After reading Archaeology and Anthropology at St John’s College, Cambridge, Iestyn Davies studied at the Royal Academy of Music, London.
An esteemed Handelian, he has delighted audiences globally with his vocal agility and supreme musicianship in roles such as Bertarido, Orlando, Rinaldo, Ottone Agrippina and David Saul. Committed also to contemporary music, his intelligent and considered interpretations have led to fruitful collaborations with Thomas Adés, George Benjamin and Nico Muhly.
Highlights of the 25/26 season include Orpheus in Orpheus and Eurydice with Laurence Cummings and Opera Australia at the Edinburgh International Festival and in Australia, and with Bernard Labadie and the Canadian Opera Company; and Oberon A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Teatro Real Madrid and Deutsche Oper Berlin. He will return to Santa Fe Opera in the role of Bertarido Rodelinda conducted by Harry Bicket. Recital plans include a weekend residency at London’s Wigmore Hall celebrating John Downland’s 400th anniversary.
On the opera stage, he has appeared at the Metropolitan Opera, New York; the Lyric Opera of Chicago; Teatro alla Scala Milan; the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden; English National Opera; Glyndebourne Festival Opera; Welsh National Opera; Teatro Real Madrid; Salzburg Festival and in Munich, Vienna, and Zurich. Recent appearances include Didymus Theodora and Arsace Partenope in Madrid, David Saul at Glyndebourne, Ottone Agrippina in Hamburg and Munich, Bertarido Rodelinda for the Metropolitan Opera, and Ottone L’incoronazione di Poppea in Versailles.
Concert engagements have included performances at the Teatro alla Scala, Milan with Dudamel, the Concertgebouw and Tonhalle with Koopman and at the Barbican, Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, Lincoln Centre, Carnegie Hall and at the BBC Proms in the Royal Albert Hall with orchestras that include the New York Philharmonic, London Philharmonic, English Concert, Britten Sinfonia, Concerto Köln, Concerto Copenhagen, Ensemble Matheus, the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Academy of Ancient Music and Scottish Chamber Orchestra. In recent seasons, he sang Handel arias on tour with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe and Robin Ticciati, sang Bertarido in Rodelinda on tour in the U.S.A. and Asia with Harry Bicket and The English Concert, made his role debut at the Paris Opera as Tolomeo in Giulio Cesare, sang Oberon in Britten's A Midsummer Night's Dream with Atlanta Opera and at Garsington Opera, and the Boy in George Benjamin's Written on Skin with the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra. In 2024 he made his Australian debut singing J.S. Bach and Arvo Pärt in an extensive solo tour with the Australian Chamber Orchestra.
An outstanding recitalist, he has performed in Vienna, Tokyo, Paris, and New York in repertoire ranging from Dowland to Clapton. He is a regular favourite at London’s Wigmore Hall and Kings Place where he has curated residencies.
His recital discs have won three Gramophone Awards, and he performed on the Grammy-winning recording of Thomas Adès’s The Tempest. He is the recipient of a Royal Philharmonic Society Award and was nominated for an Olivier Award for his singing role in Farinelli and the King opposite Mark Rylance (premiered at London’s Sam Wanamaker Playhouse and transferring to the West End and Broadway). In 2017 he was awarded an MBE by the Queen for his services to music. He has been nominated for a TAPA (Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts) award for Outstanding Performance by an Individual following his performances as Orfeo with the Canadian Opera Company.
