William Michael was born on the 10th of July 1888 and was the third of six children. He appears on the 1891 census as Willie Michael. His parents were Thomas aged 39 and Hannah aged 30. William had three siblings at the time, the eldest being 10 year old Mary Adelide, while his elder brother Robert was aged 4 and his younger sister, Elizabeth was only 4 months. The family lived at Mountain View, Garnant in 1888. This was an end of terrace house on the main road through the village. William's father was a coal miner and the census tells us that the whole of the household spoke only Welsh at that time.
The 1901 census shows that at thirteen years old, William was working as a colliery door boy. William also had two more younger siblings; 8 year old Annie Beatrice and Maggie Maud who was also listed as being 8 years old. The census also tells us that the whole of the household were bilingual by that time.
After working as a collier at the Cawdor Colliery at Garnant, William's talent for singing lead to his career in the opera. He trained at the Royal Academy of Music at London from 1913 until 1917 where he gained medals at his annual exams, having studied under Mr Meux. On the 25th of September 1913, the Amman Valley Chronicle reported that Will Michael "the Garnant tenor", had done exceedingly well in the previous term's examination.
He played a leading role with the Bryn Seion Choral Society's performance of Mendelssohn's Hymn of Praise in March of 1916 at Glanamman, Carmarthenshire. William performed wearing khaki, having joined the Overseas Battalion.
The 25th of January 1917 edition of the Amman Valley Chronicle, contained an article congratulating "Mr W. Amman Michael" on taking the principle baritone part in Sir Thomas Beecham's Operatic Company. This meant that he was now staged among the premier operatic singers of Britain. It is not clear why the article referred to him by this name, though it is possible that "Amman" may have been a name that he had used in local eisteddfodau. Local people knew him as "Willie".
William married Doris Gwendoline Annie Lemon at Brentford in the third quarter of 1919. Doris was also an opera singer who was known simply as "Doris Lemon". She was born at Brentford in the first quarter of 1891.
When the Beecham Operatic Company closed, William Michael and Doris Lemon
were among those who became part of the British National Opera Company, which
later became known as the Covent Garden Opera Company.
The prices of admission at Covent Garden for "Siegfried" in 1923
ranged from £2 8s 0d for Pit-Tier and Grand-Tier boxes, to 2s 0d for
a gallery seat. To see "La Boheme" in 1924, the prices of admission
ranged from £3 8s 0d for Pit-Tier and Grand-Tier boxes, to 3s 0d for
a gallery seat.
To see "Die Fledermaus" at Streatham Hill Theatre cost between £1
13s 0d for private boxes and 1s 3d for a balcony seat.
When the town of Ammanford hosted the National Eisteddfod in August of 1922, William Michael was one of the soloists who accompanied the Ammanford National Eisteddfod Choir. With the aid of the London Symphony Orchestra, the choir performed Bach's "Mass in B Minor" and Brahm's "Requiem". The South Wales Daily News reported that the Requiem was "heard to perfection, or as near as human skill and knowledge could reach." The Cambria Daily Leader reported that "Miss Mair Jones and Mr William Michael sang with sincerity and beauty in the solos with choral interludes."
Some performances by William Michael were captured in the form of old 78rpm records:
In 1925, William and Doris had a son (not named here to respect his privacy).
By 1934, William Michael was a member of the Carl Rosa Opera Company.
William Michael reputedly died shortly before his 70th birthday; on the 5th of February 1958. His death was registered at Marylebone, London.
References:
Birth Record ref: 3rd Quarter 1888, Llandilofawr; Vol 11a; Page 909.
Birth Record ref: 1st Quarter 1891, Brentford, Vol 3a; Page 50.
1891 Census Doc ref: RG12; Piece: 4513; Folio: 87; Page: 2.
1901 Census Doc ref: RG13; Piece: 5108; Folio: 138; Page: 25.
Death Record ref: 1st Quarter 1958, Marylebone; Vol 5d; Page 373.
Various editions of the Amman Valley Chronicle.
Records of the Royal Academy of Music.
Thanks to Rob Williams (www.phyllis.demon.co.uk) for information regarding William Michael and Doris Lemon's recordings.