He was six when he first sang in London’s Dalston Synagogue choir at the induction of the famous cantor Jacob Kusevitsky. That moment inspired Alan Bilgora, who has died aged 91, to pursue a singing career.
Following National Service in the Royal Air Force, he joined the Toynbee Opera Group, one of the first opera workshops to be establìshed in London, performing leading tenor roles in works by Verdi, Smetana and Mozart. He also joined the Old Stepnians’ Operatic Society, singing tenor roles in the Gilbert & Sullivan repertoire. During this time he studied voice with Robert McGover, a former pupil of the distinguished Italian tenor Giulio Grimi. Bilgora spent nearly four decades with the London Jewish Male Choir in key administrative roles and as soloist compére on visits to Israel, the USA, Germany and Ireland. His solo voice can be heard on their commercial LP recordings. He participated in many concerts and regularly featured in BBC broadcasts, usually prior to the High Holidays. He also appeared on TV programmes such as Chelsea At Eight and Stars On Sunday. Since the Second World War he sang in many synagogues in London and the provinces, supporting guest appearances by most of the world’s leading cantors.
His all-abiding passion was collecting original recordings of the great singers of the past, specialising in the tenor voice, and is known for his analysis of the records of many leading international operatic tenors.
Bilgora was interested in Jewish artists and gave numerous illustrated talks to the Jewish Association of Cultural Societies and the Association of Jewish Refugees, whose members recalled continental singers from their youth. These talks were enthusiastically received by his audiences, particularly non-Jewish ones. He also wrote an introduction to an Italian book, covering a number of Jewish singers who left a recorded legacy.
He was a regular contributor to the internationally distributed The Record Collector, and provìded original recordings for leading record companies, including EMI, and special issues by the The Record Collector of rare Italian 1940s-50s material. He also appeared on European TV as a contributor to programmes featuring such tenors as Richard Tauber and Joseph Schmidt.
For many years deputy chairman of the Recorded Vocal Art Society, where he gave illustrated lectures, Bilgora was also a presenter with several music and cultural societies, including Spiro Ark and the London Jewish Cultural Centre. In 2001 he participated in a four-hour phone-in radio broadcast in New York. He was vice chairman of Historic Singers Trust, dedicated to the re-pressing of rare or previously unpublished vocal material in its original 78rpm format, which are in the archives of EMI and its sister companies on the continent.
He was involved with the Centre for Performing Arts in Mumbai, writing articles on great opera singers and operatic programme notes. He helped supplement the Hendon Synagogue choir, offering advice to aspiring young tenors. Alan is survived by his wife Shirley, their daughters, Ema, Kathryn and Judy, and three grandchildren.
Alan Bilgora: born 9 September, 1929. Died 13 May, 2021.
