I am going to shoot for as high as I can in the profession I love

2 August 2023

A SOPRANO singer from Downpatrick is set to take centre stage at this year’s Belfast Maritime Festival.

Thirty-three year-old Mary McCabe has described her upcoming performance in September as a “wonderful opportunity to perform in Belfast in front of a live audience”.

Mary, who attended Ballynahinch’s Assumption Grammar School, spoke about her passion for opera singing and how she was introduced to the art form.

“It’s weird because opera singing has never been a big thing in my house; none of my family were ever that interested in it,” she explained. “I had singing lessons at Assumption and my voice coach, Nuala Murray, told me that I had something special as a soprano.

“Thereafter, I soon fell in love with opera and classical music and I feel something special when I sing in soprano. I told my mum I wanted to be an opera singer, which she was surprised about, but also worried about the idea of me not getting consistent work – she is now, of course, my biggest fan.

“It was something I was passionate about. I am someone that needs to do something I love in order to get myself motivated.”

The ambitious singer has been practising opera since the age of 15 and turned professional at 23.

“It is a very competitive industry – which has its ups and downs and can be financially straining, but I wouldn’t change anything about my career,” she said.

While being a soprano may be financially challenging at times, Mary has a litany of awards, accomplishments and a portfolio of work that many would envy.

In 2021, she won the New York International Opera Project, an anonymous auction competition.

“It was a blind audition and I loved it,” she revealed. “It’s probably one of my favourite accolades I have accomplished because all the judges could do was listen to my voice – it was a bit like the famous TV show.

“To be judged purely on the sound of my voice is something I am very proud of.”

Among Mary’s accomplishments are a range of notable performances.

She will be performing a highly charged one-act, one-woman opera of ‘La Voix Humaine’, at the Mac Theatre

in October – something she did at Hillsborough Castle in early February.

Commenting on this performance, Mary said the energy at Hillsborough Castle was incredible.

“To do a one-woman opera was a dream of mine; I could feel the audience were with me every with every step in that performance. They were sat completely still and you know when you have an audience’s attention and it inspires me to give my best.”

For many performers, Covid-19 posed severe challenges for the arts industries.

Mary, however, saw Covid as an opportunity and turned her bedroom into a recording studio.

“Although Covid was tough, I never stopped recording,” she said. “I was always working with and sending stuff for NI Opera.

“Recording yourself and performing in front of a camera has a very different kind of energy compared to a performing in front of a live audience, you can’t be too over the top and it requires a bit more subtly.”

During Covid, Mary also cultivated a strong working relationship with director Cameron Menzies, who came onboard NI Opera.

Together they made the film ‘Old Friends and Other Days’, which was nominated for several international awards.

Mary said: “I would like to thank NI Opera for their support throughout the years and to their executive producer and artistic director Cameron Menzies for their belief in me.

“I am also so grateful for all the sacrifices my parents have made, and the support my family have given me.”

Outlining her future ambitions, Mary said, she’d love to perform at some of opera’s iconic venues like the Alla Scala in Milan or London’s Royal Opera House.

She added: “I am going to shoot for as high as I can and really push myself to achieve more in the profession I love.”

As well as performing at the Maritime Festival in September, the talented soprano will fly out to Germany this month to perform at the Bayreuth Festival, performing operas by the famous composer Richard Wagner.

A list of Mary’s upcoming performances can be found on her website at https://marymccabe.co.uk/.

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