Mathy Award Winner

Cheryl Barker studied in Melbourne with Dame Joan Hammond and in London with David Harper.

She appears regularly with Opera Australia, where her roles have included Nedda in I pagliacci, the Countess in Le nozze di Figaro, Mimì in La bohème, Violetta in La traviata, Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni, Tatyana in Eugene Onegin and the title roles in Madama Butterfly, Tosca and Jenufa. She has also sung Violetta for Opera Queensland, and Madama Butterfly & Violetta for BTR New Zealand Opera.

Internationally Cheryl Barker is particularly noted for her performances of Madama Butterfly, singing this role for English National Opera, De Vlaamse Opera, Hamburg State Opera, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Netherlands Opera and Houston Grand Opera for whom she has also performed Sarah in the world premiere of Jake Heggie’s The End of the Affair. Other international appearances include Jenifer (A Midsummer Marriage) for the Royal Opera, Covent Garden, Tatyana and Adina (L'elisir d'amore) for Scottish Opera, Oksana (Christmas Eve), Foreign Princess (Rusalka), Governess (The Turn of the Screw), Musetta (La bohème), Donna Elvira, Tosca, Salome and Emilia Marty (The Makropoulos Case) for English National Opera; the title role in Maria Stuarda for ReisOper; Violetta for Hamburg State Opera and the Deutsche Oper; Suor Angelica, Giorgetta (Il Tabarro), Mimi, Desdemona (Otello) and Liù (Turandot) for De Vlaamse Opera and Katya Kabanova for Welsh National Opera and in Geneva.

On the concert platform Cheryl Barker has appeared at many prestigious venues including London's Barbican, Royal Albert Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Wigmore Hall, St John's Smith Square, and with the Halle Orchestra. She has sung in the Edinburgh, Spoleto and Melbourne Festivals.

Television, videos and recordings include Puccini Arias (Melba Recordings); Seduction and Persuasion (ABC Classics) Harry Enfield’s Guide to Opera (CD and Video) La bohème and Madama Butterfly with Opera Australia (CD and Video), Madama Butterfly (Chandos), Madama Butterfly with De Vlaamse Opera (Belgium Television and Netherlands Television) and Dyson's Quo Vadis (Chandos).

Recent and forthcoming engagements include the title role in Rusalka, all three soprano roles in Il Trittico, her role debut as Arabella as well as Desdemona and Emilia Marty for Opera Australia, concerts with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Miss Jessel (The Turn of the Screw) for English National Opera, Madama Butterfly in Paris and Emilia Marty in Amsterdam. As a result of a highly successful national tour for Musica Viva in 2005 she will tour again for MV in 2008.