BIOGRAPHY
“…Sarah Jillian Cox in the title role. Her warm, attractive mezzo-soprano is a likeable instrument, and her performance had considerable charm.” Rupert Christiansen, The Telegraph, 2002
“the exceptionally natural and whole-hearted presences of Robert Burt as Burgess, and of Sarah Jillian Cox as Flora, whose assurance succeeds in bringing the work to life. “ Naomi Goulder, Online Review London, 2004
Sarah Jillian Cox
LRSM
Mezzosoprano
Born in Canada of British parentage, Sarah studied at the RNCM and the National Opera Studio, graduating in 2002. Since 2010, Sarah has taught singing, both privately and in schools and achieved her MA in Musicology in 2021 from the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire. She presently continues her study there as a part time PhD student funded by Midlands4Cities. Sarah sings as an alto for the Lancaster Priory Choir, for whom she is also a staff singing teacher, as well as teaching for Ripley St Thomas School in Lancaster.
Past operatic roles include Emily Benson and cover Diana Devereaux in Of Thee I Sing, Hansel in Hansel and Gretel and cover Trigesta in Croesus for Opera North. For Scottish Opera she covered the title role in Cenerentola. Other roles include Rosina in Il Barbiere di Siviglia and Hata Bartered Bride Mid Wales Opera, Cherubino Le Nozze di Figaro Preggio Festival, and Nassiedka May Night Garsington. Mercedes Carmen (Mid Wales); the roles of Hannah, Mary Queen of Scots and Despina, Cosi fan Tutte (ETO); Mezzo Essential Scottish Opera, and Flora Family Matters (Tete a Tete); Kitchen Boy Rusalka (Opera North); Hansel Hansel und Gretel and Kuchtik Rusalka (Stowe); Cenerentola Cenerentola (Mid Wales);
She has also covered Meg, Merry Wives of Windsor (Buxton). Tetka Jenufa (Glyndebourne); Olga Eugene Onegin (Scottish Opera); Ines Maria Padilla and Perichole La Perichole (Buxton).
Recent Choral engagements include Haydn Nelson Mass (Ambleside Choral Society, 2024), Christmas Spectacular (Morecambe Parish Church, 2024), Beethoven Mass in C (Ambleside, 2023), Haydn St. Nicholas and Holst Christmas Day (Ambleside, 2022), Durufle Requiem (Lancaster Priory, 2019), Dvorak Stabat Mater (Eversley Choral, May 2019) and Tarney's Magnificat (Lancaster Priory Festival of Song 2019). St John Passion (Lancaster Singers, 2019) (trans. Christopher Steele); Oliver Tarney's Magnificat (Kendal South, 2017) and in their Mozart concert in 2018; Verdi Requiem (Eversley Choral Society, 2017) and Bach's St. Matthew Passion (2018).
Other Oratorios include Verdi Requiem (Glossop Choral); Messiah with Sir David Willcocks; Elgar's Dream of Gerontius, (Derby Choral Union); Bach's B minor Mass, and Rossini's Petite Messe and Stabat Mater.