Mark Padmore was born in London and grew up in Canterbury. After beginning his musical studies on the clarinet he gained a choral scholarship to King’s College, Cambridge and graduated with an honours degree in music.

He has established a flourishing career in opera, concert and recital. His performances in Bach’s Passions have gained particular notice throughout the world. In the opera house he has worked with such theatrically-minded directors as Peter Brook, Katie Mitchell, Mark Morris and Deborah Warner. Recent work includes Les Troyens at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris and Handel’s Jephtha at WNO and ENO. He also played Peter Quint in an acclaimed BBC TV production of Turn of the Screw. Plans include Tom Rakewell in Stravinsky’s Rake’s Progress at La Monnaie. He recently recorded the title role in La Clemenza di Tito with René Jacobs for Harmonia Mundi for which he received two Grammy nominations.
In concert he has performed with many of the world’s leading orchestras including the Berlin, Vienna and New York Philharmonics, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, the LSO and BBCSO. He makes regular appearances with the OAE with whom he conceived a project exploring Bach’s St John Passion which took place in Aldeburgh and London in 2005 and given further performances on tour in 2008. In November 2007 he made his debut with the Philadelphia Orchestra under Rattle. He has recently toured with the Hallé Orchestra as soloist in Britten’s Serenade conducted by Mark Elder and in 2008 he will be appearing as soloist with the Australian Chamber Orchestra on their European tour.
He has given recitals in Amsterdam, Barcelona, Brussels, Milan, Moscow, New York and Paris. He appears frequently at the Wigmore Hall in London where he performed the three Schubert song cycles in May 2008. As well as his regular collaborators Julius Drake, Roger Vignoles and Andrew West he works with many internationally renowned chamber musicians including Natalie Clein, Imogen Cooper, Till Fellner and Paul Lewis. He has made many recordings including the Bach Passions with Herreweghe and McCreesh, Bach Cantatas with Gardiner and Herreweghe, Haydn Masses with Hickox, Don Giovanni with Harding and operas by Rameau and Charpentier with Christie. His first solo recording for Harmonia Mundi, a recital of Handel Arias with Andrew Manze and the English Concert was released in April 2007. Recent releases include Haydn’s Creation on Deutsche Grammophon and a disc of Dowland Lute Songs with Elizabeth Kenny on Hyperion.