HEIDELBERG CHORAL SOCIETY



BORN TO SING



Roxane Hislop talks about her career and aspirations





Roxane Hislop is one of Australia’s best known mezzo sopranos. Her career spans nearly three decades, and she has sung with all the major opera companies and symphony orchestras in Australia, with over fifty roles for Opera Australia alone.

In August, Roxane will appear with Heidelberg Choral Society at the Melbourne Recital Centre, in performances of ‘The Armed Man – A Mass For Peace’ (Karl Jenkins).



Looking back, it’s no surprise to Roxane Hislop that she loves to sing. “I came from a very musical family” she recalls, “where family gatherings always ended up around the piano with uncles, aunts and cousins singing at the top of their lungs.”

Roxane’s mother was a fine singer and was approached by the management of JC Williamson. “They wanted to make her a star”, says Roxane, “but she didn’t want a profession on the stage.” Roxane’s sister also sang, but her strength was as a pianist and high school music teacher. And on her father’s side of the family, although her Dad didn’t sing, his great uncle was Joseph Hislop a world famous tenor and teacher.

Roxane is a graduate of Sydney University, the NSW Conservatorium of Music, and holds a Masters Degree in Arts Administration from RMIT University in Melbourne. Her awards are impressive. They include the prestigious Marten Bequest Travelling Scholarship, the inaugural AIMS Scholarship, the Dame Mabel Brooks Scholarship, and the Sydney Sun Aria Award. She also represented Australia at the National finals of the Metropolitan Opera Auditions in New York. Roxane was awarded the Victorian Green Room Award for best female artist in a supporting role for her performances as Maddalena in Rigoletto and Olga in Eugene Onegin.

After graduating, Roxane admits that her heart was always set on opera. “I felt Opera was a true challenge and one of the highest art forms that combined beautiful music with drama.” Roxane believes she was extraordinarily fortunate that much of her career spanned the golden age of Opera in Australia. The Arts were well funded by Federal and State governments that realised the importance of a vibrant arts scene to the community. The result of this financial contribution to the Arts meant that lot of ‘product’ was being produced.



Roxane was a full time principal member of Opera Australia for several years and then enjoyed a very busy freelance career singing both with the National and State companies. She recalls going through a period of about a decade where she didn’t have time for a decent holiday as she had back to back bookings. She admits that unfortunately the output of opera in the past few years has sadly been shrinking. “It’s difficult for young singers to get the breadth of experience and opportunities that I enjoyed in my early years.”

Asked if there’s one role she would never turn down, Roxane is quick with a reply. “Charlotte in Werther by Jules Massenet. The music is exquisite and Charlotte is probably the closest to my personality of the mezzo heroines in the operatic repertoire.”

In the world of opera, sustaining a quality voice is not the only priority. To enjoy a career in opera, Roxane maintains that humour, good health and resilience are just as important. “All are vital for a happy career”, she says.

“You need humour to be able to laugh at yourself if things go wrong (as they are bound to at times), good health to have the strength to cope with demanding rehearsal schedules and of course resilience to deal with disappointments which can sometimes come thick and fast.” Roxane advises her students ‘to be like one of those punching clowns ‒ if you take a hit you just bounce straight back up, otherwise you won’t survive’.



In recent years, Roxane has combined a performing career with a passion for teaching and she enjoys sharing her knowledge and encouraging aspiring singers. “I am embracing the transition from full time performer to performer/teacher”, she says. “I have had thirty fortunate years singing in Australia and it’s a privilege and honour to pass my experience on to the next generation of fine young singers.”


Courage, humility and compassion are the qualities that most inspire Roxane. Given time and opportunity away from her career, she would give more support to the arts to make a real difference through continuing to serve on the Board of Arts organization and campaigning government for more arts funding.

“Also there is the issue of our aging population, and I would like to find more time to perform to dementia sufferers.” This is something she found both confronting and rewarding when her mother suffered from the crippling condition and she would often do concerts for the home where her mother lived. “Dementia sufferers respond so positively to music and singing and many who no longer speak find their voices again as they recognise and sing along to songs from their past. It gives them so much joy and relief.” Her mother has passed away now from the disease, “but I would love to have the time to develop a program of concerts to take into nursing homes particularly aimed at those suffering from Dementia.”

But for now, Roxane Hislop is completely engaged and comprehensively enjoying a stellar career as one of Australia’s leading mezzo sopranos. Can she envisage a day when she will stop singing? “No. I think I will always sing”, comes the reply, “of course not professionally forever, but in some way!”



The Armed Man – A Mass For Peace, and When the Bugle Calls will be performed at the
Melbourne Recital Centre, 20 August, 2016, 7.30pm.
For Bookings :



http://www.melbournerecital.com.au/events/2016/a-call-to-peace