Bramwell and I met in a 1991 production of The Mikado at The Edmonton Opera. He had recently come from Britain, and he was not yet well known elsewhere in Canada. That changed as the effervescence of his personality, his wit, and the breadth of his musical taste and dazzling skills as a musician quickly became a calling card. We bonded over the inspired silliness and joy of Gilbert and Sullivan, but I think now that our connection deepened by a shared interest in the theatre of music—what music was doing, what it meant and how to express it.
Bramwell agreed to sign on as Conductor to the development and production of the newly commissioned opera , the first of Bob McPhee’s ambitious artistic plans to revitalize opera as a creative art form in Western Canada, from composer John Estacio and play-wright John Murrell. Bramwell joined the collaboration with the full force of his
