7 Sep 2026
Pictured, from top left: Alice Beverley, Dominic Felts and Rachael Simone; centre: Lydia Baldwin; bottom left: Toluwani Idowu, Henry Brearley and Marcus Burton
The Monteverdi Choir & Orchestras is delighted to announce the seven outstanding young singers who will join the Monteverdi Apprentices Programme for the 2026/27 season. The new cohort includes Lydia Baldwin and Alice Beverley (sopranos), Toluwani Idowu and Rachael Simone (mezzo-sopranos), Marcus Burton (tenor), Henry Brearley (baritone) and Dominic Felts (bass-baritone).
Established in 2007 as the first of its kind in the UK, the Monteverdi Apprentices Programme remains one of the country’s leading training schemes for young singers, helping emerging artists bridge the gap between higher education and sustained professional freelance careers.
Embedded within the Monteverdi Choir, the 2026/27 Apprentices will perform alongside world-class musicians throughout the season, gaining paid professional experience while developing the artistic, stylistic and practical skills required of ensemble singers.
They will appear in season highlights including Rossini’s Petite messe solennelle at Alexandra Palace with Jakob Lehmann; Handel’s Theodora with Christophe Rousset; Venetian Christmas with Francesco Corti; and a UK and US tour of Bach’s St Matthew Passion with Masaaki Suzuki, culminating at New York’s Carnegie Hall.
Alongside performances, the Apprentices will take part in a dedicated weekend residency at Ripon College Cuddesdon with Jonathan Sells, Dame Sarah Connolly and Mark Padmore, working on repertoire including Bach recitative, English song and Italian madrigals. Further specialist training will include an Italian song masterclass with Jakob Lehmann and language coach Alessandro Fisher, a Handel aria masterclass with Dame Sarah Connolly, and a madrigal masterclass with lutenist Elizabeth Kenny.
The programme has now supported more than 100 alumni, several of whom continue to perform regularly with Monteverdi ensembles and at the highest level worldwide.
Rosa Solinas, General Director of the Monteverdi Choir & Orchestras, said:
“We are delighted to welcome Lydia, Alice, Toluwani, Rachael, Marcus, Henry and Dominic as the new Monteverdi Apprentices. Each brings a distinctive musical personality, shaped by a rich range of training and experience, and this programme will give them the chance to develop their choral singing through the professional experience of rehearsing and performing within our ensembles.”
The Monteverdi Apprentices Programme is generously supported by Garrick Charitable Trust, Golsoncott Foundation and Rainbow Dickinson Trust.
