Genesis Sixteen alumnus honoured by University of Leicester
26 August 2025
Genesis Sixteen alumnus James Newby has been awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Music by the University of Leicester.
James is a former baritone from the fifth cohort of the Genesis Sixteen programme and has since received the 2022 Borletti-Buitoni Trust Award as well as being named an ECHO Rising Star 2022. He made his Garsington Opera debut in 2024 as Demetrius in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, a role which he will revive with Opéra de Lausanne in its 2025 season.
James received his award during the University of Leicester’s summer graduation ceremony at De Montfort Hall on 18 July.
He said “This is, without a doubt, the greatest honour of my career to date. To be recognised in this way by an institution as prestigious as the University of Leicester is incredibly special. But for me, it feels even more extraordinary given that Leicester is my hometown”.
