Lisa Engelbrecht

Performer, Pianist

Lisa is the operatic vocal coach at the University of Cape Town's Opera School and also regularly
coaches and accompanies singers at Cape Town Opera and is a guest vocal coach locally at the
University of North West's Conservatoire of Music and internationally at the Royal College and
Academies of Music in London. Lisa is on the teaching faculty as Coach/Accompanist of the
International Lyric Academy in Vicenza, Italy. She also lectures in Lyric Diction.
Lisa initially received her B.Musc degree at UCT in Piano Performance but went on to study voice in
Milan, Italy with Virginia Borroni and completed an opera diploma at the Piccolo Conservatorio. She
decided to fuse her skills as both singer and pianist when she was accepted on a full scholarship to
the Royal College of Music in London for a Post Graduate diploma in Higher Performance for
Repétitéurs in 1998.
She subsequently coached for the Jeunes Voix du Rhin opera program in Strasbourg, The Renata
Scotto academy in Savona, Italy, The Merola Opera Program (San Francisco Opera) and Glimmerglass
( New York State). She graduated with a Masters in Vocal Accompaniment in the USA at the
University of Illinois under renowned accompanist, John Wustman.
On her return to South Africa she started working for Cape Town Opera as a répétiteur and
embarked on he Doctorate in Collaborative Performance and Thesis at the University of Cape Town
which she achieved in 2008.
Lisa has been musical director of a number of semi-staged opera scenes concerts at the Opera
School. She is also Musical Director of “Opera in Darling” which introduces opera to wider audiences
throughout the Western Cape and abroad.
Lisa has répétiteured for numerous opera production at Cape Town Opera as well as for the Grange
Festival, Hampshire in the United Kingdom, working with acclaimed conductors such as Richard
Egarr.
Lisa is part of the dynamic duo “The Opera Angels” alongside British Mezzo soprano, Lindsay
Thomson. Following their debut performances upon the Cunard's Queen Victoria world cruise in
January/February 2019, Opera Angels have been in demand across Cape Town and the rest of South
Africa. They create unique programmes that encompass many musical genres.
Lisa also accompanies many young professional opera singers in recital both in South Africa and
abroad, giving regular masterclasses in Mauritius under the auspices of Societé Musicale d’Isle de
Maurice and Operarts.