Australian soprano Yvonne Kenny AM (b. 1950) studied science at the University of Sydney before deciding to pursue an opera career instead. She made her debut in London in 1975 having trained at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music and at La Scala, Milan, and having won the prestigious Kathleen Ferrier Memorial Scholarship. She joined the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden in 1976 and went on to make numerous appearances there in operas including The Marriage of Figaro, The Magic Flute, Don Giovanni and Turandot, establishing an association with the legendary venue that continued until 1996. She has regularly performed internationally also, making her name with her interpretations of soprano roles by Handel and Mozart, and developing a repertoire encompassing everything from Monteverdi and Bach to contemporary composers such as Andre Previn. She has sung with Opera Australia since 1982, and has performed with many international companies including the Bavarian State Opera, the Opéra National de Lorraine, the English National Opera and the Vienna State Opera. A two-time ARIA winner, Kenny won the Mo Award for Operatic Performer of the Year in 1994; performed the Olympic Hymn at the Sydney 2000 closing ceremony; has recorded more than 20 albums; and was the voice of Nellie Melba for the 1987 mini-series Melba. She was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Sydney in 1999 and was the 2019 UK Australian of the Year. Kenny has been a professor at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, London, since 2007.
