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The English soprano and choral conductor, Emily Dickens, became a founder member of the Winchester Cathedral Girls' Choir at the age of 10 and was head chorister in her final year. She has also sung with The National Youth Choir of Great Britain, their chamber choir Laudibus, The Rodolfus Choir and The Solomon Choir. In 2004 she was a finalist in the BBC Young Chorister of the Year competition. She read music at Trinity College, Cambridge, graduating with Bachelor of Arts degree in Music (2006-2009). She was a choral scholar under Stephen Layton at Trinity, with whom and Trinity College Choir of Cambridge she enjoyed a busy schedule of concerts and recordings, and toured to Canada, Europe and California. Currently she studies singing with Gary Coward and Jessica Cash and is the grateful recipient of a Career Development Award from Help Musicians UK.
Emily Dickens began her professional career in the same summer as her final exams, performing in the Beijing National Centre for Performing Arts in China with Voces8, she had joined in 2009. She is an internationally established singer, performer and educator. A full-time member of the critically acclaimed British vocal ensemble Voces8 for eight years, she has performed music from Renaissance England to contemporary commissions and American pop, all over the world (including France, Italy, Germany and China). She has performed in many of the world's leading concert halls including The Royal Albert Hall, Tokyo Opera City, Tel Aviv Opera House, Mariinsky Theatre, Wiener Konzerthaus, National Concert Hall Taipei, Dijon Opera House, Elbphilharmonie, Hamburg and the Cité de la Musique, Paris. She is heard regularly on international TV and radio including MPR, the BBC and Classic FM; recent highlights include performing J.S. Bach's Motets live on BBC Radio 3 for the Cambridge Early Music Festival and Jonathan Dove's The Passing of the Year at St. John's, Smith Square for BBC Radio 3. A Decca Classics Recording Artist, she has had three albums reach the top of the classical charts.
As a soloist Emily Dickens particularly enjoys performing Baroque repertoire. Solo engagements have included the world premier of Naji Hakim's Jesu Redemptor Omnium in Winchester Cathedral; George Frideric Handel's Messiah; Leonard Bernstein's Chichester Psalms; the Angel in Heinrich Schütz' Christmas Story; Finzi's In Terra Pax; Ralph Vaughan Williams' Mass in G minor; Antonio Vivaldi's Gloria; J.S. Bach's Magnificat (BWV 243); the part of Euridice in Monteverdi's opera Orfeo for the Cambridge University Baroque Ensemble; and J.S. Bach's Cantata BWV 105. Recent solo performances include Belinda in Dido and Aeneas at the St Magnus International Festival, First Witch in Dido and Aeneas at the Utrecht Early Music Festival with L'Arpeggiata, G.F. Handel's Dixit Dominus with the London Choral Sinfonia and with The Gabrieli Consort (Director: Paul McCreesh), Haydn's Nelson Mass in Houston, Texas, G.F. Handel's Messiah and Antonio Vivaldi's Magnificat in Stockholm, Sweden, W.A. Mozart's Requiem and J.S. Bach's Magnificat (BWV 243) at the Milton Abbey International Festival and Monteverdi's Il Sesto Libro de Madrigali at the Wigmore Hall.
As a conductor and vocal coach Emily Dickens is known for her interesting arrangements and versatility. She is the Choral Conducting Fellow at St Martin-in-the-Fields (since 2017), an adviser to the Rhinegold Music & Drama Education Expo and directs singing workshops and courses in the UK and abroad. Recent work includes Islington Choral Society, Amersham Chorale, Croydon Philharmonic Choir, Derbyshire Music Service, Occam Singers, Eton Choral Courses, Southwell Minster Girls' Choir, City of London Festival, St Andrews University, Aldeburgh Music, The London Youth Choir (since 2017), Swaledale Festival, Chorakademie Dortmund and Erfurt, and directing many of the UK and international Voces8 projects. She was also Tutor at Osborne Cawkwell (August 2011-July 2016). |
