The Australian tenor began his vocal training parallel to a law degree at the University of Melbourne. After studies at the Victorian College of the Arts, the Australian National Academy of Music and the Juilliard School New York, he became a member of the opera studio and later an ensemble member at the Staatsoper Hamburg. From 2013 to 2016, Michael Smallwood was an ensemble member of the Aalto Theater Essen, where his musical focus was on Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Georg Friedrich Handel and Richard Strauss. His extensive repertoire ranges from the Renaissance to the Second Viennese School and numerous contemporary works. As a sought-after baroque singer, he has already worked with specialists such as William Christie, Alessandro de Marchi, Jane Glover, René Jacobs and Thomas Hengelbrock.