Danielle de Niese

“Outreach appearances in the schools are usually part of my contracts, and I love doing them.”

“I spent my first 10 years in the Commonwealth. I come from cricket, crumpets, cucumber sandwiches, the Queen.”

“I know there are lots of regional accents in England, but I can't tell them apart and I'm not really aware of class. I don't pay any attention to those boundaries. I'm a California girl.”

“What I see as specially English is the charm - everyone is so polite. Being restrained is part of the charm. And I love the sense of humour - it takes me back to Australia. The English are great at making fun of themselves. They're so self-effacing.”

“Music is as integral to me as my own DNA. My life has become a continual soundtrack, with music underscoring the most powerful and even the most banal moments of my life.”

“I think of myself as an Olympian. I have had a dream since I was a very small child. And because I have parents without whom I couldn't have realised that dream.”

“My dad's in banking, my mum manages the American branch of a Swiss vitamin company; they're really busy, but they still come to all my premieres.”

“I don't feel I'm fighting to reach this huge audience; it just happens. I go on stage before the audience arrives and look out to this vast empty house. There's something therapeutic about taking in the ring where you'll perform.”

“One of the things I loved about my childhood was that I didn't feel like I lost my innocence too young, like some children these days.”

“Music can be a source of escapism.”

“From my perspective, music allows me to escape from the world of what is happening right in front of me... to the world of my thoughts, my dreams, my hopes and ideas - for the world, for my own life, for the day, even for the moment.”

“One of my favourite books of all time: 'The Great Gatsby'. I just think it's so well written.”

“You can't abuse your voice by yelling and screaming.”

“I sang with a voice that was natural, and I liked the way I produced that sound. I thought of my other friends, that they were singing and dancing, but they didn't have this. I was special.”

“My mother actually does most of my shopping for me. I love fashion, but I don't really love shopping.”

“I feel very fortunate. I feel like an Olympian. When I watch the Olympics, I cry because I have been through that journey.”

“I love Jimmy Choo and Manolo Blahnik.”

“In a fit at the bookstore one day, I bought all my favourite composers' biographies: Schubert, Massenet, Wolf. I've still not had a chance to read them; it breaks my heart. But when you travel so much, you just can't take that many books with you.”

“Mozart is my first strength.”

“My parents kept me very grounded.”