Meriel Dickinson, the mezzo-soprano who performed with the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Welsh National Opera and was acclaimed for her interpretations of Kurt Weill, has died aged 86. Her voice was likened to 'a lovely dark and lush velvet' by former BBC music producer Jill White.
Career Highlights
Dickinson was recognised internationally for both her classical and contemporary vocal repertoire. She performed with some of the greatest composers of the last century, including Benjamin Britten, Pierre Boulez, John Cage, and Aaron Copland, as well as conductors such as Adrian Boult and Simon Rattle. One highlight was Beethoven's Choral Symphony at the 1969 Vienna festival under George Szell. She recalled: 'I was understandably nervous of Szell. His somewhat autocratic manner had been known to subdue the London Symphony Orchestra. However, in the end he was very charming, complimenting me on my voice and German pronunciation.'
Partnership with Brother Peter
In the 1960s, Dickinson began a longstanding partnership with her brother, Peter Dickinson, the composer, pianist, and author. They performed in recitals, BBC broadcasts, and recordings, excelling in contemporary and experimental music. They championed composers such as Erik Satie, George Gershwin, and Charles Ives, and commissioned works from Lennox Berkeley and Andrzej Panufnik. Peter wrote several works for his sister, including song cycles to poems of EE Cummings.
Premieres and Opera Roles
Her premieres included Gordon Crosse's Memories of Morning: Night, a BBC commission performed with the BBC Symphony Orchestra under Colin Davis at the BBC Proms in 1973. Her opera and musical theatre appearances ranged from Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin with Welsh National Opera (1980) to Stephen Sondheim's A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum at the Theatre Royal, York (1982).
Kurt Weill Revival
From the mid-1970s, Dickinson became a key figure in the Kurt Weill revival, acclaimed for her interpretations in Mahagonny Songspiel and Happy End in Berlin in 1975. Both works were recorded by Deutsche Grammophon with the London Sinfonietta conducted by David Atherton, who regarded her rendition of Weill's music as 'second to none'. In 1989, she was cast as Emma Jones in Weill's Street Scene for productions by Scottish Opera and English National Opera. She later recalled: 'I enjoyed playing the vituperative Mrs Jones, but had some problems with my dog – the only time I have worked with an animal … The dog walked to the front of the stage and relieved herself. The audience … roared their approval.'
Early Life and Training
Born in Lytham St Annes, Lancashire, into a musical family, her father Frank Dickinson was an optometrist and a pioneer in contact lenses, and her mother Muriel (née Porter) was a dramatic recitalist. In 1958, she entered the Royal Manchester College of Music (now the Royal Northern College of Music). On graduating in 1963, she joined the BBC Singers in time for their Proms concert. Soprano Valerie Heath Davies became her mentor, advising her to leave the Singers and study in Vienna with Hans Karg. On a scholarship, Dickinson moved to Vienna and trained at the Academy of Music and Performing Arts with Karg, receiving a distinction in the recital diploma.
Notable Performances
In 1967, she toured Germany with Peter Pears and the Schütz Choir conducted by Roger Norrington. She also sang in Schumann's Scenes from Faust conducted by Britten, of whom she wrote: 'He was a perfectionist and, not working full time as a conductor, he would seem nervous and rather irritable if things did not go according to plan. The results were always superb, whether he was playing or conducting.' In 1964, aged 24, she made her London solo debut with the Park Lane Group. Her rendition of songs by Hugo Wolf, John McCabe, and Britten prompted Andrew Porter in the Financial Times to note that it was 'a performance that one would have liked to take away on record'.
Personal Life and Legacy
She met her future husband, Robert Gardner, in 1979 when she joined the Old Vic Theatre Company for a double bill of plays with music celebrating the bicentenary of David Garrick. Gardner was the wig master. They married in 1991. In 1997, she retired from performing but continued to teach at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire. Her friend Jill White described Dickinson as 'warm-hearted and extremely kind, with a wicked sense of humour'. Peter died in 2023. Meriel is survived by her husband.
