Background
Both her father, Charles Young, and his brother, Anthony Young, were well known organists and minor composers.
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Isabella Lampe
Edit ProfileEducation
Along with her sisters, Isabella"s earliest musical training was with her father but she eventually studied privately with other teachers.
Career
Born with the name Isabella Young sometime during December 1715 in the Covent Garden area of London, she was baptised the following 3 January 1716. She made her professional stage debut in 1733 in a small singing role at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane where she appeared several more times in small roles for the next two years. This was followed by several concert appearances and she did not return to the stage again until 1737 when she sang the heroine Margery in John Frederick Lampe’s burlesque opera The Dragon of Wantley.
A tremendous success, Isabella portrayed the role for several seasons in more than 100 performances.
Most of these productions were staged at the Covent Garden Theatre and the Lampes had a long association with that venue. In 1748 the Lampes went to Dublin and Isabella appeared for two seasons at the Smock Alley Theatre, including portraying the role of Coridon in Handel"s Acis and Galatea.
She also sang in numerous concerts and at the Marlborough Green pleasure gardens. In November 1750 the Lampes went to Edinburgh and, according to music historian Charles Burney, were soon "settled very much to the satisfaction of the patrons of Music in that city".
Sadly, Lampe died there rather suddenly of a fever in July 1751 and Isabella went back to London.
After returning to England, Isabella continued to appear in productions at Covent Garden for the next twenty five years. Her last season with the company was the 1775–1776 season. Isabella died at the age of 79 in London on the 5 January 1795.
