All Things Business – The Podcast welcomes Faryl Smith, who Ben bills as ‘Northamptonshire’s finest singer’. Born in Kettering, Faryl recently returned to the county with her fiancé after ten years living in London.
Act 1, scene 1
Faryl trained to become an opera singer at Guildhall School of Music & Drama, completing undergraduate, postgraduate and opera-specific courses.
Her journey didn’t start there though. Her grandfather’s mother had been a professional opera singer, and he recognised her talent at a young age. While the rest of her family weren’t as embedded in music, they still supported her by encouraging her to join choirs and start singing lessons.
Singing praises
Hard work paid off as Faryl shot to fame at a young age, auditioning for Britain’s Got Talent at age 12. She stunned the judges with a rendition of ‘Ave Maria’ which prompted Simon Cowell to call her ‘by far the most talented youngster I’ve ever heard’.
Her mother was initially wary of the audition, but Faryl just wanted more opportunities to sing. She steeled herself for her performance by sneaking into the auditorium and watching a few acts before her and taking a moment to familiarise herself with the room and the audience.
Her performances allowed her to advance to the final, appearing on millions of television screens around the country. A record deal with Universal soon followed, as well as an appearance at the Royal Variety performing the National Anthem in front of the Queen and performing on a bill with the likes of Lady Gaga, Michael Bublé and Miley Cyrus. She also achieved a world record for singing a song in the most different languages.
Advancing her arias
While her raw talent had shone through, Faryl knew she would have to continue to train to achieve her dream career in opera. Eight years of education later, she’s ready to take on that challenge. Faryl outlines her wish to advance her career in opera while retaining the more event and media-focussed work she’s undertaken since her BGT stint, such as singing the national anthem at the FA Cup final and Six Nations rugby matches.
Early in an opera career, it’s common to perform as part of a chorus or as an understudy to other roles, which Faryl has been doing with Glyndebourne Opera House and Waterperry Opera Festival, which she’ll return to this year.
Preparation involves intense periods of rehearsal which can be very hard on the voice. She explains that the voice is a muscle that needs to be trained, but that is also susceptible to overexertion and damaged by negative behaviours.
Ben closes the podcast with the dinner party question – Faryl invites Beyoncé, Michael Bublé and her grandfather.
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