James Lockhart Suggest updates
James Lawrence Lockhart.
Born Edinburgh, 16 October 1930.
Scottish conductor, accompanist and teacher.
Most of James Lockhart's conducting career was spent in Germany. He studied in Edinburgh and London (Royal College of Music), before working in Münster as repetiteur 1955-6. Other early appearances included Munich 1956-7; Glyndebourne 1957-9; BBC Scottish SO 1960-61; Covent Garden 1959-60 and 1962-8; Sadler’s Wells 1961-2.
Lockhart was Music Director of Welsh National Opera 1968-72, where he conducted Falstaff with guest appearances by both Geraint Evans and Tito Gobbi.
Lockhart was then appointed to Kassel (1972-8) as the first British-born conductor to hold the position of music director in a German opera house, conducting a range including Aïda, The Ring, Death in Venice, The Queen of Spades, Ariadne auf Naxos, Lohengrin, Die schweigsame Frau, Kátya Kabanová and Wozzeck.
As a guest in Hamburg he conducted I Vespri Siciliani and Billy Budd, and in Munich La Bohème and Die Entführung. A further appointment came at the Koblenz Opera 1981-88 (and until 1991 Rhine Philharmonic, Koblenz), where he conducted The Rape of Lucretia. He returned to ENO in 1984 to conduct War and Peace.
Later work – 1986-92 Director of Opera, Royal College of Music. From 1992 Director of Opera Department, London Royal Schools’ Vocal Faculty.
With Scottish Opera, Lockhart conducted Madama Butterfly (1962).
