January 2011 — Joseph is praised for being 'as classy a Lieder pianist as can be found anywhere in the world...' by bachtrack.com following a recital with Geraldine McGreevy in Cambridge. They performed Goethe settings by Wolf and songs by Brahms, Chabrier and Poulenc. See the reviews page for the rest of the critique. In the same month Caroline MacPhie and Joseph are selected for the Kirckman Concerts Society and give recitals in Wiltshire, Droitwich and at LSE. Joseph also performs Mahler lieder with Anna Huntley, Catherine Hopper and Richard Latham at the home of Vernon and Hazel Ellis.
February 2011 — Wolfgang Holzmair invites Joseph to accompany him in a programme of Mahler lieder at Richard Stokes's Westminster School Series. Following the recital, Musicweb International writes that 'Joseph Middleton, who is already established as an outstanding accompanist of some distinction, showed his burgeoning reputation is fully deserved. He would seem to have a flawless technique and provided Wolfgang Holzmair with nuanced support that was alert to his veteran singer's every whim.' Wolfgang and Joseph repeated the same programme two days later in Cambridge and in the autumn will appear together at the Oxford Lieder Festival and in Ipswich. Joseph also accompanies Amanda Roocroft in a recital in Wigan Parish Church and Caroline MacPhie at Wigmore Hall for the YCAT lunchtime series.
March 2011 — Joseph gives his Geoffrey Parsons Memorial Award Winner's Recital at Wigmore Hall with Julia Sporsén, Clara Mouriz, Allan Clayton and Ronan Collett. The day before the recital Joseph and the four singers perform on BBC Radio 3's In Tune programme and are interviewed by Sean Rafferty. Joseph also accompanies Sophie Bevan and Julia Sporsén for their ENO Young Artist recitals at the home of Vernon and Hazel Ellis. As winners of the Tunnell Trust Scheme cellist Ashok Klouda and Joseph tour Scotland performing music by Bach, Beethoven, Debussy and Prokofiev. They give five concerts in five days, travelling to Dundee, Inverurie, Strathdee, Boat of Garten, and the Isle of Skye. On returning to London they give a lunchtime recital at St John's, Smith Square as past winners of the Worshipful Company of Musicians prizes.
April & May 2011 — Amanda Roocroft and Joseph give the first concert in a UK tour of their new recital programme — ‘Tell me the Truth about Love'. Joseph has devised this ‘opera told through the medium of song' to chart the story of a love affair from first infatuation to bitter rejection. They will perform this programme across the UK over the next few years and will record it for Champs Hill Records this summer. Other highlights include recitals with Christopher Maltman and Clara Mouriz at the Brighton Festival, Sarah-Jane Brandon in Cambridge, Anna Leese at the Austrian Cultural Forum, Marcus Farnsworth at Pollok House near Glasgow and Anna Grevelius in Pembroke College Cambridge.
June 2011 — Joseph returns the Aldeburgh Festival to play for the masterclasses of Mathias Goerne and Pierre-Laurant Aimard and to study Schubert's Schwanengesang. He also appears at the Chichester Festival with Amanda Roocroft, Bedwyn Music Society with Catherine Hopper, the Oriental Club with Caroline MacPhie and the Riverhouse Barn in Surrey with Laura Mitchell.
July 2011 — Joseph travels to Toronto to give a recital with Sir Thomas Allen for the Toronto Summer Music Festival. They perform Schumann's Dichterliebe as well as songs by Beethoven, Schubert, Michael Head and Frank Bridge. Reviewed for Toronto.com, the recital was described as ‘pure musical magic… a class act… a living breathing example of what it means to effectively communicate in song… Middleton's liquid-velvet work at the piano maintained a descreet counterweight.' Earlier in the month, Clara Mouriz and Joseph appear at the Gower Festival in a recital which was recorded by BBC Radio 3 and will be broadcast in the Autumn. They also give the same programme in Budleigh Saulterton a week later. Together with mezzo-soprano Jennifer Johnston, Joseph gives the World Premiere of Cheryl Frances-Hoad's new song cycle ‘One Life Stand' at the Cambridge Summer Music Festival. Cheryl's work is written as a reaction to Schumann's Frauenliebe und leben, which they also perform.
August 2011 — Amanda Roocroft and Joseph record their first recital CD together. ‘Tell me the truth about love' will be released by Champs Hill Records in mid-2012. Following this recording session, Joseph spends four days in Wigmore Hall with BBC New Generation Artists Clara Mouriz and Jennifer Johnston recording their first studio recordings for the scheme. Songs from these sessions will be broadcast over Christmas.
September 2011 — Joseph gives a recital of Elgar songs with Dame Felicity Lott in Sussex to launch their new CD ‘Elgar in Sussex' (Champs Hill Records). An address is given by Dame Janet Baker. Joseph also returns to the Wigmore Hall International Song Competition. He won the pianist's prize in 2007 and this year enjoys playing for Caroline MacPhie, Leslie Davies and Duncan Rock in the competition, but without the added pressure of having to compete! Later in the month Joseph plays for an ENO Young Artist Recital with Nicky Spence and Cathy Young and appears at the Cowbridge Festival with Gary Griffiths and Antoinette Dennefeld.
October 2011 — The month begins with a trip to Vienna to prepare for Joseph's forthcoming residency with Samling at King's Place. Recitals include those with Sir Thomas Allen at the Oxford Lieder Festival and at Pembroke College Cambridge, with Jennifer Johnston at Opera North's Howard Assembly Room (the concert includes a repeat performance of Cheryl Francis-Hoad's new work which they will record next year), with Duncan Rock at Woking Concert's Society, with Benjamin Appl at Guildhall, and at Beaconsfield Concerts with Julia Sporsen, Clara Mouriz, Joshua Ellicott and Marcus Farnsworth.
