He first appeared on the professional stage in Glasgow, in Ashley Dukes's The Man With a Load of Mischief.
From 1948 to 1961, Wallace performed regularly at Glyndebourne Festival Opera,[REF] making his début as Samuele in Un ballo in maschera but soon specialising in basso buffo roles, notably Bartolo in both The Marriage of Figaro and The Barber of Seville [REF].