Iestyn Davies, MBE, is a British countertenor born 16 September 1979 in York, England. He first studied piano and recorder as a boy under the guidance of his father, Ioan Davies, founding cellist of the Fitzwilliam Quartet, and sang as a treble in the Choir of St John’s College, Cambridge, from age eight. He began singing countertenor as a teenager at Wells Cathedral School before returning to St John’s College as a choral scholar, graduating in Archaeology and Anthropology, and went on to train at the Royal Academy of Music.

Davies is widely regarded as one of the leading countertenors of his generation, with a career built on both Baroque opera and contemporary repertoire. He has won two Gramophone Awards and a Grammy Award, received the Royal Philharmonic Society’s Young Artist Award and the Critics’ Circle Award, and was appointed MBE in 2017 for services to music. He is a regular soloist with period-instrument ensembles including the Academy of Ancient Music and Arcangelo, and originated the countertenor lead in the West End and Broadway play Farinelli and the King.

Sources:

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iestyn_Davies