Jacques Imbrailo grew up on a farm in the Free State province of South Africa, and first got into singing on a dare, at age 11, during open auditions after a concert by the Drakensberg Boys' Choir School.
He was also a member of the Jette Parker Young Artists Programme at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden.
[4] He has also performed in concert with the Hallé Orchestra and Sir Mark Elder at the BBC Proms, and with the New York Philharmonic under Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos.
[5] Jacques Imbrailo has featured on several recordings, including Britten's Billy Budd, where he played the title role, recorded at the Glyndebourne Festival, with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, and conductor Sir Mark Elder, and Elgar's The Apostles, with the Hallé Orchestra, also conducted by Sir Mark Elder.
There are also a number of DVDs and Blu-rays featuring his performances, in operas such as Bizet's Carmen, Debussy's Pelléas et Mélisande, and Britten's Billy Budd.