10 Apr 2025
Meet soprano Billie Robson: former apprentice and now member of the Monteverdi Choir.
Billie Robson (left) and Claire Ward (right) at Amsterdam's Royal Concertgebouw during the 2024 tour of Brahms' Ein Deutsches Requiem.
What was your first experience of classical music, and how did you find yourself on this career journey?
The first experience I can remember was an assembly in Year 4 (aged 9) at which the visiting violin and cello teachers showed us how their instruments worked, played something to us and invited pupils to sign up for lessons. I asked my parents if I could start violin lessons and was hooked! My family was very supportive, especially my grandmother who really encouraged me and bought me a lovely violin when I was getting serious about music. Thanks to lots of support from teachers and fantastic orchestral opportunities provided by Norfolk County Music Service, I worked through the ABRSM exams fairly quickly. It wasn't until around the age of 16 that I became interested in singing, thanks to a new music teacher at my school who happened to be a professional singer in the choir at Norwich Cathedral and mentioned that they had a girls’ choir open to pupils from any school in the local area, not just the attached independent school. This also happened to be around the time that I realised I probably didn’t have what it takes to continue with violin at conservatoire level...!
You took part in the Monteverdi Apprentices Programme—what was that experience like, and how did it shape your career?
Nothing could have prepared me for how the Apprentices Programme would exceed my expectations and completely change my approach to ensemble singing. I was a choral scholar at university, freelanced for a few years and then decided to work on vocal technique more by studying at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland immediately before I applied, so I was slightly hesitant to enter into more training. However I was very keen on the opportunities that set this apprenticeship apart from others, such as getting to perform with the Monteverdi Choir from the very beginning, and to receive coaching from mentors who could offer feedback and career advice.
I’ll add that it was the second time I applied – my first application was before I went to study in Scotland, and I’m so pleased that I didn’t give up but returned when I was a little more prepared and could get the most out of the experience as an apprentice! Without conservatoire training in languages, I would have struggled with the intensity of our first week, so it all worked out for the best.
The 2023 Monteverdi Apprentices, momentarily lost on a countryside walk in Dorset...
Was there a particular performance or project during the Apprentices Programme that stands out as especially memorable or meaningful to you?
The very first week was so wildly different to anything I could have imagined – I remember barely sleeping for the whole residential, as I had snippets of Monteverdi madrigals stuck in my head and couldn’t stop processing the work we had done all day. I never had the luxury of working in such detail on ensemble music before, and singing all day with such commitment and engagement. It was utterly exhausting but a life-changing experience to bring the music and text to life alongside the other wonderfully talented apprentices, all of whom brought a unique quality and vocal contribution to our group. Previously, I often struggled with wanting to bring out the text too much in operatic arias and sacrificing vocal quality to emphasise a certain word or moment of interest, and this was a recurring theme in feedback from unsuccessful opera auditions – so being encouraged to embrace this and to work on it made me realise I would love singing with the Monteverdi Choir.
What do you enjoy most about performing with the Monteverdi Choir?
The commitment from every single person around you. It’s incredibly powerful to be a part of the group and explains how such a wide range of voices can work together with a shared vision to achieve such unity – and that includes the instrumentalists, who never feel like a separate group. There are singers from all sorts of backgrounds and somehow it just works – and this provides the amazing versatility of a choir that is equally at home singing unaccompanied polyphony and opera choruses.
Billie Robson (left) singing G.P.d. Palestrina's Stabat Mater with the Monteverdi Choir in October 2024.
How do you usually approach preparing for a performance, both mentally and musically?
I’ve found that my performance anxiety has greatly reduced since I started preparing my music in more depth. With vocal music, I try to start off by making sure that I understand the text (especially if it needs translating) before racing ahead to learn the notes. I also like to listen to a few recordings but only once I’ve had a go at playing and singing through it myself first.
Billie Robson (top left) during rehearsals for Bruckner & Gesualdo: Echoing Across the Centuries, October 2024.
If you had to recommend one composer whose work deeply resonates with you, who would it be and why?
An impossible question! Tricky to choose just one... but a composer I keep coming back to is Thomas Tallis. One of the pieces I chose for my wedding was O Sacrum Convivium as the communion motet. There was no other choice for me and luckily my husband agreed (he chose all the organ music!). A piece that has a very special place in my heart is Videte Miraculum – in my opinion, it is the perfect musical response to words describing such incomprehensible wonder.
What advice would you offer to aspiring professional singers?
Talk to other singers about their experiences! For so long, I wasn’t quite sure which steps to take and copied what I saw others doing on social media – applying for the same projects and feeling dejected when seeing only the great successes of those around me being shared. However, forging friendships with colleagues and talking to them often reveals a different story and can lead to discovering the right opportunities for you. I decided to reapply for the Monteverdi Apprenticeship after a chance conversation with a member of MCO over a full English breakfast in Warwickshire...!
Scenes from Worth Abbey, captured during a foraging walk near Billie’s home.
Outside of music, what hobbies or interests do you pursue that bring balance to your life?
I’m not always very good at making time for hobbies, but when I have some time off I love cooking and trying out new recipes – and I especially enjoy making things that will last, such as going foraging and making jam, preserves and pickles. I’m very lucky to live next to Worth Abbey, which is an incredibly peaceful place to spend some time, whether visiting the monastery or going for a walk in the Sussex countryside. When not feeling so active, I binge-watch some “absolute rubbish” (not my words) on Netflix, especially dramatic American TV shows that are a complete escape from everyday life!
Fruits and preserves, prepared by Billie in her free time.
