Hugh Cutting

Celebrated for the expressive power of his voice and his bold musical choices, British countertenor Hugh Cutting is redefining the possibilities of his vocal range in both opera and recital. A BBC New Generation Artist (2022–24) and the first countertenor to win the Kathleen Ferrier Award, he combines brilliant vocal mastery with a natural instinct for musical storytelling. In the 2025/26 season, he makes several operatic debuts, including Arsace (Partenope) at English National Opera, Unulfo (Rodelinda) at Santa Fe Opera, and Tolomeo (Giulio Cesare) at The Grange Festival. In 2025, he received the Rising Star Award at the International Opera Awards.

As Wigmore Hall's artist-in-residence this season, Hugh conceives and delivers a wide-ranging series of recitals and performs with, among others, The English Concert and Harry Bicket, Les Arts Florissants and William Christie, his own ensemble Refound, the Dunedin Consort, and the Irish Baroque Orchestra under Peter Whelan, with whom he also tours the United States in solo recitals. He makes his debut with the San Francisco Symphony in Bach's Easter Oratorio under Bernard Labadie; joins Jonathan Cohen and Arcangelo for a European tour of the St. Matthew Passion ; and sings the role of Didymus in Theodora on a European tour with Thomas Dunford and the Jupiter Ensemble.

Hugh has starred in several notable international operatic debuts in recent seasons: Corindo ( Orontea , Cesti) at La Scala in Milan; the title role in Gluck's Orfeo ed Eurydice with Dallas Opera; the Boy in George Benjamin's Written on Skin at the Deutsche Oper Berlin; Tolomeo ( Giulio Cesare , Handel) with Pinchgut Opera Sydney; and Monteverdi at Zurich Opera. He has also sung Ariel in the world premiere of Anthony Bolton's Island of Dreams at Grange Park Opera, and the Boy in Written on Skin in Stavanger (conducted by the composer) and in Rome with the Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia.

In the concert arena, Hugh has performed at Wigmore Hall and made his US debut at Carnegie Hall with Bernard Labadie and the Orchestra of St. Luke's. Other recent highlights include Bach's Christmas Oratorio with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and Masaaki Suzuki, the NDR Radiophilharmonie Hannover, and the Tonkünstler Orchestra; Messiah with Ivor Bolton; St. Matthew Passion with the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra and Jonathan Cohen; Polinesso ( Ariodante ) with Les Arts Florissants; Dardano ( Amadigi ) with The English Concert; and solo cantatas with Les Violons du Roy and Bernard Labadie in Quebec and Montreal.

A staunch advocate of contemporary music, Hugh has premiered works by Alex Ho, Piers Connor Kennedy, Elena Langer, Anna Semple, and Tara Viscardi. His debut album, REFOUND, with pianist Audrey Hyland, will be released by Linn Records in October 2025.

A former choral fellow at St John's College, Cambridge, Hugh continued his studies at the Royal College of Music, where he was a member of the International Opera Studio and received the Tagore Gold Medal.