Michael Martin began singing with the Canberra Children’s Choir at nine years of age. His boy soprano solo performances included Gherardino in the Canberra Opera and The Australian Opera (now Opera Australia) productions of Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi and Miles in Britten’s The Turn of the Screw for Canberra Opera Society. He studied singing with Patricia Davy and Ronald Maconaghie AM and from 1986, Michael embarked on a full-time singing career. During that year he performed the tenor solo in Berlioz’s Te deum at the closing concert of the National Summer School for Singers in Bathurst, sang the role of Anthony Hope in Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd for Opera ACT, and appeared as a guest artist at Government House in Canberra.

He was the winner of the Bond Family Scholarship for Tenors in 1987, the Sydney Morning Herald Aria Competition in 1988 and the Canberra National Aria in 1989. An Australia Council grant enabled him to study with the great tenor Carlo Bergonzi in Italy in 1988 and 1989. Michael was a member of The Australian Opera’s Esso Young Artist’s Development Program in 1990. His roles for Opera Australia include one of the apprentices in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, Luiz and Marco in The Gondoliers, Motel in Fiddler on the Roof, Piquillo in La Perichole, Harry Robarts in Voss, Nanki-Poo in The Mikado, Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni, Tamino in The Magic Flute, Orante in Alcina, Flute in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Count Almaviva in The Barber of Seville, Fenton in Falstaff, Pedrillo in The Abduction from the Seraglio, Chevalier de la Force in Dialogues of the Carmelites, Kudrjas in Katya Kabanova and Brighella in Ariadne auf Naxos. Michael has also performed as Ferrando in Così fan tutte and Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni for State Opera of South Australia; Count Almaviva in The Barber of Seville and Peter Quint in The Turn of the Screw for Opera Queensland; and Camille in The Merry Widow for West Australian Opera. Michael has appeared with many of Australia’s leading orchestras and choirs, including the Australian Pops Orchestra, the Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and West Australian Symphony Orchestras, Sydney Philharmonia Choir and Sydney Chamber Choir.

His concert repertoire includes the Evangelist and tenor solos in Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, St. John Passion and Christmas Oratorio, and Haydn’s The Creation and Imperial Nelson Mass. He will appear as Romeo in Gounod’s Romeo and Juliet for Opera Queensland this year.