Judith Lovat was born and raised in Glasgow, Scotland. Upon completing high school, she first attended Edinburgh University and then studied voice and piano at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, now known as the Royal Scottish Conservatoire. (She still prefers its original name – RSAMD!) As a member of the Scottish Orchestra Chorus, she made a trip to the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles when she was 18. The concerts were outstandingly exciting. She loved the weather, loved the atmosphere, and she knew then she would move to the US at some point. So directly after the RSAMD, she auditioned and was accepted into the Academy of Vocal Arts here in Philly. It was a tremendous coup to get in, so she moved and started a completely new life.
Judith promised herself she would be a solo artist for her entire career, and so began a hugely fulfilled life of classical music. During her time at AVA, she started mostly in symphony work in the UK, but gradually the opera side took off. In the US, she sang as a principal artist in the opera companies of San Diego, Columbus, Salt Lake City, Boston, Delaware, Philadelphia – in some of the companies, multiple times in different operas. Concerts with orchestras in the US were many and widespread, even singing the Messiah in Carnegie Hall. In Europe, she toured through nearly all the cities of Spain, France, and Germany with the Bulgarian Orchestra, singing many roles. Her favorite place, however, was singing with the very small company, Menton Opera, in Provence, France – three times. What a glorious place to be in the winter. She sang in the UK in opera and symphony up and down, coast to coast – London, Glasgow, and many other major cities.
Judith also did radio and television and a few small recordings, none of which are easy to find, but that’s life when you move on! During her peak years, she was lucky enough to perform with some of the world’s best conductors, seeing the world at the same time.
After her singing career came to an end, Judith started playing organ in Redeemer Lutheran, which then became Saints United. She loves it, and it keeps her in music. While she never thought she was cut out to be a teacher of voice or piano, Judith did love having the choir for whom she wrote four or five compositions.
Judith considers herself lucky to have had the experiences she did and will always cherish her life in music.