Matthew McKinney is a Scottish tenor and graduate of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. In 2021 he sang Henrik A Little Night Music for Buxton Opera Festival and will be an ensemble member for English Touring Opera, undertaking chorus, roles and covers across their 2022 education projects and mainstage season.

As a soloist Matthew has sung Haydn’s Creation, Harmoniemesse and Nelson Masswith the RCS Symphony Orchestra and Handel’s Messiah, Mozart’s Requiem and Mass in C Minor, Vaughan Williams’ Mass in G minor, Howell’s Requiem, Tippett’s 5 Negro Spirituals, Bernstein’s Chinchester Psalms and Goodhall’s Eternal Light Requiem. In 2019 Matthew premiered a new English arrangement of Erwin Schulhoff’s The Communist Manifesto and appeared as a soloist in the Usher Hall as part of Edinburgh International Festival’s concert series celebrating Young performers.

Matthew has performed as a chorus member in Berlioz’ La Damnation du Faust, Jonathan Dove’s The Day After, Prokofiev’s The Fiery Angel, Johann Strauss’ Die Fledermaus, Gilbert and Sullivan’s Trial by Jury, Wagner’s Tannhäuser, Kurt Weill’s Street Scene and as a Ghost Soldier in Benjamin Britten’s Owen Wingrave. In 2020 he sang as a chorister with the New Generation Festival in their production of La Cenerentola at the Palazzo Corsini in Florence.

Matthew has twice appeared with the Monteverdi Choir at the BBC Proms and in France for a performance of Berlioz’ La damnation de Faust. He joined the prestigious Genesis 16 choral apprenticeship programme and was one of four young singers joining Dunedin Consort as part of the Bridging the Gap initiative (2018-19). In 2016 he featured as a soloist in the National Youth Choir of Scotland’s US tour with concerts including the annual 4th of July Independence Day celebration in Grant Park, Chicago.

At the RCS Matthew has won the Norma Grieg French Song competition, the Molly Robb competition for voice (adjudicated by Karen Cargill) and the RCS Governors’ recital prize for chamber ensemble. He was a finalist in the annual Elgar/Spedding Memorial Lieder Prize, commended in the Jean Highgate singing competition and highly commended in the Glasgow Grand Opera Society Cup for Voice. Matthew is especially grateful to the Robertson Trust, John Mather Rising Star scholarship, Help Musicians (Ian Fleming) Award, Sir James Caird Travelling Scholarship, WFT Anderson Scholarship, The Underwood Trust Scholarship and The Dale Scholarship for supporting him through his studies and to his voice tutor Professor Stephen Robertson.