Barbara Ruzsics is a Hungarian soprano who studied music at both the College of Charleston. South Carolina, USA and the Liszt Academy of Music, Budapest.   She was awarded her Master’s degree with distinction in Singing and Teaching.   

Barbara has attended masterclasses by Nicolas Clapton, Laszlo Polgar,  Krisztana Lakia, Nancy Argenta, Eva Marton and Felicity Lott.   

She was awarded second place in The National Association of Teachers of Singing Competition in Norfolk, Virginia, USA in April 2008.   The following year Naxos recorded Liszt’s Dante Symphony with Barbara as treble soloist.   

Since moving to Liverpool in 2010 Barbara has sung for many performances of Lieder and Opera concerts around Merseyside.   Recent engagements have included soprano soloists in:  Handel’s Messiah, Bach’s  St. John Passion, Mozart’s Requiem, Haydn’s Creation, the title role of Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice, Brahms’ Requiem, Strauss’ Four Last Songs, Mahler’s Ii and IV Symphony, Beethoven’s IX Symphony and Ravel’s Sherezade.   Barbara is a regular performer at Hope University concerts, Liverpool, the Music for All Concert Series at the Metropolitan Cathedral, Four Season Opera Concerts in St George’s Hall, Liverpool and she is a member of the Liverpool Bach Collective lead by Philip Duffy.

Joyce Tindsley (mezzo-soprano) was born in Lancashire and, after graduating from UCNW, Bangor, where she studied with William Mathias, continued her vocal training at the RNCM with Barbara Robotham and Christopher Underwood, and later with Opera North’s Wyn Davies and Sally Burgess.

Over the years Joyce has worked with legendary conductors such as Georg Solti, Charles Groves, Richard Hickox, Stephen Cleobury, John Rutter, and David Willcocks and appeared as a soloist in many major concert halls and cathedrals around Britain with orchestras including the BBC Philharmonic, Bournemouth Symphony, and BBC Concert Orchestra. She has had a connection with the BBC for over 30 years, firstly as a member of the BBC Northern Singers and latterly the Daily Service Singers. 

Joyce has always enjoyed teaching alongside her performing career and has worked as vocal tutor at Lancaster University, provided masterclasses for Chetham’s School of Music, as well as running a private teaching practice. She provides workshops and teaching to choral groups and was appointed vocal coach to the Huddersfield Choral Society in September 2017, to the Keele Bach Choir in September 2018, and she also became the Musical Director of the LGN Community Choir in January 2019. In her spare time she is studying for an MA in Voice Pedagogy at the Voice Study Centre.

 British tenor Philip Clieve was born in Lancashire. He is a graduate of the prestigious National Opera Studio and gained both his MMus and Bachelors’ from the Royal Northern College of Music. 

Philip has worked with most of the UK’s major opera companies, including Opera North, Welsh National Opera and English National Opera. 

Operatic roles include Max Der Freischütz, Alfred Die Fledermaus, Prince Philippe A Dinner Engagement, Gherardo Gianni Schicchi, Zorn Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, Ralph H.M.S. Pinafore, The Defendant Trial by Jury, Mr Box Cox and Box and Colonel Fairfax Yeoman of the Guard. He has also performed many Oratorios, including Handel’s Messiah, the Mozart Requiem, Mendelssohn Elijah, Puccini Gloria, Rossini Petite Messe Solennelle, J.S. Bach Magnificat and Stainer The Crucifixion. 

Philip enjoys a varied concert portfolio, having sung Strauss, Schubert and Schumann lieder, English song of the 19th and 20th century and the songs of Paolo Tosti. 

Philip returns to the National Opera Studio as an Associate artist for the 21/22 season.

Armand Rabot is an award-winning young Bass-Baritone from the North West of England. He is currently a third-year undergraduate student at the Royal Northern College of Music studying under Quentin Hayes. Armand recently won the prestigious Junior Kathleen Ferrier Bursary award and in the summer of 2020 he was highly commended in the Elsie Thurston Prize. He has also recently won the Charles Wood Junior Song Competition and the Junior Charles Wood Song Prize, the James Martin Oncken Song Prize and placed second in the inaugural Flat Pack Music Opera Competition. 

Armand grew up in a musical household in the North-West of England and began playing the violin at an early age. However, seduced by its sound, he soon switched to the viola. He played the viola in several amateur orchestras including the Liverpool Philharmonic Youth Orchestra, and with EMAE, an early music group, which offers training in historically informed performance (HIP) and chamber music. 

Armand also has a strong interest in composition and was on the Rushworth Young Composers scheme run by the Liverpool Philharmonic. He still composes regularly and has received commissions from the Wilfred Owen foundation and the Associazione Musicale Gabriella Cipriani. 

Armand only started singing  at the age of 17, having hitherto been busy with viola playing, rugby and cricket, when he joined the Birkenhead School Chapel Choir. This fired in him an enthusiasm for singing and he went on to sing with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Youth Choir, the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir, the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Chamber Choir, Liverpool 24, the Liverpool Bach Collective, and the RNCM Chamber Choir. He gained his experience in cathedral music as a choral scholar at Liverpool Cathedral, as a Deputy Lay Clerk at Manchester Cathedral, Bradford Cathedral and Shrewsbury Cathedral and by singing with the Charles Wood Singers under David Hill.

Armand’s concert appearances include recitals at Liverpool and Shrewsbury Cathedrals, Mozart Requiem at Liverpool Cathedral, Messiah with the St Peter’s Singers and an online recital at the RNCM.

Until summer 2019, David was Director of Music at Merchant Taylors’ School in Crosby. He studied organ and choir-training at the Royal Northern College of Music with Ronald Frost, Gillian Weir and John Bertalot.

David’s musical career began at the age of 7 as a choirboy at St Hilary’s Church Wallasey, where in due course he became Organist and Choirmaster.  He spent a time as Assistant Organist at Chester Cathedral before moving to Merchant Taylors’ School. He has conducted BCS since 1985, and also conducts Formby Choral Society, and Amadeus: the Chamber Choir, and is Organist at St Peter’s Church, Formby.