Benedict Hymas has been announced as the new tenor of acapella choir the King’s Singers, starting in September.
Hymas will take over from Paul Phoenix, who in January announced that he is to leave the group after almost seventeen years singing with the group. Rigorous invite-only auditions began in April to find his successor.
Hymas says: 'I'm thrilled to be joining this fantastic group, which I've always admired. I'm about to receive a huge amount of music to learn for the first concerts but I can't wait to get started!'
Currently a member of Stile Antico, Hymas has previously worked with the Gabrieli Consort, The Tallis Scholars, Polyphony and Tenebrae, as well as performing as a soloist for leading conductors, including Eric Whitacre, Paul McCreesh and Stephen Layton.
‘We’re delighted to be welcoming Ben to the line-up from September,’ the King’s Singers state. ‘He has a truly beautiful voice, and has impressed us throughout the audition process with his thorough preparation and his thoughtful approach to our wide repertoire. We look forward to sharing the stage with him, and to revealing our new line-up as we start our 2014/15 season.'
The King's Singers are widely known for bringing the highest level of performance to a great variety of works, performing around 100 concerts a year internationally.