Susan Ellis BMus, MMus, GradDipEd
Susan Ellis is a Teaching Artist who enjoys a creative balance of performing and mentoring.
Her repertoire ranges from opera and oratorio roles to contemporary chamber music.
In 2004 Susan joined Opera Queensland’ Young Artist program and now is mentoring singers in the program. She performs, teaches, and musically directs shows with Opera Queensland’s Learning, Regional and Community programs. Susan is passionate about Outreach and has worked across Queensland, NSW and Northern Scotland supporting marginalized communities.
Susan was awarded the CAPO Fellowship and the Singapore Airlines Travelling Scholarship for role study and performances in Germany under the mentorship of Cord Garben and held a Kornfeld Scholarship to complete a Master’s in performance at ANU. She received a Teaching Fellowship from ANU to work and study with Robert Alderson and other voice specialists at the Royal Northern College of Music.
Pre Covid19, Susan enjoyed performing concerts in selected venues across Italy and France for Gusto Sud, toured Europe with the Australian Austrian choir as their guest soloist and appeared as an Oratorio soloist for various choirs. She has appeared in shows for Brisbane Army Band and RMC Duntroon and performed with Orchestras in Australasia, for their Proms and New Year’s Eves concerts. For Opera Queensland, roles she enjoyed performing or covering are Violetta, La Traviata, Rosalinda and Ida, Die Fledermaus, Miss Jessel, Turn of the Screw and the Witch, Hansel, and Gretel (Schools tour). Other operatic roles performed have included Anna Glawari, Merry Widow, Fiordiligi Cosi Fan Tutte, Madam Silvertones Impresario, Geraldine Hand of Bridge, The Plaintiff Trial By Jury and Mrs Grose Turn of the Screw. Other characters she has loved performing are Medea from Georg Benda’s Melodrama Medea, Mary Gilmore, The Plaint of Mary Gilmore, a Song Cycle by Vincent Plush and Elizabeth Woodville, The True Story of the Princes in the Tower a new Opera written for her in 2021 by A.D.K Voltz.
Susan is the vocalist for the Griffyn Ensemble, an Australian theatrical chamber music ensemble. Susan and the ensemble have performed at many Australian Festivals, Sunday Live ABC concerts and toured with companies such as Musica Viva! They have enjoyed residencies to create and record at Four Winds and are Artists in Residence at Belconnen Arts Centre. In 2015 they opened Scotland’s Sound Festival and in 2017 welcomed the Scottish Red Note Ensemble to Australia and curated their second full festival. Griffyn Ensemble is about to release their second CD called Southern Skies.
Susan has written and performed shows for the National Museum (Gold and Civilization Exhibition), Young Music Society (Junior and Senior Summer schools) and Belconnen Arts Centre.
Susan is currently Principal Voice teacher at the Moreton Bay Colleges. She has assisted with the vocal development of children’s choruses for Opera Queensland and Opera Australia and works as a Vocal Coach with the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra Chorus. She has written and delivered accredited Professional Development Vocal Workshops for Musica Viva and Opera Queensland.
Susan has a love of voice teaching and has taught at the Australian National University and University of Southern Queensland. Past students are now singing professionally in Opera, Musical Theatre, Pop and Jazz and have won prestigious awards such as the National Jazz Award and the MacDonald’s Operatic Aria.
