BIOGRAPHY

New Zealand-born Rachel starred in several television series including Children of Fire Mountain (released on DVD in April 2010) during her childhood. She trained as a classical singer and while still a student was a finalist in NZ's prestigious Mobil Song Quest. After graduating with a degree in music, Rachel worked as a singer/pianist and as a presenter of arts and music television programmes.

Selected to represent New Zealand in the World Chorus at the Calgary Winter Olympics, Rachel sang the solo in David Foster's theme song at the Opening Ceremony to a live audience of 40,000 and a TV audience of 2 billion people. Invitations to record programmes of pop songs for Radio New Zealand followed, one of them earning Rachel a prestigious Mobil Radio Award.

After moving to London Rachel was in The Phantom of the Opera before joining the a cappella vocal octet The Swingle Singers. She travelled with the group for four years, giving concerts in 25 countries and working as their Musical Director.

Since leaving The Swingle Singers Rachel has given her own cabaret recitals in London and New York, and has appeared with Rambert Dance Company for two seasons as the singer in their Cole Porter ballet Elsa Canasta.

Rachel tours internationally with Synergy Vocals (as she has done since they began in 1996 as a 4-member ensemble), performing in major concert halls throughout Europe and the United States. During 2011 she will sing with Synergy Vocals in Sweden, France, Spain, the Netherlands, the UK, Poland and Germany. 

Rachel is a sought-after recording artist and has sung on the soundtracks of many movies (including Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, Shrek, Moulin Rouge, Transformers, Avatar and Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland) and on the albums of such diverse artists as Bjork, Missy Elliott, Keith Urban and Michael Jackson.     

Recently Rachel has sung with the New York Philharmonic at Lincoln Center, the RTE Concert Orchestra in Dublin (in a Fred Astaire tribute and a Screen Idols programme of Judy Garland, Marilyn Monroe and Doris Day songs) and the Lahti Symphony in Finland. She performed with medieval music group Joglaresa in England and in a new Louis Andriessen opera in Amsterdam. Also during 2010 Rachel performed at Disney Hall, Los Angeles and Carnegie Hall, New York, and appeared with Fred Astaire's daughter in an Astaire tribute in Belfast.

Rachel's album gentle rain - featuring standards by Gershwin, Porter and Berlin as well as ballads by Michel Legrand, Billy Joel and others - is now available to buy via this website, or to download from iTunes and other digital sites.