Sybil Tutton Awards

The Sybil Tutton Awards are for students on advanced postgraduate opera courses to help with study costs. The Richard Van Allan Award is available for a suitably outstanding male singer.

Application Process

We are no longer accepting applications from individuals. Candidates will be selected on a nominations only basis, by Heads of voice from the conservatoires, music colleges and National Opera Studio. Institutions will be fully informed of the nomination process.

Funding advice

To research other sources of funding for opera courses, please visit our Funding Wizard or our Student funding advice pages.

History of the Sybil Tutton and Richard Van Allan Awards

Sybil Tutton had a life long love of opera which in later years was expressed as a passionate interest in the training of young singers. Her working life was spent at Mallet's, the antique dealers in Bond Street where her father was a director and major shareholder. On his death Sybil inherited his holding, becoming the largest single shareholder.

In 1988 she used her personal funds to set up the Sybil Tutton Charitable Trust, which was to provide financial help for the postgraduate training of outstanding young singers who, it was believed, would achieve the standards of excellence she expected in a performance. She took a personal interest in the Trust and held an annual lunch to meet some of the young singers she had supported. Sybil never married and died peacefully on 27 November 2002, aged 96, bequeathing most of her residuary estate to the Trust.

Richard Van Allan was a respected opera singer who appeared in a huge number of performances over his lifetime. He was honoured with a CBE for services to opera in 2002. In addition, he was a dedicated trustee of the Sybil Tutton Charitable Trust and chaired the panel for the Sybil Tutton Awards auditions for a number of years. Following his death in 2008, it was agreed that an award be made available through the Sybil Tutton auditions, in Richard’s name, for an outstanding male singer.

Read more about the history of the Sybil Tutton and Richard Van Allan Awards