ABOUT SEÁN
Beginnings
Irish tenor Seán Tester first discovered his love of performance at the Drogheda School of Performing Arts (the Little Duke Theatre), where he immersed himself in drama, dance, and singing. Alongside theatre, he cultivated a deep connection to choral music as a member of St. Peter’s Male Voice Choir, an experience that shaped his musical instincts and ensemble sensibility.
Seán went on to study at the Royal Irish Academy of Music (RIAM), completing the Recital Artist Diploma under Owen Gilhooly-Miles. In 2023, he was awarded the BVOF | RIAM John Pollard Bursary, enabling him to pursue a Master’s in Music Performance, from which he graduated with distinction in 2025 under the mentorship of Owen Gilhooly-Miles and vocal coach Dearbhla Collins — a milestone that marks the foundation of his professional career.
Recognised for his promise, he is the inaugural RIAM Emerging Artist Fellow, a role that affirms his place among the Academy’s most exciting alumni.
Opera
Opera lies at the heart of Seán’s artistry. With a natural affinity for the lyric tenor repertoire, he combines vocal clarity, agility, and dramatic instinct in roles that showcase both character and craft.
His international debut came in Switzerland as Rodolphe in Rossini’s Guillaume Tell, in a co-production between Irish National Opera and Nouvel Opéra Fribourg / Neue Oper Freiburg (NOF). Recent highlights include his London operatic debut as Arbace in Mozart’s Idomeneo at Cadogan Hall. He has also appeared in Dominic Argento’s Postcard from Morocco(RIAM Opera), Purcell’s The Fairy Queen at the Korkyra Baroque Festival and Sligo Baroque Festival, and in numerous Irish National Opera productions including Faust, La Bohème, La Traviata, The Flying Dutchman, and Rigoletto, where he also covered the role of Il Duca di Mantova.
Recent seasons have seen his debut at Wexford Festival Opera as Conte di Libenskof in Rossini’s Il viaggio a Reims, followed by his selection for the prestigious Wexford Factory. He also returned to Blackwater Valley Opera Festival following his recital debut as a John Pollard Bursary Artist to perform Snout in Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream and appear in festival concerts.
Further highlights include his debut with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland as El Remendado in Bizet’s Carmen at the National Concert Hall. Alongside his stage work, he has featured in Irish National Opera’s Opera at the Movies at Electric Picnic and the Limerick Opera Festival’s Opera Trail, bringing opera to new audiences and performance spaces.
Concert & Oratorio
Equally at home on the concert platform, Seán is recognised for the expressive warmth of his tenor voice and his versatility across oratorio, chamber music, and recital repertoire. His performances include Handel’s Messiah, Bach’s St John Passion, Orff’s Carmina Burana, Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy, and Haydn’s The Seven Last Words of Christ, with recent highlights including St John Passion with the Dublin Bach Singers.
A committed recital artist, he has appeared twice in Dublin’s Sundays at Noon series with Dearbhla Collins, performed in support of the Veronica Dunne International Singing Competition at Killruddery House, and featured in the Dublin Philharmonic Society’s 40th Anniversary Gala at Farmleigh. He made his hometown debut in the Drogheda Classical Music Series alongside Celine Byrne and David Munro, while internationally he and pianist Ella Nagy gave a sold-out recital at the Franz Liszt Academy in Budapest, marking an important milestone in their artistic partnership. Chamber music highlights include Chausson’s Poème de l’amour et de la mer at RIAM ChamberFest and Brahms’s Liebeslieder Walzer at the Dublin International Chamber Music Festival with pianists Finghin Collins & Dearbhla Collins.
In the 2025/26 season, Seán made his debut at London’s Royal Festival Hall as tenor soloist in Mozart’s Requiem with the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra, marking another significant step in his expanding international concert career.
Highlights
Seán’s artistry has been recognised through a number of prestigious honours, including the Patricia Eberhart Aria Prize at the 2023 Irené Sandford Award for Singers. A major career highlight when he was invited to perform at the State Dinner at Áras an Uachtaráin (the residence of the Irish President) in honour of President Sergio Mattarella of Italy, hosted by President Michael D. Higgins. He is also proud to serve as Series Ambassador for the Drogheda Classical Music Series, a role he continues into the 2025/26 season.
Further recognition came in 2025, when Seán was named a recipient of the Danone Young Outstanding Artist Award at Wexford Festival Opera.
In addition, in 2026 Seán was thrilled to be named Artist in Association with Droichead Arts Centre. Reflecting on this appointment, he said: “I am absolutely thrilled and deeply grateful to be selected as an Artist in Association with Droichead Arts Centre. As a young singer, Droichead was one of the first professional stages where I performed, and its support in my early years played a vital role in shaping my artistic path. To now be formally associated with such an important local arts organisation in my hometown means a great deal to me.”
Looking to the future
Following a series of important debuts in Ireland and the UK, Seán’s career continues to gather momentum. Forthcoming engagements include El Remendado in Bizet’s Carmen with If Opera, tenor soloist in Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with the Worthing Symphony Orchestra, and Prince Nilsky in Prokofiev’s The Gambler at Wexford Festival Opera 2026.
With a career spanning opera, oratorio, and recital, Seán remains committed to bringing musical and dramatic integrity to every performance while continuing to build collaborations with leading conductors, directors, and companies across Ireland and internationally.