biography

Soprano Natalie Raybould read music at St. Edmund Hall, Oxford, and graduated with first class honours. She then attended the Royal Academy of Music to study with Joy Mammen and Clara Taylor, supported by Countess of Munster Trust and alumni funding, and graduated from Royal Academy Opera in 2002 with a Dip.RAM.

Natalie has been involved in many of the most exciting advances in English opera in recent years. She created the role of Female Narrator in the world première of Pinocchio (Tuckett/Ward) for ROH2 at The Royal Opera House, which toured the UK after a residence at Linbury Studio Theatre ROH December 2005-February 2006. Pinocchio was also shown on the BBC in January 2006. She also created the role of Lover in the world première of Liebeslied/My Suicides (Clark/Blees Luxemberg/Duttman), a ground-breaking collaborative ICA/Genesis co-production. Other notable role creations include the soprano roles for Six Pack, the collection of operas commissioned by ENO Studio in collaboration with Tête à Tête, and The Girl in the English-language première of Hamelin (Ian Wilson) for Opera Theatre Company Ireland: Natalie was critically acclaimed for both productions. Other contemporary opera roles include Soprano A Man of Feeling (S. Oliver), and Natalya in the world première of A Proposal (R. Dubugnon). She has worked with Almeida Opera, The Opera Group, Aldeburgh Music, madestrange Opera, and Synergy Vocals in developing new operas and world première performances.

Operatic experience also includes Adele The Flying Fox (J. Strauss) for Tête à Tête, Nedda I Pagliacci (Leoncavallo) for English Pocket Opera Company, Sofia Il Signor Bruschino (Rossini), Ermione Oreste (Handel) and Merione Telemaco (Gluck) for English Bach Festival, Serpina La Serva Padrona (Pergolesi) for New Chamber Opera, and Cleopatra Giulio Cesare (Sartorio) for Opera Seicento.

Concert experience includes Schönberg Pierrot Lunaire (many venues including the Concertgebouw, Amsterdam under Klaus Ager), Shostakovich Symphony 14, Britten Les Illuminations, Tavener Akhmatova Songs, Handel Psalm 112, Shostakovich Seven Romances on Verses by Blok, Berio Sequenza, Ravel Trois Poèmes de Stéphane Mallarmé, Donatoni Cinis, Vaughan Williams Sea Symphony, Elena Langer Ariadne, Elisabeth Lutyens Requiescat, and the world première of Cheryl Frances-Hoad The Glory Tree as part of the 2005 FRESH! season on the South Bank. Natalie is a founding member of both The Kreisler Ensemble and Illegal Harmony, and works extensively with vocal ensemble EXAUDI.

Most recently, Natalie undertook the role of Player Girl Death In Venice for Aldeburgh Music and the 2007 Bregenz Festival, and performed Pierrot Lunaire, Maxwell-Davies Fantasia and 2 Pavans and The Glory Tree for the 2007 St Magnus Festival. She also created the role of Jen in The Girl Who… (Michael Oliva) for madestrange Opera, which premiered at the Tête à Tête Opera Festival in August 2007, and is due for revival this year.

Upcoming projects include a recording of The Glory Tree for Cheryl Frances-Hoad's debut album, and workshops with EXAUDI.