James Newby - Biography

British baritone James Newby is a former BBC New Generation Artist (2018-21) and Rising Star of the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment.  As well as a 2022 BBT Award winner, he is currently an ECHO Rising Star with appearances at major concert halls throughout Europe in the 2022/23 season.

As a member of the Ensemble of the Staatsoper Hannover he received praise for his debut there as Eddie in Mark-Anthony Turnage’s Greek as well as Guglielmo in Così fan tutte and the title role in Eugene Onegin.  He was a notable Aeneas in Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas at the 2022 BBC Proms, a role he will reprise at Grange Opera. He makes his Komische Oper Berlin debut (Guglielmo) as well as his French opera debut in Schreker’s Der Schatzgräber at Opéra National du Rhin, and sings Valentin (Gounod’s Faust) in Barcelona.

Equally at home on the concert platform, as a recitalist he regularly appears at Wigmore Hall (most recently Schubert’s Die schöne Müllerin with Simon Lepper), Leeds and Oxford Lieder Festivals. He has appeared with BBC Symphony, Gabrieli Consort, La Nuova Musica, Arcangelo, Britten Sinfonia, RTE National Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra.

His 2020 debut solo album Wonder as I Wander (BIS) with pianist Joseph Middleton met with worldwide acclaim, with Gramophone concluding: “a performance that sets the tone, announcing Newby as an impressive artist”.

James studies with Robert Dean.

He participated in BBT’s 20th-anniversary celebrations at London’s Wigmore Hall in June 2023.

I was so blown away to be awarded such a prestigious prize and join such a distinguished set of musicians. I’ve already received so much fantastic support and benefitted greatly from the knowledge within the BBT, I’m so excited to see how it can develop over the next few years.

Photographs by Simon Weir and Gerard Collett