Daniel Thomson
Tenor
News
Biography
Originally from Melbourne, Australia, Daniel Thomson is a London based tenor soloist, recitalist and chamber singer. Known for his expressive text-based performance and interpretations of Evangelist roles, Daniel’s focus is on historically informed performance of music from the 16th to 19th centuries. In 2009 he graduated his Bachelor of Music (specialising in vocal performance) with Honours, from the University of Melbourne. In 2018 Daniel completed a Master in Advanced Vocal Ensemble Studies at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis in Basel, Switzerland.
Released in early 2018 - Daniel’s debut solo album Secret Fires of Love, has been featured on BBC Radio 3 programme In Tune with Daniel as a BBC Introducing Artist. It was reviewed by MusicWeb International listing it as a disc “of the utmost importance ... This disc is the result of much research of historical sources and deserves the attention of every performer ... Monteverdi's Si dolce è'l tormento is one of his most popular pieces, and has been recorded many times ... I am pretty sure that you will have never heard it the way it is sung here by Daniel Thomson.” Johan van Veen, www.musicweb-international.com - February 2019
In 2019 Daniel also made his debut performance in Wigmore Hall as a soloist and chamber singer alongside Dame Emma Kirkby for her 70th birthday celebration concert. In 2022 Daniel won the Salvat Beca Bach tenor prize in Barcelona, where he made his debut solo performance in the Palau de la Música Catalana.
Daniel is a core member of several groups including Dowland Works (dir. Dame Emma Kirkby), Dowland's Foundry, Huelgas Ensemble, Lux Musicae London, InVocare, Sidonia Ensemble, Rune and the choirs of St Bartholomew-the-Great and Holy Sepulchre, the National Musician's Church. Daniel has sung chorus with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Early Opera Company, Gabrieli Consort and La Cetra. He has performed in various well-known festivals worldwide including the London Festival of Baroque Music, Utrecht Festival Oude Muziek, Brighton Early Music Festival, Meer Stemmig Gent and the MA Festival Bruges.
Back in Melbourne, Daniel regularly performs as a soloist with various choral and instrumental groups including the Consort of Melbourne, Ensemble Gombert, Ensemble 642 and La Compañia – with whom Daniel features as a guest vocal soloist on their critically acclaimed 2013 CD release “Destino Mexicano”.
2024 sees Daniel performing in 12 countries. He will be releasing two new solo EPs, Schubert songs recorded in Canada with pianist Alan Demir and some new compositions in collaboration with Robert Toft in Canada. He also features on two albums: Secrets of Andalusia - an album with Lux Musicae London exploring the origins of Flamenco and works by Samuel Sebastian Wesley with The Choir of Holy Sepulchre, the National Musician's Church
For the latest events and news, please see the News section and follow Daniel Thomson Tenor on Facebook.
Reviews
"Stölzel divided the role of the Evangelist between two singers, a tenor and a bass. Both of them related the story well but I thought the tenor [Daniel Thomson] was particularly good – indeed, I thought he was the best of all the singers. He sang his narrations with clear, pliant tone, great care for the words, and very expressively.” John Quinn, www.seenandheard-international.com – July 2023
“Daniel Thomson first gave us his virtuoso tenor fireworks performing with Lux Musicae London in BREMF LIVE 2016. [Daniel’s] bright projection and clear diction easily cut through the unpredictable ambient sounds of the al fresco setting.” Andrew Connal, www.thelatest.co.uk – June 2021
“Thomson’s fine, light instrument is a joy to listen to. …Clarity, agility and textual empathy were all displayed in abundance.” Tony Way, www.limelightmagazine.com.au – June 2017
In the opening concert of the 2015 Organs of the Ballarat Goldfields Festival, The Age, Melbourne’s leading newspaper, published: “…dominating the night was Daniel Thomson’s Evangelist: faultless in diction, accurate in pitch and emotionally consistent, generating a spell-binding hiatus point at the narrative climax of Jesus’ death.” Clive O’Connell, The Age – January 2015
Daniel is also known for his performances with his identical twin brother Matthew Thomson. Together they have received numerous positive reviews for their performances – particularly of Monteverdi’s 1610 Vespers:
“Daniel and Matthew made every note count, notably in an excellent Duo Seraphim” and “One of the stars of the opening concert, Daniel Thomson brought his reliable tenor to the mix.” Clive O’Connell, The Age – January 2014
“Everything [Daniel] sang was characterised by singular musicianship, evenness of tone and great control. A more perfect match could not have been found when the brothers sang together in a most beautiful Duo Seraphim and an uncannily echoing Audi Coelum. There is a substantial amount of music for the tenor soloists in the work and all of it was performed at an extraordinarily high standard." Heather Leviston, www.classicmelbourne.com.au – November 2014
Listen
Albums
Schubert: Erlkönig,
Im Frühling, An den Mond
Daniel Thomson (Tenor) and Alan Demir (piano). 2024 EP with three of Schubert's songs.
Erlkönig, the incredibly haunting tale of the Elf King snatching a child from the arms of his father on a cold Winter's night; Im Frühling, a spring song of love; and An den Mond, another love song in tribute to the beauty of the moon.
Available for streaming only
Secret Fires of Love
Secret Fires of Love tells the story of intense love through songs ranging from the amorous yearnings for a country lass, to the burning desires of tormented souls. This exploration of the multifaceted outpourings of lovers focuses on some of the most dramatic music written between the late 16th and 18th Centuries.
In Secret Fires of Love, the performers take a fresh approach to Renaissance and Baroque songs by treating texts freely to transform inexpressive notation into a passionate musical declamation. Daniel Thomson adopts the persona of a storyteller, and like singers of the past, he uses techniques of rhetorical delivery to re-create the natural style of performance, listeners from the era would have heard.
For a hard-copy CD, please get in contact below.
Destino Mexicano
La Compañia
Baroque Rhythms from the New World
“Thomson [is] excellent … with just the right touch of Iberian warmth” International Record Review, October 2014