When and where was your first experience of music / singing?

My first experience of singing was in primary school; we periodically had music lessons, and I always found myself very intrigued and asking the teacher a lot of questions. Meanwhile, I enjoyed singing in my school’s choir and loved performing in any pantomimes we put on; a particular one that springs to mind is performing Cinderella and Rockerfella as ‘Buttons’ at the age of 8.

Where did you grow up? Did you have access to classical music?

I grew up in Coventry, West Midlands, known for its bombed and rebuilt cathedral, where the ruins were kept as a symbol of peace and reconciliation, inspiring Britten’s War Requiem. One day at school the director of music, at the time, came to recruit choristers for the choir. I auditioned and got in, and the next 5 years I would spend as a chorister were rewarding and educational but most importantly enjoyable, having the opportunity to sing at a high standard, go on tours and take part in broadcasts, and make lifelong friends. Alongside singing in the cathedral choir, I also took piano and singing lessons, the latter of which I would continue when my voice eventually broke.

What has been your most memorable performance so far?

It would have to be as a soloist (Jesus) in St Mark’s Passion by Charles Wood. Although it is perhaps one of the lesser known/performed passions, it was my first experience as a soloist in a ‘big work’, and it was both a delight and an honour to sing alongside the other professional soloists; the work that went into learning it within my lessons was definitely worth it. If not that, it would be performing Bach’s St Matthew’s Passion at Southwark Cathedral a week after leaving the boys’ choir and joining the back row as a tenor and having to ‘learn’ not only all the chorales and choruses but also how to get familiar with the range I was singing in. The task was too big for me, so I chickened out and secretly sang the treble parts that my 14-year-old range allowed me, but it was a beautiful experience nonetheless.

What would your dream performance be?

A dream performance would definitely be as a soloist in Elgar’s Dream of Gerontius hosted at the Royal Albert Hall. When I first listened to the full recording of Sir Mark Elder with the Hallé, I was in awe. It’s an absolute favourite of mine: music so grand by a composer who was self-taught for the most part, set to a poem by John Henry Newman, a saint who is and was very dear to my heart growing up.

What are you looking forward to with Genesis Sixteen?

I’m looking forward to singing alongside singers at a similar age to me and just as passionate about choral music as I am. I know I’ll be able to take and learn a lot from the very talented musicians involved over the next year and develop considerably.