Phoebe Chee

• The Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition / Region Encouragement Award 2023
• SFCM Voice Concerto Competition / 2nd Prize 2023
• The Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition / SF District Winner 2023

Hailed by Spot Pocket Opera Theatre as “one of Singapore’s most promising young sopranos”, Phoebe Chee continues to push vocal boundaries as she explores and masters a wide range of vocal repertoire, from early music through contemporary works by living and emerging composers.

Some of her operatic highlights include Mozart’s Il re pastore as “Tamiri”, Offenbach’s Blind Beggars as “Ms Buffles”, Zemlinsky’s Der Zwerg as “Second Zolfe”, and Handel's Acis and Galatea as "Galatea". On multiple occasions, she has been a guest singer for Cappella Martialis; an early music ensemble that promotes and performs Historically-Informed Performances (HIP) in Singapore with repertoire ranging from the Mediaeval, Renaissance and Baroque eras, both sacred and secular, from Eastern to Western Christendom.

Beyond working on the classics, Phoebe believes in collaborating and working with composers of today. In 2018, she played “Girl” in Window Shopping with L’arietta, written by Singaporean composer, Dr Chen Zhang Yi, a work in which performers defined what Singaporean opera can and should be. As reviewed by The Straits Times: ‘Two decades ago, Singaporean opera seemed a distant dream. Today, it has become par for the course.’

As a soloist, she has worked with multiple opera companies, singing at Opera at Twilight at the Botanic Gardens, Singapore Inspirations: Music and Poetry at the Esplanade; and the Singapore Writers’ Festival, where she was featured by Lianhe Zaobao, a local chinese newspaper, as well as her alma mater, the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts.

Outside of her busy performing schedule, she is a firm advocate in music education and an active vocal pedagogue having built a formidable studio in Singapore with nearly five years of enriching teaching experience. To help push and empower her students, she organizes annual recitals and often seeks out suitable performing opportunities for them. Phoebe also collaborates with local opera companies to make opera more accessible to the younger generation and the public by doing outreach programs. As she empowers future generations of musicians, she cultivates larger changes in the world of contemporary concert music.

Phoebe is currently studying at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music under the tutelage of Rhoslyn Jones. Upcoming projects this year include a return to Chautauqua, New York, where she will be singing “Lauretta” in Gianni Schicchi by Puccini; “Minerva” in Orpheus in the Underworld by Offenbach with Pocket Opera in San Francisco; and a trip back to Singapore for "Lisa" in Bellini's La Sonnambula.

Phoebe maintains an active presence on social media where you can join her on her journey as a modern day opera singer. Join her on Instagram at @phoebsoprano .