Kirkby, Emma (1949– )

English soprano. She studied Classics at Oxford before her London debut in 1974. With her pure, vibrato-free voice she has become a specialist in early music, appearing with the Academy of Ancient Music, the Consort of Musicke and similar ensembles. She made her US debut in 1978 and has undertaken three tours of the Middle East with the lutenist Anthony Rooley. She was formerly married to Andrew Parrott, with whom she has sung in Bach's B minor Mass and the Monteverdi Vespers. She sang Dorinda in Handel's Orlando at the 1989 London Proms, and her recordings include Florentine Intermedi, Venus and Adonis by Blow, Dido and Aeneas and Pergolesi's Stabat Mater.