Biography

British tenor Maximilian Lawrie hails from Hertfordshire. A musician from an early age, he studied double bass, piano, organ and composition before turning his focus increasingly towards singing.

From 2014 to 2017, Maximilian studied Music at the University of Oxford, graduating with First-Class Honours while holding an Academical Clerkship at Magdalen College. He subsequently studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London, completing a Master’s in Vocal Performance followed by the Advanced Diploma in Opera. Roles at the Academy included Lysander (A Midsummer Night’s Dream), Rinuccio (Gianni Schicchi) and First Sailor (Dido and Aeneas); his Rinuccio was described as “a powerful singer, full of ardor and daring in the upper reaches”.

From 2022 to 2025, Maximilian was a member of the International Opera Studio at Opernhaus Zürich, appearing in a wide range of new and revived productions. His roles included Malcolm (Macbeth), Vicomte Cascada (Die lustige Witwe), Herr Ärmel, Herr Tur Tur and Geier 1 (Jim Knopf), Kaufmann (Jakob Lenz), Fourth Jew (Salome), Capitano dei balestrieri (Simon Boccanegra), Giuseppe (La traviata) and Benvolio (Roméo et Juliette). His Malcolm was described as particularly “convincing and stirring”, while his Kaufmann in Jakob Lenz was praised as “excellent work” in the “tremendous vocal challenge” of the role.

In spring 2025, Maximilian covered Midas in Richard Strauss’s Die Liebe der Danae at Teatro Carlo Felice Genova. Later that year, his performance of Walther’s Prize Song from Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg was described as revealing a “herrlich aufblühenden Heldentenor” — a wonderfully blossoming Heldentenor.

Since leaving Zürich, Maximilian’s engagements have included Gabriel von Eisenstein in Die Fledermaus with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra, performances of Dvořák’s Stabat Mater in Switzerland, and concert and recital appearances in England.

Now based again in the UK, Maximilian is concentrating increasingly on the young dramatic and Heldentenor repertoire, while continuing to perform in opera, concert and recital.