Brett Weymark was born in Sydney and trained at the University of Sydney and NSW Conservatorium of Music. His singing teachers included Dr Susan Falk, Dr Jean Callaghan and Dr. Rowena Cowley and as a conductor, his mentors have included Mats Nilsson, David Porcelijn, Janos Furst, John Hopkins, Patrick Thomas and Simon Halsey and his training has included study in both the UK, Europe and the US. In 2002 he was awarded a Centenary Medal for his service to music in particular choral performance.
He has held positions with The Song Company, Opera Australia, Pacific Opera, Sounds Baroque, Cantillation and The University of Western Sydney. He is currently the Music Director of The Sydney Philharmonia Choirs, a post he has held since 2004.
He has worked with many of the major musical organisations in both in Australia and internationally including the BBC Proms, Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, The Orchestra of the Antipodes, Western Australian Symphony Orchestra and the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra. He has appeared in productions with Opera Australia and Pinchgut Opera and has recorded a wide range of films scores from Happy Feet to Mad Max: Fury Road. He appears on a number of ABC Classic recordings both as a conductor and a singer.
He has conducted many world premieres of works by composers such as Peter Sculthorpe, Dan Walker, Paul Stanhope, Elena Kats Chernin, Andrew Schultz and Matthew Hindson. He initiated the ChorusOz project at the Sydney Opera House in 2005 which now draws hundreds of singers each year to explore choral works over the long weekend in June at the Concert Hall of the Sydney Opera House. This year the event attracted over 1000 singers. He has chorus mastered for Sir Simon Rattle, Sir Charles Mackerras, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Paul McCreesh and Edo de Wart amongst others. His performance of Purcell’s King Arthur was nominated for a Limelight award and his work as chorus master on Stravinky’s Oedipus Rex and Symphony of Psalms directed by Peter Sellars won a Helpmann award.
Recent highlights include the world premiere of Paul Stanhope’s Jundamarra with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Haydn’s The Creation with the Hong Kong Philharmonic, Bach’s St John Passion with the Sydney Philharmonia Choirs and Handel’s Hercules with the Canberra Choral Society. Future concerts include performances of Faure’s Requiem at St Mary’s Cathedral in Sydney, Handel’s Messiah at the Sydney Opera House, Gershwin’s Of Thee I Sing with theatre company Scrabalogical and working with the Sydney Symphony as chorus master for chief conductor David Robertson and the internationally acclaimed Charles Dutoit.
Conductor Brett Weymark brought everything together with a masterful sweep.
Canberra Choral Society, Canberra Times, Handel’s Hercules, May 2015
The orchestra performed in top form. Under the baton of Brett Weymark, the punchy orchestral delivery was unmistakably modern.
Hong Kong Philharmonic, Southern China Morning Post, Haydn’s The Creation, May 2015
Artistic director Brett Weymark and his team have prepared the two choruses – the 32 Chamber Singers and the 100-plus Symphonic Chorus – to an extraordinary level…You are not likely to experience a better performance of this work. Hear it if you can.
Sydney Philharmonia, Sydney Morning Herald, Bach’s St John Passion, April 2015