Hailing from Liverpool, Danielle has made a name for herself as a mezzo-soprano with a beautiful dark voice and a poised stage presence. Danielle has recorded two albums and performed on numerous high-profile events. Here are some of the things we’ve learned about this talented songstress.
The first song Danielle sang as a child was ‘Part of Your World.’
I knew at that very young age that I loved to sing and I would sing pretty much every Disney song going at every opportunity to anyone that would listen!
She was featured on ‘Songs of Praise’ at only eleven-years-old.
Songs of Praise was a fantastic platform for me but most of all, it was fun which is so important when you start any profession from a young age. I was studying privately with a vocal teacher and also a piano teacher, and was just about to start as a student of the junior school of the RNCM in Manchester so things were all go for me at that point.
Her idea of success has evolved over time.
At that stage in my life, my future goals were to do A-Level Music and go to conservatoire to study opera/vocal studies and then become a singer within the opera world – that was my expectation. That very much drastically changed for me… I was getting bullied in school so I didn’t want to be there. I couldn’t stay on to do my A-Levels as the bullying got so bad and even more unfortunate, I just wasn’t in any position to be able to afford a place at a conservatoire. Instead, I left school at 16 and began working pretty much straight away. Tesco, support work for adults with learning disabilities plus night shifts as a care assistant in a nursing home whilst still have singing lessons and doing the odd few gigs. I genuinely thought I had failed. However, my idea of Success is completely different now – to me, I am successful. I am just singing for a living now and to compare what my life was like only a few years ago, seems like a miracle. People get the wrong idea of what success is, I’ve never wanted fame and fortune, I just wanted to be doing something I love for a living, and that is exactly what I do now.
She is Liverpool’s Singer in Residence.
Anyone who has been to Liverpool and met us scousers will know what type of people we are! We have had a lot of bad press on the past but [wait] until you’ve been here and witnessed it yourself, then make a judgment. You couldn’t get a more supportive city if you tried. Being Liverpool’s Singer in Residence is something I am incredibly proud of; it is thanks to this City that I am able to do what I do. We created the biggest band in history and there is so much talent here, in every genre of music. They believed in me and have continued to support me on my career journey. I am a very lucky girl. Liverpool will always be in my heart no matter where I end up in life!
She went through a rather dramatic voice change. (Yes, girl’s voices change too!)
From a young age, I grasped the breathing techniques quite quickly. What I have struggled with, is my voice changing. I used to be a Soprano but quite drastically when I was around 17/18 the quality in my voice changed and has stayed pretty much the same since. Being a Mezzo is great but you suddenly have this fear of high notes! I do anyway! What I need to focus on more is dropping my jaw to create more space and not overthinking in the higher register. I’m always told ‘if the higher notes sound squeaky to you, it’s correct because the sound that the audience hears is full’ and I need to get used to that!
Danielle studies with a coach from the Royal College in London.
My vocal coach teaches at the Royal College in London so I only see her a few times a year. I have an intense technique lesson with her each time and go over any repertoire I am performing at that time. We recently looked over Handel’s Messiah and Rutter’s Requiem. I am currently working on Karl Jenkins ‘The Armed Man’ and the beautiful aria ‘Una
Voce Poco Fa’ from Rossini’s Barber of Seville.
She takes each performance seriously.
I approach every performance I do in the same manner, whether that be singing at a funeral or singing on live television. Granted there’s a lot more pressure with bigger events but I wouldn’t want to feel like I haven’t given my all into something just because there were fewer people there or it wasn’t a huge event. I just love singing and I would want people to feel that from me.
Her second album Serenade is available for purchase now.
Serenade is something I wanted to do where I could add most genres into one cd. I get a lot of mixed audiences – some really love the opera, some not so much. So, I felt as if I wanted to experiment with a few things, like singing ‘Music of the Night’ from Phantom and a cover of ‘Run’ by Snow Patrol. I just wanted to give something for everyone. I have a fantastic pianist, Stephen Mannings, who is assistant director of music at Liverpool Cathedral who accompanied me on the album so he made it even better for me with his wonderful talent.
Danielle is very happy being a concert singer.
Years back, the dream would have been to pursue a career in the opera world, however, because I didn’t go to conservatoire and study full time, that will never happen – so I’ve been told. It’s amazing how a piece of paper can determine your future really. However, I am very much at home being a concert/event singer which is what I do full time. No performance is the same, I get to work with the most incredible musicians such as the Band of Her Majesty’s Royal Marines, the Band of the Duke of Lancaster’s Regiment, the amazing Mike Moran, Aled Jones, Russell Watson to name a few.
She is an Ambassador for North West Cancer Research.
The biggest influence in my life was my Gramps. He was the person who discovered I could sing, would sit and listen to me practice, take me to my singing lessons, support me at every performance – you name it, he did it. My Gramps lived with me from a very young age, he took me to see Phantom of the Opera when I was 9 and I remember turning to him and saying ‘Gramps I want to do that, I want to sing like that’ and within weeks I had a singing teacher. He was incredible.
Back in 2011, he got diagnosed with Colorectal Cancer. My sister and I nursed him at home until he passed away seven months later in 2012 holding our hands. I wanted to do something to raise awareness and funds to find a cure. That year, North West Cancer Research asked me if I would open their Christmas concert with ‘O Holy Night’ which I did. I did everything they asked me to do because I knew in some small way I was helping as I vowed to my Gramps I would. A few years later they asked if I would become an ambassador for the charity to which I couldn’t refuse. I perform free of charge whenever I can for them and have regularly been out in Liverpool City Centre busking for them to raise funds. If I can help a little bit by using my voice, then I’m happy.
Keep up with Danielle’s performance schedule at her website:
daniellelouisethomas.co.uk
