Former Euromoney Global Capital worker takes on singing odyssey
There's a bit of a trend developing for breaking loose from finance to try to make it as an opera singer.
First, former finance director at EY Michael Bracegirdle leapt on to the classical music scene when he played the role of villain Don Jose in a production of Carmen back in August.
Now a former editor at Euromoney Global Capital has stepped up to the plate, fitting in rehearsals between editorial work ahead of the first night of new opera Ulla’s Odyssey on Sunday.
Ex-special reports editor Sarah Minns was sucked into her City job when she moved to London for her singing career. She told The Capitalist: “When I moved to London, I ran out of money, and joined the team at Euromoney on their grad scheme. I did try to leave the City a few times, but you get so used to the money!”
Minns finally broke free of finance two years ago, and plays the lead role in Ulla’s Odyssey this weekend after years of sneaking into churches around the Square Mile to work on her solos. She even blasted out a few arias in the office loos.
“I would wait till a Saturday when I knew there were fewer people around, but the office was a pretty good space to practice in," she said.
Apparently, there’s a whole social set of musical moneymakers flitting between Fleet Street and London’s opera houses: “It is nice when you finally get to find each other. I think many of us feel a bit trapped by the routine of an office job. There’s a lot of bankers who love classical music and opera, too, so often I’d be singing at client events and functions, and they loved it.”
Perhaps serenading the foreign investors is the real way to make it in the City…