Biography
Born in London, Tenor Thomas Elwin studied at the Royal Academy of Music. A former boy-chorister at St. Paul’s Cathedral, Thomas performed extensively as a treble soloist both in the UK and abroad, at venues including Tokyo Opera City, Barbican, Royal Festival Hall, on Classic FM, BBC2 and Radio 3. An alumnus of the Solti Accademia Bel Canto and the Verbier Academy, Thomas was a member of the opera studio at Oper Stuttgart for the 2014/15 season and has subsequently returned as a guest artist.
Whilst at the opera studio at Oper Stuttgart in Thomas performed roles in seven operas, including Officer (Ariadne auf Naxos), Kuska (Khovanshchina), Adballo (Nabucco), Borsa (Rigoletto) and jumping in to sing the final two performances as Ferrando in a new production of Cosi Fan Tutte. During his studies, roles included Tamino (Die Zauberflote), Ernesto (La Vera Constanza), Madwoman (Curlew River), Nemorino (L’Elisir D’amore) and excerpts as Duca (Rigoletto) and Don Ottavio (Don Giovanni).
Recent and future performances on stage include Ferrando (Cosi Fan Tutte), Nathanael (Contes D’Hoffman), Kuska (Khovanshchina) and Borsa (Rigoletto) for the Staatheater Stuttgart, Belmonte (Die Entufuhrung aus dem Serail) in a new production by Sigrid Herzog at the Vorarlberg Landestheater as well as Ferrando for English Touring Opera and for Teatro Barocco at the Schlosstheater Laxenburg, covering the role of of Lysander / A Midsummer Night’s Dream as well as covering and singing Don Ottavio (Don Giovanni) for English National Opera, Telemaco / Il Ritorno di Ulisse in Patria for The Grange Festival, Sam Kaplan / Street Scene for Oper Köln, Lensky / Eugene Onegin for West Green Opera, Rodolfo / La bohème for English Touring Opera, Jacquino / Fidelio for the Vorarlberg Landestheater Bregenz, Nemorino / L’Elisir d’Amore for Into Opera, various Mozart roles in workshops at La Monnaie, Brussels and Alfredo in The Mountebanks by Cellier in a World Premiere recording with the BBC Concert Orchestra and BBC singers. In 2023 he jumped into sing Alfredo / La traviata at the St Endellion Festival and is recording the role for a new film version for Opera Glassworks in 23/24. During lockdown he was involved in a project performing Tippett’s Boyhood’s End with English Touring Opera as well as online recordings of works by Machaut. He returned to ETO in 2022 to sing Rodolfo/La bohème and in 2023 will sing Gennaro / Lucrezia Borgia. In 2022 he made his Glyndebourne Festival debut singing Oronte / Alcina. He was made an associate artist of Classical Opera Company for 2017/18 which saw him perform the role of Fracasso in Mozart’s La Finta Semplice in Birmingham and London.
On the concert platform Thomas has performed extensively as a soloist across Europe. Previous seasons performances include Bach Passions (both arias and as Evangelist) in St. Alban’s Abbey, at the LutherKirche in Bad Canstatt and in Zaragoza, Messiah at Liederhalle Stuttgart with the International Bach Akademie, with the Ulster Orchestra, Odense Symphony Orchestra in Denmark, in Manchester Cathedral and at the Leith Hill Festival, Dove ‘For an Unknown Soldier’ at Wells Cathedral, Britten Serenade at Kings Place, London and in the Duke’s Hall with Royal Academy Symphony Orchestra. Further performed repertoire includes Messa di Gloria (Puccini), Jephtha (Handel), Nocturne (Britten), Elijah (Mendelssohn) and Creation (Haydn). He made his debut in the BBC Proms festival in 2017 and his debut with the Munich Philharmonic in the 2018/19 season performing the Mozart Requiem as well as at the Mozartiana Festival, Gdansk. Recent and future engagements include Mahler 8 at the Cheltenham Festival, Dies Natalis with the BBC Concert Orchestra, Verdi Requiem with the Royal Choral Society, the Creation in Hungary with Voces 8, Britten Serenade at Cadogan Hall and performances of Messiah in the UK and Europe.
Thomas has an extensive recital repertoire, including performances of works by Schumann (Dichterliebe), Strauss, Britten (Winter Words), Tippett (Heart’s Assurance) and Liszt (Petrarch Sonnets). Appearances include a Christmas Lieder programme at the Oxford Lieder Festival, Verdi and Wagner songs with Song in the City, at the Austrian Cultural Forum with the Royal Academy Song circle and a solo recital as part of the Masters series at the Gresham Centre. Future plans include a debut recital recording of Bellini and Donizetti songs and a second recording featuring songs by Hahn, Duparc and Liszt.
Whilst at the Royal Academy, Thomas was a Leverhulme foundation award holder. Further scholarships and awards included a Kathleen Trust award, the Sally Ferrey Scholarship, the Drapers company scholarship and support from a number of generous private supporters, for which Thomas is very grateful.
Thomas lives in London and enjoys films, most sports and following the mixed fortunes of West Ham United.
