About The Academy
Anne Marie Gibbons, a native of Louisburgh, and her Australian husband Hugh Francis first met onstage in a production of a Tchaikovsky opera, The Queen of Spades. Mezzo-soprano Anne Marie was a student at the Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM) in Manchester at the time and Hugh, a former student of the college and professional Tenor, was drafted in to sing the lead role in the show.
Seven years on they are returning to Anne Marie’s roots in Mayo and establishing the Mayo Vocal Academy. Singers of every age and ability will be able to commence tuition with Anne Marie & Hugh in Castlebar and Westport.
Anne Marie and Hugh may have travelled the world with their voices but a move to the West has been on the cards for quite some time. This is something we have always wanted to do. It’s a question of ‘giving something back to the community’ says Anne Marie, who considers herself very fortunate to have been guided both through local Primary and Secondary schools by teachers who recognised her talent and helped her on her way.
We are aiming to make the Academy as all encompassing as possible – anyone can get in touch for a singing lesson regardless of their ability and preferred musical style, e.g. trad., jazz, pop, musicals or opera. We work both on a one-to-one basis and in a group format. We have significant experience in this regard as together with combining solo careers we have both been teaching on an individual basis and working in a group format for a Theatre School in Central London.
There may be people who sing in choirs and want a little extra tuition either on an individual basis or indeed in a group format; Junior and Leaving Certificate students who are studying music and singing for the practical side of their examination; those who might ultimately want to pursue a singing career, or indeed people who want to do it for fun because it is ‘something they always wanted to do’. Local schools, choirs and musical societies are also welcome to get in touch if they feel they could benefit from extra coaching on productions or principal parts/roles.
Anne Marie herself did not take the most direct road to the world of singing. She studied psychology at University College Dublin and following graduation worked with AIB while studying singing part-time at the DIT Conservatory of Music & Drama in Dublin. She eventually decided to take a career break to figure out if it was singing or banking that was for her and never looked back. She has gone on to perform in operatic productions and on the concert platform all over the world.
Similarly Hugh took a circuitous route to the stage, employed in Sales, Marketing & P.R. in the airline industry working for the likes of Qantas prior to studying at the RNCM. Upon leaving he began performing with smaller UK Opera companies, undertook an acting course at the London Centre for Theatrical Studies before joining the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden full time 2002-2004. Freelance engagements since then have taken him as far afield as Palermo, Paris, Toronto and back to Covent Garden.
Local music professionals they have spoken with have been very enthusiastic and supportive of their project. We put ‘the toe in the water’ as it were and started teaching on 3rd July last in Castlebar. The response was great and the level of talent was fantastic. Those who came on board had 5 lessons and a trial lesson, so in total 6. We both returned to London as we had opera commitments in place that we had to fulfil prior to establishing the Mayo Vocal Academy. Anne Marie is currently rehearsing the title roles in 2 Handel operas for English Touring Opera and Hugh is singing in a Berg opera, Wozzeck, for Welsh National Opera in Cardiff and on tour. Following this they will both be back to resume classes in Castlebar and Westport and can’t wait! Words can’t describe the amount of progress students made over the course of 6 weeks during the Summer. They were practicing inbetween lessons and it was so thrilling for us both to see what they could achieve in such a short space of time. We are really looking forward to recommencing.
So, the Mayo Vocal Academy will be up and running from mid October and Anne Marie and Hugh are hoping singers all over the county will be getting in touch. We’re really looking forward to bringing this to Mayo.
If you would like further information on the Mayo Vocal Academy or to book a singing lesson with Anne Marie and Hugh, contact (087) 6798748 or email mayovocalacademy@aol.com.