Julia Riley

Julia Riley
mezzo-soprano

A graduate of the National Opera Studio in London, British mezzo soprano Julia Riley began her studies at the Royal Academy of Music. She was awarded First Prize in the 2007 Mozart Singing Competition with other awards including a Susan Chilcott Scholarship, Countess of Munster and an MBF award.

Her operatic roles include Nancy in Albert Herring (Glyndebourne on Tour), Cherubino in Le Nozze di Figaro (GOT), Giovanna Seymour in Anna Bolena & Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni (English Touring Opera), Flora in La Traviata (Opera Holland Park), Prince Charming in Cendrillon, and Lisetta in Il mondo della luna (Royal Academy Opera).

In the 2006 Glyndebourne Festival, Riley performed staged excerpts from Jonathan Dove's mezzo song cycle All you who sleep tonight. Concert work includes a Leeds Lieder Festival recital, Mozart's Requiem (BBC Welsh Proms), Essential Scottish Opera tour as mezzo soloist, Christmas Oratorio (English Chamber Orchestra) and Berlioz's Les Nuits d'été (City of London Orchestra).

Recent seasons have seen Riley perform Nancy in Glyndebourne Touring Opera’s production of Albert Herring, a concert performance of Mendelssohn’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Teatro Nacional de Sao Carlos in Lisbon and her debut at the BBC Proms in Vaughan Williams’ Serenade to Music, and Anna Bolena (Giovanna Seymour) for English Touring Opera, for which she gained excellent reviews:

"Julia Riley is outstanding − powerful, passionate and intelligent − as the conscience-stricken Jane Seymour". (The Times, Richard Morrison)

Last Season, Julia performed in The Magic Flute (Second Lady) for Glyndebourne Touring Opera, Albert Herring (Nancy) in Rouen and Opéra Comique in Paris, I Puritani (Queen Enrichetta) with Scottish Opera, Verdi’s Requiem at Snape Maltings and Eliogabalo (Alessandro) with Grange Park Opera.

This Season, Julia has sung L’Italiana in Algeri (Zulma) for Scottish Opera, will make her debut at the Théâtre du Capitole in Toulouse singing Second lady in The Magic Flute and record her debut CD of Brahms and Clara Schumann.