Castles, Amy Eliza (1880 - 1951)

Born into a musical family, soprano Amy Castles made her Melbourne debut at the annual meeting of the Austral Salon in 1899. She studied in Paris with Madame Marchesi and then Jacques Bouhy before appearing with Ada Crossley and Clara Butt at St James’s Hall, London in 1901. After completing further study Castles sang at the Queen’s Hall concerts in London and gave a command performance before King Edward VII in 1906. Castles then appeared in Hamlet at Cologne, Gounod’s Romeo and Juliet and Faust. She also took part in the Harrison tours of Great Britain and sang with conductors Hans Richter, (Sir) Henry Wood and Landon Ronald. Following her tour of Australia for J & N Tait, in 1909, Castles performed in the Australian premiere of Puccini’s Madame Butterfly for J C Williamson before returning to Europe. At the outbreak of war Castles returned to Australia where she completed a tour of the capital cities. She made her American debut at Carnegie Hall, New York in 1917 as well as giving concerts for sick and wounded soldiers and opening her Manhattan home to visiting Australians. With the Williamson Grand Opera Company Castles toured Australia in 1919 and again in 1925 on a concert tour managed by her brother George and including her sister Eileen.

Events

October 1898	Performed in a local production of Gilbert and Sullivan's Patience directed by her teacher E Allan Bindley
16 March 1899	Made her debut at the annual meeting of the Austral Salon, Melbourne
November 1901	Made her first London appearance at a St James's Hall concert with Ada Crossley and Clara Butt
1902	Returned to Australia to tour for J C Williamson
1905	Reappeared in London at Queen's Hall concerts
1906	Gave a command performance before King Edward VII
1907	Made her European debut at Cologne in Ambroise Thomas's Hamlet
September 1909	Returned to Australia for a four-and-a-half month tour of seventy-two towns for J & N Tait
1911	Returned to London for a series of Chappell concerts
1912	Accepted an offer of a four-year contract from the Imperial Opera in Vienna and was appointed chamber singer to the Imperial Court
1915	After the outbreak of war Castles was obliged to leave Austria and returned to Australia to tour the capital cities
1917	Made her American debut at Carnegie Hall, New York
1919	Toured Australia with the Williamson Grand Opera Company
1925	Returned to Sydney for a concert tour of Australasia which was managed by her brother George and included her sister Eileen
1930 - 1931	Visited Hollywood to take part in a 'talkie'

Related Corporate Bodies

• The Austral Salon of Music, Literature and the Arts (1890 - )

  Amy Castles made her debut in Melbourne at the annual meeting of the Austral Salon

  [1899 - ]

Related People

• Crossley, Ada Jemima (1871 - 1929)

  Made an appearance at a St James's Hall concert with Amy Castles and Clara Butt

  [1901 - ]

Books

• Brownrigg, Jeff, A New Melba?: The Tragedy of Amy Castles, Crossing Press, Darlinghurst, NSW, 2006, 281 pp. [ Details... ]

Book Sections

• Radic, Maureen Therese, 'Castles, Amy Eliza', in Australian Dictionary of Biography, vol. 7, Melbourne University Press, Carlton, Vic., pp. 588-589. [ Details... ]

See also

• Alexander, Joseph A (ed.), Who's who in Australia 1950, 14th edn, The Herald, Melbourne, 1950, 816 pp. [ Details... ]
• Arnold, John and Morris, Deirdre (eds), Monash Biographical Dictionary of 20th Century Australia, Reed Reference Publishing, Port Melbourne (Vic.), 1994, 568 pp. [ Details... ]
• Brownrigg, Jeff, "Footprints on the sands of time" : Bendigo's citizens, the 1909 Bendigonian annual and community history, La Trobe University, Bendigo, Bendigo [Vic.], 2002, 30 pp. [ Details... ]