Jonathan grew up in London, singing in a range of choirs in the city and during his studies in German and Italian at university. He spent four successful years singing in the choir of the Queen’s College, Oxford alongside a three-year stint with vocal jazz ensemble The Oxford Gargoyles. Since graduating, he has performed regularly with Tenebrae and other professional choirs such as Continuum and the Delius Singers, in several eminent church choirs across London, the jazz group Sixth Sense, and as a soloist with the Dulwich Community Choir. Jonathan has also appeared on many recordings in a range of genres, including everything from early music to video games.

Outside of choral singing, Jonathan has worked in automotive translation, and enjoys playing the piano and tenor saxophone and listening to a huge range of musical genres. A staunch supporter of Arsenal, he also loves his football and enjoys playing weekly in the fiercely contested Brixton 5-a-side league. Aside from singing and football, Jonathan speaks six languages, loves cooking, mountains and spending time with his dog, Bertie.

Tell us about your background in music.

My first experience of singing in a choir came aged six in my local parish church, St Barnabas, Dulwich under then-Organist and Director of Music, Dr William McVicker and Assistant Organist, Riccardo Bonci.

I remember jumping with excitement before the rehearsal despite not really having a clue what it would be like. 12 years on, I left St Barnabas a bass, aged 18, owing everything I knew about choral music to William and Riccardo and with invaluable training and experience under my belt. From there, I joined the choir of the Queen’s College, Oxford where I sang under Prof. Owen Rees for 4 unforgettable years during which I began to realise that I wanted to become a singer. In 2022, I got my chance with Tenebrae and have loved every minute since.

What do you enjoy most about singing in Tenebrae?

There are a couple of things I really love about singing in Tenebrae. Getting the chance to travel with the choir to some truly stunning locations and venues is a huge privilege and an opportunity not only to sing in such wonderful places but also to explore them and take in different languages and cultures. From a singing perspective, I love listening to the glorious moments in pieces when only the amazing, soaring upper voices are singing or, equally, I love sharing a juicy open fifth with the baritones.

On tour in 2023, arriving for rehearsal at Kloster Eberbach, Germany

Which concerts are you particularly looking forward to? Do you have a favourite Tenebrae piece?

I am particularly looking forward to returning to the abbey in Souillac, France which just has the most amazing acoustic you can imagine. Path of Miracles also happens to be my favourite piece to sing with the choir. But.. if I only had five minutes and had to choose something shorter, I would have to say Nikolai Golovanov’s ‘Otche Nash’ (‘Our Father’). Cracking piece. Cracking composer.

It has been such a busy season with lots of touring and visiting new places. Do you have any travel hacks for those early-morning flights? or a pre-concert routine?

My travel hack, as a 6″6′ man, is to ask the cabin crew on planes if I can go in a spare exit row seat so that I can stretch out my legs and sleep in comfort. Otherwise, flights aren’t a very fun experience! My pre-concert routine isn’t very routine at all but a couple of things I always do beforehand are to take a few deep breaths to relax and text my hugely supportive partner that we’re about to go on stage.