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Rachael Best-Babayeju

Alto

Rachael Best-Babayeju

Alto

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

My very first memory of singing would be singing classics that my Mum grew up with around the house together and I would try and harmonise with her. But my very first choral experience would be when I joined the West London Children’s Choir at age seven, as well as singing in my primary school choir.

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

I would say I did have access to classical music from a young age, I was fortunate in that my mum recognised my love for singing and got me involved in as many choirs as possible from a young age which I am forever grateful, for as choral music has had such a great impact on my personal and musical development. I grew up in South West London attending a local Saturday music school and joined St George’s Cathedral Girls’ Choir, conducted by Norman Harper, in Southwark as a chorister at age eight. I would say I developed a lot of my musicianship skills as a young choral singer like sight reading, and continued singing there for about 11 years! While singing as a chorister, I also joined London Youth Junior Girls’ Choir at age 10 and went on to sing in my secondary school choirs until sixth form where I joined the Royal College of Music Junior Department, singing in Parry Voices and Chamber choir, as well as Westminster School’s Chapel Choir where I studied music.

What has been your most memorable performance so far?

This is a really hard question as I’ve had so many amazing experiences so far, but I would say there are two that I will definitely remember for a long time. The first being participating in the Diamond Fund for Choristers launch concert in 2018, where I represented St George’s Cathedral among about 60 other choristers from around the UK at St Paul’s Cathedral with their boys’ choir. It was my first experience of singing choral classics like Handel’s Zadok the Priest and Parry’s I Was Glad with a large-scale choir in the amazing acoustic and architecture of the Cathedral and it really solidified my love for choral singing. The second experience would be last year in 2023 singing Tallis’s Spem in Alium and Ben Parry’s One Long Song with the National Youth Choirs on the Royal Albert Hall stage for their 40th Anniversary concert. It was an absolutely incredible and emotional experience that will stay with me for a long time – nothing beats the feeling you get from being onstage with 1000 or so singers young and old, coming together to create music in what was honestly such a magical atmosphere, in an amazing venue like the Royal Albert Hall.

What would your dream performance be?

I’ve always had a passion for singing with people and music of different cultures, so I think it would be a performance that involved a cultural celebration of music from all around the world combining all the arts like dance, acting, and visual representation on a world-renowned stage. The more people, the better! On the flip side, I’m also really interested in consort singing and close harmony/polyphony (Byrd’s Laudibus in Sanctis gets an honourable mention!). It feels so much more intimate especially when you’re singing with a much smaller group of people, and you can really delve into the intricacies of the music.

What are you looking forward to with Genesis Sixteen?

I am looking forward to delving into lots of new music and getting to know the other members.

Outside of singing, what do you like to do in your spare time?

I love a good (e)book and taking pictures of nature or landscapes. I’m also trying to get back into dance and sport as I used to do a lot of it when I was younger.

Are you still in education? Are you in any other young artists schemes?

I am currently going into my third year of an undergraduate degree at the Royal Academy of Music and am a choral scholar with the Thames Philharmonic Choir.

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