Ailish Tynan

Ailish Tynan was born in Mullingar, Ireland, and studied at Trinity College and the Royal Irish Academy of Music in Dublin. Scholarships from the Arts Council of Ireland and Guildhall School of Music and Drama enabled Ailish to continue her studies at the Guildhall School of Music Opera School. Ailish has been the recipient of many prizes and awards including the RTE Millennium Singer of the Future, the John McCormack Golden Voice of Athlone, and the West Belfast Classical Bursary. In 2002 Ailish won the Maggie Teyte Competition/Miriam Licette Award, and in 2003 represented Ireland in the BBC Singer of the World Competition, winning the BBC Singer of the World Rosenblatt Recital Prize. Ailish became a BBC New Generation Artist in June 2003.

From the autumn of 2002 Ailish became a member of the former Vilar Young Artist Programme, and roles for the Royal Opera in the 2002/03 season included Papagena in Die Zauberflöte and Second Wood Nymph in Rusalka. Recent concert work includes Mozart C minor Mass with the RTE in Dublin and Galway, Beethoven's Christ on the Mount of Olives with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at the Three Choirs Festival in Hereford, and recitals for the Royal Dublin Society, the Isle of Man Festival, Irish Heritage at Leighton House in London, and for the City of London Festival.

Recent engagements have included First Niece in Peter Grimes and Xenia in Boris Godunov for the Royal Opera, Aenchen inDer Freichutz and a Queens Hall recital at the Edinburgh International Festival, Marzelline in Fidelio with the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland, Knoxville Summer with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Ravel's Sheherazade with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, Israel in Egypt with the RTE Concert Orchestra, a Rosenblatt recital at St John's Smith Square in London, as well as BBC Radio 3 recitals at the Wigmore Hall, St Luke's, and City of London Festival.

This season plans include Euridice in Orfeo ed Euridice and PaminaDieZauberflöte for Opera Ireland, Flora in The Knot Garden with the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Sir Andrew Davis, a VienneseConcert tour with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Mahler Symphony No 2 with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Sheherazade and Britten's Les Illuminations with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Brahms Ein DeutschesRequiem and Dvorak Te Deum with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, Canteloube Songs of the Auvergne with the Ulster Orchestra, Cook in Le Rossignol at the Proms in the Royal Albert Hall, Chanson Madecasses at the City of London Festival, a recital of Tchaikowsky songs at the Wigmore Hall, a recital of French songs at the Hay on Wye Festival, and studio recitals for BBC Radio 3

Future plans include Valencienne in The Merry Widow and Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro for Welsh National Opera, her US debut as Zerlina in Don Giovanni for the Seattle Opera, Marzelline in Fidelio for the Royal Opera, Carmina Burana with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and Daniel Gatti, and Grace Williams's Fairest of Stars at the Fishguard Festival.