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Biography

 

BIOGRAPHY

DO NOT REPRODUCE WITHOUT CONSENT FROM ASKONAS HOLT LTD

Winner of the BBC Musician Magazine Personality of the Year 2022, Opera Singer Nicky Spence is an artist of great integrity and one of Scotland’s proudest sons. Described in The Times as ‘a tenor who combines heroic tone and a poetic sensibility that takes the breath away’, Nicky has earned his place at the top of the profession as a most compelling singing-actor.

Nicky was schooled locally in Dumfries and Galloway before receiving a scholarship to the Guildhall School as their youngest singer at 17 years old. During his training, he won a record contract with Decca Records before taking a place at the National Opera Studio and latterly a position at the English National Opera as one of their inaugural Harewood Artists. 

 

Safely inhabiting the repertoire of Strauss, Janáček and Wagner, Nicky is fulfilling his exciting potential as a Heldentenor having recently made his role debut as Parsifal with the Hallé orchestra under Sir Mark Elder. Nicky has recorded prolifically and is a regular featured recitalist at the Wigmore Hall, London though he can mostly be found on the International stages of Opera de Paris, Covent Garden and the Metropolitan Opera, New York. 

The 2022/23 season sees Nicky taking the role of guest artist in residence at the Copenhagen Opera Festival. On the Opera stage, he will make his role debut as Siegmund in a new production of Die Walküre for the English National Opera directed by Richard Jones and conducted by Martyn Brabbins. Nicky also returns to the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden as Laca in Claus Guth’s new production of Jenůfa conducted by Henrik Nánási. Later this Summer, he makes his debut as Erik in Der Fliegender Holländer alongside Sir Bryn Terfel for Grange Park and will make  his debut at the Deutche Staatsoper in the 2022/23 season, as Gregor in Věc Makropulos, in another production by Claus Guth conducted by Sir Simon Rattle following his role debut in the same role for Welsh National Opera this Autumn.

 

Nicky is also a keen charity worker which encompasses his position as patron for both Blackheath Halls in London and Scottish Opera's Young Company, as an ambassador for Help Musicians UK, and proud president of Dumfries’s own Musical Theatre Company.  In 2019, Nicky joined the board of the Incorporated Society of Musicians.  

 

Nicky is a Samling Artist, recently joining their team as a leader of young singers, and enjoys giving masterclasses internationally. Spence was nominated by the International Opera Awards for Young Singer of the Year in 2015 and was also one of ten artists included in the Times Breakthrough Award at the South Bank Sky Arts Awards celebrating the best up and coming young British talent from across the Arts industry. In 2020 he won the BBC Music Magazine Vocal Award and Gramophone’s Solo Vocal Award for his critically acclaimed recording of Janáček’s The Diary of One who Disappeared with Julius Drake and he was nominated as Singer of the Year by the Royal Philharmonic Society.

During the pandemic, Nicky was a volunteer vaccinator and he's just taken up the role of  judge and mentor on Sky Arts' TV show Anyone can sing and lead presenter in Sky's new TV documentary Sing when you're winning.. Another recent role is as one of ten Sky Arts Access Icons across the arts which sees Nicky figure heading their new campaign offering free resources to primary schools to unpack the art of opera and inspire young singers of the future.

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NICKY SPENCE

Gallery

GALLERY

DIARY

SEASON 22/23 

DISCOGRAPHY
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RECITAL

MY DEAR, NATIVE SOIL
WIGMORE HALL

JULY 4

WIGMORE HALL, LONDON

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COURSE

OXENFOORD INTERNATIONAL SUMMER SCHOOL

JULY 25 | 26 | 27| 28

LORETTO SCHOOL, SCOTLAND

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OPERA

JANÁČEK
VÊC MAKROPULOS

SEP - DEC 2022

WELSH NATIONAL OPERA

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MASTERCLASS

ROYAL ACADEMY
OF MUSIC

NOVEMBER 1

SAINSBURY THEATRE, LONDON

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CONCERT

HANDEL'S MESSIAH: THE LIVE EXPERIENCE

DECEMBER 6

THEATRE ROYAL, DRURY LANE, LONDON

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RECITAL

WIGMORE HALL
STEPHEN HOUGH

2 JANUARY

WIGMORE HALL, LONDON

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RECITAL

SCHUMANN / JÁNAČEK YORK CONCERTS

FEBRUARY 24

SIR JACK LYONS CONCERT HALL, YORK

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CONCERT

BACH
ST MATTHEW PASSION

APRIL 2

ROYAL FESTIVAL HALL, LONDON

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CONCERT

JANÁČEK
JAKUB HRŪŠA

JUNE 1

SALLE BOULEZ, PARIS

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OPERA

WAGNER
DER FLIEGENDER HOLLÄNDER

JULY 14 | 16

GRANGE PARK OPERA, SURREY

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CONCERT

ELGAR
THE DREAM OF GERONTIUS

JULY 30

THE THREE CHOIRS FESTIVAL

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RECITAL

LORD, COME AWAY!
WIGMORE HALL

OCTOBER 22

WIGMORE HALL, LONDON

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OPERA

JANÁČEK
THE DIARY OF ONE WHO DISAPPEARED

NOVEMBER 12

JANÁČEK FESTIVAL, BRNO

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RECITAL

VAUGHAN WILLIAMS
WIGMORE HALL

DECEMBER 11

WIGMORE HALL, LONDON

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OPERA

JANÁČEK
VÊC MAKROPULOS

JANUARY 21 | 24 | 27 | 29
FEBRUARY 2

STAATSOPER, BERLIN

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RECITAL

IN RECITAL WITH SHOLTO KYNOCH

3 MARCH

VAUXHALL, LONDON

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CONCERT

BBCSSO
MESSIAEN & BEETHOVEN

APRIL 13 | 16

GLASGOW / EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND

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OPERA

THE NOSE

JUNE 20 | 21 | 23 | 25 | 27 | 29 | 30

JULY 2

LA MONNAIE | DE MUNT, BRUSSELS

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CONCERT

PROM 7:
DIDO AND AENEAS

19 JULY

ROYAL ALBERT HALL, LONDON

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RESIDENCY

ARTIST IN RESIDENCE
COPENHAGEN

AUGUST 19 | 20 | 21 | 22

COPENHAGEN OPERA FESTIVAL

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RECITAL

BRITTEN WEEKEND RECITALS
MALCOLM MARTINEAU

OCTOBER 30

BRITTEN STUDIO, SNAPE

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OPERA

JANÁČEK
VÊC MAKROPULOS

NOVEMBER 18

JANÁČEK FESTIVAL, BRNO

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CONCERT

BEETHOVEN
NINTH SYMPHONY

DECEMBER 22

AUDITORIUM RAI, TURIN

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CONCERT

BBC SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA 
SZYMANOWSKI

FEBRUARY 10

BARBICAN, LONDON

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CONCERT

RPO: MAHLER
JOURNEYS OF DISCOVERY

MARCH 22

ROYAL FESTIVAL HALL, LONDON

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CONCERT

BOHEMIAN LEGENDS AND PRAYERS

APRIL 20 | 21 | 22

ACCADEMIA NAZIONALE DI SANTA CECILIA, ROME

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DISCOGRAPHY

 

CONTACT

CONTACT

WORLDWIDE REPRESENTATION

ASKONAS HOLT LTD

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CONTACT

WORLDWIDE REPRESENTATION

ASKONAS HOLT 

THE TEAM

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KEIRON COOKE

Senior Artist Manager

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ISABELLA PITMAN

Assistant Artist Manager

TV, RADIO & MEDIA ENQUIRIES

Askonas Holt Ltd

Vocal Department

15 Fetter Lane

London

EC4A 1BW

United Kingdom

MAURICE WHITAKER

K418 Arts

KEEP IN TOUCH & SEND A MESSAGE VIA NICKY'S SOCIALS

TWITTER

INSTAGRAM

FACEBOOK

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SOCIALS
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