Richard Braebrook was born in Huddersfield, Yorkshire and now lives in Royal Tunbridge Wells, and was formerly with the English National Opera for twelve years. He studied at the royal College of Music, then with Gerald English and is currently studying with Keith Bonnington who is also a member of the English National Opera.
Since leaving the Royal College of Music, he has sung with the BBC Singers and the old D'Oyly Carte Opera Company for whom he undertook numerous principal tenor roles. With the D'Oyly Carte, he travelled extensively in Great Britain, North America, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
He is a founder member, together with Petronella Dittmer, of the Kensington Gore Singers with whome he has sung for Her Majesty Queen Elisabeth the Queen Mother at Royal Lodge Windsor. In his capacity as an accomplished pianist and conductor, he was also musical director of the Feltham Choral Society. With Kent Opera, he performed the principal role of Anfinomous in Kent Opera's production of The Return of Ulysses by Monteverdi, also Rodolfo's La Boheme with the Singer's Company and Tamin Magic Flute with Figaro Operan Company. In 1983 he was ffirst prize winner in the World International Singing Festival in Rio de Janeiro.
Richard sings regulalry with many of the leading choral societies in the United Kingdom in works ranging from the oratorios of handel, and Bach's Passion, to the works of Elgar and Britten. Recent performances include Handel's Messiah, Elgar's Dream of Gerontius, Bach's St John andAt matthew's Passions (Evangelist and Arias), Mendelsohn's Elijah, Britten's Serenade for Tenor, Horn & Strings, and St Nicolas, and lately in Verdi's Requiem with Royal Tunbridge Wells Chorus Society. More recently, he sang Gerontius in the Dream of Gerontius with Sarah Walker and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra & Choir in St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, conducted by Christopher Robinson to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee of the Society of the Friends of St George and Knights of the Garter. Richard also sang with the New Sadlers Wells Opera companyin the Gypsy Princess and the Grand Duchess of Serolstein, produced by Tom Hawkes.
In 1991 he made his debut at the Barbican, london, and the Royal Concert Hall in Glasgow as Tenor Soloist in the Raymond gubbay presentation of the Mozart Festival. In october 1992, Richard sang the role of Pinkerton in Madame Butterfly for kentish Opera. As well as his accomplishments as an operatic artist, Richard is just as much at home singing in cabaret as he is on concert stage. It was as a cabaret artist that he completed his highly succesfull engagement at Cafe Royale in London, and on board the SS Canberra and Sea Princess for P&O. Apart from singing Richard loves cooking and finds time to tend his large 1/2 acre garden in Tunbridge Wells. He also does physiotherapy and massage and teaches music and speech therapy in particular with proven success.
Richard joined the company of Phantom of the Opera in April 1996 and the show marked his debut in a West End musical.