Winner of the Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik (German Record Critics’ Award) for Opera
"The 155 critics' jurors of the PdSK, divided into 32 expert juries, have chosen the following winning titles for the best list from the new releases on the record market:
...
Domenico Cimarosa: L'Olimpiade. (Josh Lovell, Rocío Pérez, Marie Lys, Maité Beaumont, Mathilde Ortscheidt, Alex Banfield, Les Talens Lyriques, Christophe Rousset).
2 CDs, Château de Versailles Spectacles CVS143 (Naxos)
"Episode 194. Great Mozart Tenors" (Daniel Gundlach)
Counter Melody Podcast, 2023
![Image](https://alexbanfield.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/cropped-Countermelody_Logo_Fall2022_1500x1500.png)
Towards the end of the podcast under the "upcoming generation" section (about the 2hr mark)
Messiah (Handel)
Soloist
Ilkley & Otley Choral Societies with the Yorkshire Chamber Ensemble, 2022
“The tenor, Alex Banfield, standing in at the last moment for the advertised singer, gave a most accomplished performance, both tone and words clear and well-articulated – his singing of Thou shalt break them with just continuo accompaniment was outstanding.”
- Chris Skidmore, Ilkley Gazette
Street Scene (Weill)
Role: Sam Kaplan
Opera North, 2020
“...one standout number along the way: the melancholy Lonely House, beautifully sung here by Alex Banfield.”
- Rupert Christiansen, The Telegraph
★★★★ “Tenor Alex Banfield was her earnest suitor, fated not to succeed. His “Lonely House” in Act 1 was sung with great verve and intensity.”
- Bachtrack, Richard Wilcocks
★★★★ “there’s not a weak link anywhere...Alex Banfield...sings Lonely House with wonderful depth of feeling”
- Tim Ashley, The Guardian
★★★★ “...she has much admiration and adoration from neighbour Sam Kaplan with Alex Banfield fulfilling the complexity of the young law student with great skill.”
- Rich Jevons, The Reviews Hub
★★★★★ “Gillene Butterfield as Rose and the promising young tenor Alex Banfield as Sam play their cut-short love affair with touching tenderness.”
- Richard Morrison, The Times
★★★★ "Among the work’s standout numbers, Lonely House was beautifully delivered by the tenor Alex Banfield playing Sam Kaplan"
- Fiona Maddocks, The Observer
“...bookish neighbour Sam Kaplan, to whom Weill gives one of the show’s best songs in Lonely House, which Alex Banfield voices in a silvery tenor.”
- George Hall, The Stage
“Alex Banfield’s Sam Kaplan, his timid exterior belying his passionate singing”
- Phil Kirby, The Culture Vulture
“Banfield’s Sam is beautifully acted and sung, the gift role of the piece.”
- Tom Sutcliffe, The Critics’ Circle
★★★★ “One of the highlights of the evening is Banfield’s rendition of ‘Lonely House’. Standing alone at the top of a staircase, he hints at his affection for Rose and his frustration with his life in the tenements. It is a sensitive rendition and draws considerable audience appreciation.”
- Mike Tilling, The Musical Theatre Review
“Sam is persuasively drawn by Alex Banfield: we feel his pangs for Rose in We’ll Go Away Together.”
- Charles Hutchinson, The Art Beat of Yorkshire
★★★★½ “Banfield looked and sounded the part, whilst being able to belt out a number with the appropriate vocal quality, and his Sam had an appealing quality to which made you root for him.”
- Robert Hugill, Planet Hugill
“Alex Banfield’s trim, focused tenor is perfect both for the teenage melancholy of the nebbish Sam Kaplan, and his flare-ups of romantic idealism.”
- The Spectator, Richard Bratby
“Alex Banfield gives a splendid emotional performance as Sam, and the duets of Rose and Sam are beautifully charged and plaintive.”
- Sandra Callard, Yorkshire Magazine
“the Maurrants and the Kaplans are outstanding...Alex Banfield impresses as [Rose’s] ‘best friend’ Sam; both their individual arias and duets were highlights of the evening.”
- Melanie Eskenazi, Music OMH
“Her suitor is the shy bookish Sam Kaplan, played by Alex Banfield, who sang with supreme confidence in a silky rendition of Lonely House. Their duet was a tender tour de force.”
- The Northern Echo, Gavin Englebrecht
Silent Night (Kevin Puts, 2014)
Jonathan Dale
Opera North, 2018
"I found the drama fresh and engaging, the characters drawn with psychological acuteness... facilitating a clutch of excellent performances... newcomer Alex Banfield as a Scots soldier driven mad with grief by the death of his brother."
- The Telegraph, Rupert Christiansen
"Standouts among the almost entirely male cast include Alex Banfield as embittered Scottish soldier Jonathan Dale, determined to have revenge on the Germans for the death of his gung-ho brother"
- Financial Times, George Hall
"after his brother William is killed... Banfield, like Charlesworth, expresses feelings of resentment powerfully, in his case more viciously."
- Richard Wilcox, Bachtrack