Donna-Marie Broomfield (nee Hughes) MA, LTCL, DipABRSM, MISM 

Donna-Marie (soprano), began her vocal training with Isabel Morrow (1998-2007) and Alison Kettlewell (2007-2013) while maintaining a successful career in Media Advertising Sales and Sales Management. From 2004 to 2010, she balanced a semi-professional singing career alongside her full-time job, before fully committing to a professional singing career in 2010. A serendipitous encounter with two enthusiastic children sparked her passion for teaching, leading her to embark on an intensive program of self-directed professional development in vocal pedagogy.

Since then, Donna-Marie has deepened her expertise through masterclasses with world-renowned baritone Donald Maxwell and coaching sessions with British soprano Liza Hobbs and American soprano Julia Radosz. She has performed in numerous operas and opera galas as a solo artist, collaborating with various companies and societies throughout England and Europe. Some of her notable roles include Susannah in The Marriage of Figaro, Lady in Waiting and Witch in Macbeth, Casilda in The Gondoliers, Melissa in Princess Ida, Countess Ceprano in Rigoletto, and Gianetta in The Elixir of Love. Additionally, she has portrayed Mabel in Pirates of Penzance, Aline and Constance in The Sorcerer, Dido and Belinda in Dido & Aeneas, Acis in Acis & Galatea, Anna Gomez in The Consul, Lucy in The Telephone, and covered the role of Lady Dunmow in A Dinner Engagement. Upcoming in 2024, Donna-Marie will take on the roles of Gretel in Humperdinck's Hansel and Gretel and The Faun in Dunhill's The Enchanted Garden with Staircase Opera.

Oratorio soloist work includes Haydn’s Little Organ Mass, Mozart’s Regina Coeli KV108 and Exsultate Jubilate, Bach’s Ich Bin Vergnügt Mit Meinem Glücke, and Mozart’s Laudate Dominum. She has also performed Poulenc’s Gloria, Vivaldi’s Gloria, Handel’s The Messiah, Mozart’s Mass in C Minor and Coronation Mass, Haydn’s The Seasons, Mendelssohn’s Saint Paul, and Brahms’ German Requiem.

In addition to her stage work, Donna-Marie has performed at many prestigious venues and events, including Buckfast Abbey, The Bahrain Grand Prix, The International Marbella Film Festival, The Goring Hotel in London, and many more. Notably, she was shortlisted for the BBC Radio 2 Dame Kiri Opera Prize in 2010, and from 2011 to 2014, she performed as a solo classical artist for Thomson Holidays’ 5* Sensatori Resorts in Tenerife, Crete, and Egypt. In 2013, she sang for over 35,000 football fans at Brighton & Hove Albion's Amex Stadium, later performing in a 2015 memorial match broadcast live on Sky TV.

Since 2015, Donna-Marie has focused on performing closer to home, regularly appearing in concerts, events, and oratorios throughout the South West, and serving as a soloist with Exeter-based Staircase Opera. Alongside her performing career, she runs a successful private singing and piano teaching practice from her studio in Torquay (since 2010), and has been a Peripatetic Singing and Piano Teacher at Maynard Independent Girls School in Exeter (since 2016). She also began studying the cello in 2018.

Donna-Marie is deeply committed to ongoing professional development. In June 2024, she earned an MA in Vocal Pedagogy from The Voice Study Centre and the University of Wales Trinity St David. Her research during the MA focused on topics such as hydration, the impact of wind instrument playing on the voice, hormonal transitions in cis female singers, and music performance anxiety. Her final thesis explored practical solutions for performance anxiety, specifically investigating the effectiveness of parasympathetic tools for singers.

Looking ahead, Donna-Marie’s research interests include belting techniques, trauma-informed voice teaching, child learning development, SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities), and child-centred teaching methods. She remains passionate about expanding her expertise to support both her own artistic journey and her students' growth.