James Rutherford was born in Norwich, and read Theology at Durham University before commencing studies at the Royal College of Music and National Opera Studio in London. James has been the recipient of many scholarships and prizes and in 2000 became a BBC New Generation Artist. In 2006, James won the inaugural Seattle Opera International Wagner Competition.

In Opera James Rutherford has appeared with the Paris Opera, Welsh National Opera, Opera North, Glyndebourne Touring Opera, Royal Opera House, English National Opera, the Deutsche Staatsoper, Berlin and at the Montpellier and Innsbruck Festivals. He has sung Donner (Das Rheingold) with the Royal Opera, the Lyric Opera of Chicago and with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and Sir Simon Rattle (at the BBC Proms and the Baden-Baden Festival), Jokanaan (Salome) in Montpellier, Leporello (Don Giovanni) for Scottish Opera and Wolfram (Tannhäuser) for San Francisco Opera.

In concert James appears regularly at the major British festivals and with conductors including Leonard Slatkin, Sir Colin Davis, Donald Runnicles, Sir Mark Elder, Sir Roger Norrington, Christopher Hogwood, Sir Charles Mackerras, Sakari Oramo, and with the Berlin Philharmonic, the Sudwestrundfunk and the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic orchestras. A noted recitalist, he has appeared throughout the United Kingdom and given numerous recitals for BBC Radio 3 and at Wigmore Hall.