Skills and qualifications.

Languages: My degree is in Italian and German Language and Literature and I studied French at A Level. I love chanson, Lieder and canzoni, and was lucky enough to study Lieder in Manchester with the amazing John Cameron. I am fascinated by how poems turn into songs, and have done recitals at UCL of settings of Shakespeare songs in English and in other languages. Anyone singing pieces in German, French or Italian might benefit from my linguistic background.

Presentation: My performance experience, in opera and concert-hall alike, has made me very aware of the importance of how one presents oneself under pressure. I believe that experience of practical music exams will help in academic interviews and that practice in both will benefit the pupil. I could help students practise their presentational skills.

Masterclass: My experience of masterclasses (with Felicity Palmer, John Tomlinson, Diane Forlano, Ludmila Andrew and many others) makes me believe that students at a certain level can benefit from taking a particular piece and working on it in front of a small group. It can completely transform the piece and the performer. I would be glad to have the chance to walk them through this process.

Musical/Operatic extracts: I am very good at stagecraft. I can sing, dance, puppeteer and choreograph (some at the same time!). I am able to assist with directing/choreographing extracts or scenes from plays, musicals, operas and operettas.

Choral Music: As a Choral Scholar at Oxford, dep. at St Brides, London, and Ad Hoc member of the BBC Singers for many years, I have had lots of training and experience as soloist and member of a choir.

Qualifications: I have an MA in German and Italian from St John’s College, Oxford, where I was a Choral Scholar. I then continued my studies in Manchester gaining a Diploma in Advanced Studies in Musical Performance and a Diploma in Professional Performance (with Distinction) from the Royal Northern College of Music. I have A level Music, French and German can decode cyrillic.

Works for schools: I have toured as a soloist to many educational establishments with pieces which include Clockwork by Steve McNeff, Dolffin for WNO Max and a choreographed version of Berio’s Folksongs.

Stage Performance: Companies I have worked for include Glyndebourne, Holland Park, the Royal Opera House, the Linbury Theatre and ETO. My roles range from the operatic (Rosina, Carmen, Ascanio in Benvenuto Cellini) to the comic (as Popova in The Bear), to the almost contemporary (Anita in West Side Story, staged settings songs by Jacques Brel at Clonter Opera) and very contemporary - as Florian in Steve McNeff’s Clockwork and in Liebeslied/My suicides at the Institute of Contemporary Arts, London.

I have performed in many unusual places, such as Aldwych Tube Station, Heaven Nightclub and the Institute of Contemporary Art, London. I also enjoy working with other disciplines, such as with the Sadlers Wells Ballet, where I helped rehearse them in a choreographed interpretation of Mahler’s Rückertlieder. For many years I specialised in contemporary works, such as Henze’s Neapolitan Songs and Wilby’s Unholy Sonnets, also workshopping several Jonathan Dove compositions. Most recently I created the role of Cwaen (Queen) and Mrs Pretty in The King’s River on the banks of the Deben at Woodbridge in 2017.