s tours of the UK.
SongEasel welcomes back exciting emerging tenor Itamar Hildesheim for a slightly haunted recital inspired by Clara Schumann’s tours of the UK. Myths & Mortals takes inspiration from these journeys, interweaving the songs and piano works Clara herself performed with music that reflects the mythic, folkloric, and supernatural themes so beloved in the Romantic imagination.
At the heart of the programme are echoes of the Ballades, Nocturnes, and Fantasiestücke Op.12 that Clara programmed, reimagined here in dialogue with voices across centuries. This is a journey of inspiration and creativity, ranging from legends of the Lorelei to tales of witches, mermaids, and wandering spirits.
In honour of Clara’s real-life collaboration with Liza Lehmann in 1856, the recital includes a song by Lehmann, and moves between enchantment and danger, mortal longing and otherworldly visions, tracing a journey as bold and imaginative as Clara’s own.
SongEasel welcomes back exciting emerging tenor Itamar Hildesheim for a slightly haunted recital inspired by Clara Schumann’s tours of the UK. Myths & Mortals takes inspiration from these journeys, interweaving the songs and piano works Clara herself performed with music that reflects the mythic, folkloric, and supernatural themes so beloved in the Romantic imagination.
At the heart of the programme are echoes of the Ballades, Nocturnes, and Fantasiestücke Op.12 that Clara programmed, reimagined here in dialogue with voices across centuries. This is a journey of inspiration and creativity, ranging from legends of the Lorelei to tales of witches, mermaids, and wandering spirits.
In honour of Clara’s real-life collaboration with Liza Lehmann in 1856, the recital includes a song by Lehmann, and moves between enchantment and danger, mortal longing and otherworldly visions, tracing a journey as bold and imaginative as Clara’s own.
Itamar Hildesheim |
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Tenor Itamar Hildesheim completed his master’s degree at the Mozarteum University Salzburg, where he studied with Prof. Christoph Strehl, Prof. Pauliina Tukiainen, and Prof. Andreas Schmidt. He previously studied at the University of Music and Theatre in Rostock with Prof. Karola Theill and Prof. Klaus Häger, and studied his bachelor’s degree from the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance, studying with Jeffrey Francis and Dr. Ido Ariel.
In the 2025/26 season, he will make his debut at the Slovak Philharmonic with Le Nuove Musiche as part of a European tour. He will debut as the Evangelist in Bach’s Christmas Oratorio at the Ulm Cathedral and the Rosary Basilica Steglitz in Berlin. Hildesheim won this year’s Salvat Bach Grant edition, awarded to outstanding singers focusing on Bach‘s music. In collaboration with the Bachcelona Foundation and the Bach Collegium Barcelona, he will perform at the Palau de la Música Catalana (Barcelona), the Fundación Juan March (Madrid), the Festival de Música Antiga dels Pirineus, and other festivals across Spain. Hildesheim will make his debut with the lautten compagney BERLIN in Stadttheater Schaffhausen. In addition, he will record a CD of newly discovered Baroque repertoire with the Jerusalem Baroque Orchestra.
At a young age, he has performed leading roles in major oratorios including Die Schöpfung, the St. Matthew Passion, the Mass in B minor, and the Mozart Requiem in venues such as Salzburg Cathedral, Mondsee Cathedral, the Konzerthaus Bietigheim-Bissingen, and with the Israeli Philharmonic.
He has appeared at leading European festivals, including the Bach Festival Leipzig, where he performed with Vox Luminis (Lionel Meunier) at the Thomaskirche and Nikolaikirche, the Thüringen Bach Festival with BachWerkVokal (Gordon Safari) at the Bach Church in Arnstadt, the Bach25 Festival in Koblenz with Cappella Confluentes (Jörn Andresen) and LIEDBasel25, where he was a scholarship recipient and performed several recitals with pianist Kimball Bottke while being mentored by James Baillieu and Patricia Petibon. He regularly appears at the SongEasel Song Festival in London, collaborating with pianist Jocelyn Freeman.
Other notable performances include his appearance as “Ahasveross” in Esther by C. J. Lidarti at the Recital Hall of the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, conducted by Imri Talgam, as well as his participation as a scholarship holder of the Haydneum – Hungarian Centre for Early Music in the 41st edition of the Early Music Days Festival in Vác under the direction of György Vashegyi.
Furthermore, he has collaborated with distinguished artists such as Philippe Pierlot, Peter Whelan and Anne Le Bozec. He is a regular guest of the Jerusalem baroque orchestra and of the Mozarteum Vokalensemble.
In the 2025/26 season, he will make his debut at the Slovak Philharmonic with Le Nuove Musiche as part of a European tour. He will debut as the Evangelist in Bach’s Christmas Oratorio at the Ulm Cathedral and the Rosary Basilica Steglitz in Berlin. Hildesheim won this year’s Salvat Bach Grant edition, awarded to outstanding singers focusing on Bach‘s music. In collaboration with the Bachcelona Foundation and the Bach Collegium Barcelona, he will perform at the Palau de la Música Catalana (Barcelona), the Fundación Juan March (Madrid), the Festival de Música Antiga dels Pirineus, and other festivals across Spain. Hildesheim will make his debut with the lautten compagney BERLIN in Stadttheater Schaffhausen. In addition, he will record a CD of newly discovered Baroque repertoire with the Jerusalem Baroque Orchestra.
At a young age, he has performed leading roles in major oratorios including Die Schöpfung, the St. Matthew Passion, the Mass in B minor, and the Mozart Requiem in venues such as Salzburg Cathedral, Mondsee Cathedral, the Konzerthaus Bietigheim-Bissingen, and with the Israeli Philharmonic.
He has appeared at leading European festivals, including the Bach Festival Leipzig, where he performed with Vox Luminis (Lionel Meunier) at the Thomaskirche and Nikolaikirche, the Thüringen Bach Festival with BachWerkVokal (Gordon Safari) at the Bach Church in Arnstadt, the Bach25 Festival in Koblenz with Cappella Confluentes (Jörn Andresen) and LIEDBasel25, where he was a scholarship recipient and performed several recitals with pianist Kimball Bottke while being mentored by James Baillieu and Patricia Petibon. He regularly appears at the SongEasel Song Festival in London, collaborating with pianist Jocelyn Freeman.
Other notable performances include his appearance as “Ahasveross” in Esther by C. J. Lidarti at the Recital Hall of the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, conducted by Imri Talgam, as well as his participation as a scholarship holder of the Haydneum – Hungarian Centre for Early Music in the 41st edition of the Early Music Days Festival in Vác under the direction of György Vashegyi.
Furthermore, he has collaborated with distinguished artists such as Philippe Pierlot, Peter Whelan and Anne Le Bozec. He is a regular guest of the Jerusalem baroque orchestra and of the Mozarteum Vokalensemble.
Jocelyn Freeman |
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The award-winning Welsh collaborative pianist Jocelyn Freeman is lauded for her artistry, programming and powers of communication. Artist-in-Residence at the 2025 St David's Cathedral Festival, she is an advocate for diversity in a range of artistic endeavours and has curated extensive concert and recording projects to wide critical acclaim. Her love of the Lied genre led her to establish SongEasel in 2018, a charity for Song in South East London. As its Founder-Director, she has pioneered new approaches to audience development and the wider welfare of the music ecosystem, which have gained international attention. She values her role as a mentor for early-career musicians, devising and delivering a series of collaborative and keynote talks and song masterclasses 'Song & Society', most recently in Salzburg by kind invitation of the Mozarteum University.
In 2023, Jocelyn was endorsed with a prestigious Associateship from the Royal Academy of Music for her contribution to the music industry, and in 2025, was awarded ‘Most Inspiring Collaborative Pianist & Song Curator’ by SME News. She is a skilled communicator on the concert platform and in broadcasts, recordings, and social media, and has featured in several industry and lifestyle publications.
In 2023, Jocelyn was endorsed with a prestigious Associateship from the Royal Academy of Music for her contribution to the music industry, and in 2025, was awarded ‘Most Inspiring Collaborative Pianist & Song Curator’ by SME News. She is a skilled communicator on the concert platform and in broadcasts, recordings, and social media, and has featured in several industry and lifestyle publications.