Alexandra Dariescu 

Summer Concert 2024 ~ Florence Price: Piano Concerto in One Movement

In demand as a soloist worldwide, trailblazing pianist, Alexandra, demonstrates fearless curiosity and groundbreaking innovation, and champions inclusion and diversity. In 2017 she took the world by storm with her successful piano recital production, The Nutcracker and I - an original groundbreaking multimedia performance for piano solo with live dance and digital animation, which has since enjoyed international acclaim and has drawn thousands of young audiences into concert halls across Europe, Australia, China, the Emirates and the US, realising Dariescu’s vision of building bridges and making classical music more accessible to the wider public. Alexandra holds many special accolades including Cultural Ambassador of Romania, Officer of the Romanian Crown from the Royal Family, and Young European Leader by Friends of Europe. In 2020, she received the Order, Cultural Merit, in the rank of Knight from the Romanian President and became an Associated Member of the Royal Northern College of Music.

Alexandra Dariescu

Benjamin Baker 

Autumn Concert 2019 ~ Elgar: Violin Concerto in B minor Op 61
Autumn Concert 2023 ~ Brahms: Violin Concerto in D major Op 77

Born in 1990 in New Zealand, Benjamin studied at the Yehudi Menuhin School and the Royal College of Music where he was awarded the Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother Rose Bowl. He was selected by Young Classical Artists Trust in 2013 and in the same year won 1st Prize at the Windsor International Competition. He moved to the UK in 1998 with his family to study at the Yehudi Menuhin School, on the recommendation of Nigel Kennedy. Since winning 1st Prize at the 2016 Young Concert Artists International Auditions in New York and 3rd Prize at the Michael Hill Competition in New Zealand, Benjamin has established a strong international presence.  Described by the New York Times as bringing ‘virtuosity, refinement and youthful exuberance’ to his debut at Merkin Concert Hall, he is much sought after as soloist and chamber musician.  In 2021 Benjamin launched the hugely successful festival - At The World's Edge - in Queenstown, New Zealand. 

Benjamin Baker 

Jeneba Kanneh-Mason

Summer Concert 2023 ~ Chopin Piano Concerto No 2 in F minor Op 21
Jeneba Kanneh-Mason is nineteen years old and holds the Victoria Robey Scholarship to The Royal College of Music, studying piano with Vanessa Latarche.  Jeneba was a Keyboard Category Finalist in BBC Young Musician 2018, winner of the Murs du Son Prize at the Lagny-Sur-Marne International Piano Competition in France 2014, and The Nottingham Young Musician 2013.  She was also winner of the Iris Dyer Piano Prize at The Royal Academy of Music, Junior Academy, where she studied with Patsy Toh.  Jeneba is already captivating audiences with her ‘maturing in performance and interpretation’ and has recently made her BBC Proms debut, being heralded by the press as ‘demonstrating musical insight, technical ability, and an engaging performing persona’.  Other highlights include recitals at Wigmore Hall, Draper’s Hall and the Academy of Saint Martin in the Fields, as well as at the Lenzburgiade, Cheltenham and Lamberhurst Festivals - and undertaking tours of Australia, New Zealand, USA, Antigua and Barbuda with the Kanneh-Masons. 

Jeneba Kanneh-Mason

Thomas Kelly 

Autumn Concert 2022 ~ Grieg Piano Concerto in A minor Op 16
Thomas Kelly is a winner of major international piano competitions, including Pianale International Piano Competition 2017, Kharkiv Assemblies 2018, at Lucca Virtuoso e Bel Canto festival 2018, RCM Joan Chissell Schumann competition 2019, Kendall Taylor Beethoven competition 2019, BPSE Intercollegiate Beethoven competition 2019 and the 4th Theodor Leschetizky competition 2020.  He has performed in a variety of venues including: the Wigmore Hall; the Cadogan Hall; Steinway Hall; Holy Trinity Sloane Square; St James’ Piccadilly; Oxford Town Hall; St Mary’s Perivale; St Paul’s Bedford; the Poole Lighthouse Arts Centre; the Stoller Hall at Paris Conservatoire; the StreingreaberHaus in Bayreuth; the Teatro Del Sale in Florence; North Norfolk Music Festival; and in Vilnius and Palanga. He also also released three singles under the Ulysses Arts label on digital platforms.  Thomas is a C Bechstein Scholar supported by the Kendall-Taylor award. He is a member of the Keyboard Charitable Trust since 2020, and Talent Unlimited since 2021.

Thomas Kelly

Maxim Calver

Summer Concert 2022 ~ Elgar 'Cello Concerto in E minor Op 85

Originally from Gorleston-on-Sea in Norfolk, Maxim studied with Maja Passchier before moving to the Yehudi Menuhin School and then to the 

Royal College of Music .Maxim Calver made his concerto debut in Symphony Hall, Birmingham as part of the Grand Final of BBC Young Musician 2018. In February 2020 he was a finalist in the Strings Category of the Royal Overseas League Competition, where his performance was singled out for the “elegance of his technique, overall sound and natural poeticism” (Strad Magazine, 2020).  Also a passionate chamber musician, Maxim has performed in many of the leading venues across the UK and Europe, and appeared at festivals all across Europe including the International Pau Casals Festival, Klosters Music Festival, and the Lewes Chamber Music Festival.

Maxim Calver

Alim Beisembayev

Autumn Concert 2021 ~ Beethoven: Piano Concerto No 3 in C minor Op 37

Born in Kazakhstan in 1998, Alim had performed with the State Academic Symphony Orchestra of Russia “Evgeny Svetlanov”, Moscow State Symphony and Fort-Worth Symphony, and at Royal Festival Hall and Wigmore Hall.  During his time at the Purcell School he won several awards, including First Prize at the Junior Cliburn International Competition. He was taught by Tessa Nicholson at school and continued his studies with her at the Royal Academy of Music, before taking his master’s degree at the Royal College of Music with Professor Vanessa Latarche.  Alim won First Prize at The Leeds International Piano Competition in September 2021.  His debut release with Warner Classics was released in September 2021; an EP featuring Scarlatti, Ligeti, and Ravel.

Alim Beisembayev

Noriko Ogawa

Summer Concert 2019 ~ Rachmaninov: Piano Concert No 2 in C Minor
Summer Concert 2014 ~ Beethoven: Piano Concerto No 4 in G Major
Summer Concert 2010 ~ Gershwin: Rhapsody in Blue
Summer Concert 2006 ~ Greig: Piano Concerto in A Minor
Autumn Concert 2001 ~ Ravel Piano Concerto for the Left Hand

When Noriko Ogawa was awarded third prize in the 1987 Leeds International Piano Competition, the scholarships she had won and support she has inspired over the years were amply rewarded. Since then, she has achieved considerable renown in Europe, America and, of course, in her native Japan where she is a national celebrity. In 1999 Noriko Ogawa was awarded the Japanese Ministry of Education's Art Prize in recognition of her outstanding contribution to the cultural profile of Japan throughout the world. Noriko Ogawa has gained a devoted following in the UK, such that she now spends over half the year in Europe.  Noriko regularly judges the BBC Young Musician, Munich International Piano Competition, Honens International Piano Competition and the Scottish International Piano Competition. Noriko has been appointed as Chairperson of the Jury for Japan’s prestigious 10th Hamamatsu International Piano Competition in 2018.

Noriko Ogawa

Martin James Bartlett

Autumn Concert 2018 ~ Beethoven: Piano Concerto No 1 in C major Op 15

In May 2014, at the age of 17, Martin James Bartlett was awarded the title of BBC Young Musician. His winning performance of Rachmaninov’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, with conductor Kirill Karabits and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, received overwhelming acclaim from Edinburgh’s Usher Hall audience and from those tuning into the live recording broadcast on BBC4 and BBC Radio 3.  Martin began his piano studies with Emily Jeffrey at the Royal College of Music Junior Department when he was 8 years of age, and then at the Purcell School also some 5 years later. Martin also previously studied the bassoon and the recorder, achieving Grade 8 Distinction on all three instruments by the age of 12.  Martin has given solo recital performances in the Purcell Room, Wigmore Hall, St. John’s Smith Square, Bolivar Hall and Novi Sad Town Hall, as well as the Royal Albert Hall’s Elgar Room, Steinway Hall and Moscow’s Multi-Media Arts Hall. He has also participated in masterclasses with Lang Lang, Stephen Kovacevich, Mikhail Petukhov, Kathryn Stott, Aaron Shorr and Alberto Portugheis. In addition, Martin has organised and performed in numerous charity concerts too, to date raising over thirty thousand pounds for a wide range of deserving causes.

MartinJamesBartlett

Sivitri Grier

Autumn Concert 2018 ~ Vaughan Wiliams: The Lark Ascending
Summer Concert 2017 ~ Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto in E minor Op 64

Savitri Grier read Music at Christ Church, Oxford, graduating with First Class Honours, before studying for her Artist Diploma at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama studying with David Takeno. In 2015 she was selected for representation by Young Classical Artists Trust, and in 2016-2017 made her debut at Carnegie’s Weill Hall and appeared as soloist with the Bournemouth Symphony, English Chamber, Welsh National Opera and Birmingham Sinfonia orchestras. Savitri has also given recitals and participated in festivals and masterclasses across Europe including IMS Prussia Cove, the East Neuk Festival retreat, the Holland International Music Sessions, Musique à Marsac in France, the Sage Gateshead, Newbury Spring and Roman River Festivals. Previous highlights as a soloist have included performances of the Sibelius and Tchaikovsky Concertos with Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra, Mozart with the Barbican Young Orchestra and Mendelssohn with the English Festival Orchestra at the Royal Albert Hall. A committed chamber musician Savitri has collaborated with Susan Tomes, Christoph Richter, Steven Isserlis, Andrew Marriner and Alasdair Beatson, and regularly gives recitals with the Grier Trio (including her sister Indira and father Francis). In 2014 the Trio gave their first performance of Beethoven’s Triple Concerto, and performed Messiaen’s Quartet for the End of Time with Andrew Marriner at King’s College Chapel, Cambridge.

Savitri Grier

Sheku Kanneh-Mason

Autumn Concert 2017 ~ Shostakovich: 'Cello Concerto No 1 in E-flat major Op 107

Sheku Kanneh-Mason is the 2016 BBC Young Musician, a title he won with a stunning performance of the Shostakovich cello concerto at London's Barbican Hall with the BBC Symphony Orchestra.  In April 2017, Sheku returned to the hall for another performance of the concerto, this time with the National Youth Orchestra and Carlos Miguel Prieto, after which The Guardian wrote that 'technically superb and eloquent in his expressivity, he held the capacity audience spellbound with an interpretation of exceptional authority', and The Telegraph acknowledged 'what a remarkable musician he already is, bringing other-wordly tone to the haunting slow movement and displaying mature musicianship in his handling of the extended cadenza'.  Sheku began learning the 'cello at the age of six, and then studied at the junior department of the Royal Academy of Music where he held the ABRSM Junior Scholarship.  In September 2017 he began a full-time degree course at the Royal Academy.  Sheku is passionate about the importance of making classical music accessible to all, and is the first London Music Masters Junior Ambassador.

Sheku Kanneh-Mason 

Mary Armitage

Family Concert 2017 ~ Gershwin: Walking The Dog, Mancini: Pink Panther

Mary began learning the alto saxophone when she was 8-years old and has achieved distinctions in Grade 8 saxophone and violin. She loves all types of music, and enjoys playing in a wide variety of music groups including the Wolsey Orchestra, Lavenham Sinfonia, Suffolk Youth Orchestra, South Suffolk Youth Wind Orchestra, and South Suffolk Youth Jazz Ensemble.  Mary also regularly competes in the Suffolk Music Festival and Colchester Rotary Music Festival - on saxophone, violin and piano.  Recently Mary has developed a great interest in composition, and arranges music for her school string quartet. 

Steven Osborne

Autumn Concert 2016 ~ Brahms: Piano Concerto No 1 in D minor Op 15

Steven Osborne won first prize at the prestigious Clara Haskil International Piano Competition (1991) and the Naumburg International Competition (1997). He studied with Richard Beauchamp at St. Mary’s Music School in Edinburgh, and Renna Kellaway at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester.  Steven was winner of the Royal Philharmonic Society’s 2013 Instrumentalist of the Year, and one of the first artists to be selected as a BBC New Generation Artist.  In March 2014 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.  Steven is one of Britain’s most treasured musicians. Celebrated for his insightful interpretations, his musicality and technique make him sought after as soloist, chamber musician and recitalist.  His residencies at London’s Wigmore Hall, Antwerp’s deSingel, the Bath International Music Festival and currently the CBSO are a testament to the breadth of his interests and the respect that he commands.

www.stevenosborne.co.uk

Pavel Kolesnikov

Summer Concert 2016 ~ Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No 1 in B-flat minor Op 23

Russian Pianist, Pavel Kolesnikov, has studied at Moscow State Conservatory with Sergey Dorensky and at The Royal College of Music in London with Norma Fisher. In Autumn 2015, Pavel was named one of BBC Radio 3’s New Generation Artists for 2014 to 2016. Kolesnikov made his recital debut in the Small Hall of the Moscow Conservatory in 2008 and has since played both as soloist and collaborator throughout Russia, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain, Ukraine and the United Kingdom. Following Pavel’s Wigmore Hall debut in January 2014, The Telegraph gave his recital a rare five-star review and called it 'one of the most memorable of such occasions London has witnessed in a while'. Since becoming Prize Laureate of the Honens Prize for Piano in 2012, Kolesnikov has been winning hearts around the world. 

www.pavelkolesnikov.com

Imogen Cooper

Autumn Concert 2015 ~ Schumann: Piano Concerto

Imogen Cooper has established a reputation as one of the finest interpreters of the classical repertoire and is recognised worldwide as a pianist of virtuosity and poetic poise.  She has a widespread international career and has appeared with the New York Philharmonic, Vienna Philharmonic, Royal Concertgebouw, Leipzig Gewandhaus, Budapest Festival and NHK Symphony Orchestras. She has also undertaken tours with the Camerata Salzburg, Australian and Orpheus Chamber Orchestras. Imogen has played with all the major British orchestras and has particularly close relationships with the Royal Northern Sinfonia and Britten Sinfonia. Her recital appearances have included New York, Tokyo, Paris, Vienna, Prague, London and the Schubertiade in Schwarzenberg.  As well as receiving a CBE and an award from the Royal Philharmonic Society, Imogen has an Honorary Membership of the Royal Academy of Music and is a Doctor of Music at Exeter University.

www.imogen-cooper.com

Autumn Concert 2015 ~ Readings from Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet
Family Concert 2010 ~ Prokofiev: Narrator of Peter and the Wolf

Alexander was born in Amsterdam and is a graduate from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) where some of his roles included Lord Fancourt Babberly (Charlie’s Aunt); Roy Cohn (Angels in America); and Brazen (The Recruiting Officer).  Theatre credits include Hanging Around with the well renowned theatre company KneeHigh (National Theatre), and Present Tence with the theatre company Nabokov (Trafalgar Studios).  Alexander has also appeared in the West End playing Miles in Eligies (Fortune theatre) and in the world premiere of a new play by Don Delillo Valperiso (Old Red Lion). Television and film appearances include Transcended, Dreams of a Life, A London Affair, Pete, Snow Club, and The One Inside.

Zimmy Ryan

Autumn Concert 2015 ~ Readings from Shakespear's Romeo & Juliet

Zimmy trained at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA).  Theatre appearances include Henry V, A Dolls House, The Seagull, Arcadia, Phaedra's Love, Titus Andronicus, Breathing Corpses, Dr Faustus, All's Well That Ends Well, Pentecost, The Love of the Nightingale, The Recruiting Officer, and Charley's Aunt.

Summer Concert 2015 ~ Rózsa: Variations on Hungarian Peasant Song, Saint-Saëns: Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso
Summer Concert 2012 ~ Vaughan Williams: The Lark Ascending
Autumn Concert 2009 ~ Sibelius: Violin Concerto

Jennifer Pike is the youngest-ever winner of the prestigious BBC Young Musician of the Year competition and the youngest major prizewinner in the Menuhin International Violin Competition.  Jennifer began learning the violin at the age of five, having shown exceptional talent from a very early age.  She was awarded the coveted BBC prize at the age of only twelve, after her inspired performance of Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto with the BBC Symphony Orchestra in 2002.  Jennifer has become an International Soloist, renowned for her 'dazzling interpretive flair and exemplary technique' (Classic FM), performing with major orchestras and giving recitals around the world.

www.jenniferpike.com

Laura van der Heijden 

Autumn Concert 2014 ~ Elgar 'Cello Concerto in E minor Op 85

At the age of 15, cellist Laura van der Heijden was awarded the title of BBC Young Musician 2012.  Born in England as the youngest daughter of a Dutch father and a Swiss mother, Laura’s musical studies started on recorder at the age of four and she had grade 8 distinctions on both cello and piano by the age of ten.  In 2005 Laura joined the Junior Department of the Royal College of Music, where she enjoys playing music with her peers. Since 2008 Laura has been a student of the renowned British-Russian cellist Leonid Gorokhov. In 2010 she won Erster Preis mit Auszeichnung and a special prize in the final of the Swiss National Youth Music Competition.  She was also the 2011 winner of the Marjorie Humby competition at the Royal College of Music, 2011 Beckenham Musician of the Year, 2012 Woking Young Musician of the Year, and was awarded the 2012 Director's Prize at RCM Junior Department.   

www.lauravanderheijden.org

Grundisburgh Primary School Choir 

Family Concert 2014 ~ Medley of Magic Songs  

Grundisbrugh Primary is a small school with a rich variety of musical activities.  Children are able to joing a choir at any age, and there is an orchestra for the more accomplished instrumentalists.  There are also handbells, African drums, and musical instrument lessons for strings, brass, woodwind, and piano.  The children enjoy opportunities to perform both in school and in concerts in the local area.  The choir has pupils aged 7 to 11 and is conducted by John Richards.

Chase Lane Primary School Blues Band 

Family Concert 2014 ~ Raiders March (from Indiana Jones) and Themes from Pirates of the Caribbean  

Chase Lane Nursery and Primary School in Dovercourt is renowned locally as being a school of real opportunity for all its pupils  Music forms an important part of the curriculum, delivered through a full-time specialist music teacher. Their highly regarded choir and band have achieved great success locally and nationally, and have gained a formidable reputation for presenting high quality, well rehearsed, entertaining music.  The Chase Lane Blues Band is an extension group featuring 11 of the school's most gifted and talented musicians, who practice weekly during the school day as well as attending pre-school early morning rehearsals.

Harry Hilarious 

Family Concert 2014 ~ Magician

Harry Hilarious (aka Harry Smith) is an up-and-coming young magician from Attleborough in Norfolk.  At only 10-years old he has already appeared on CBBC, and performed in London's Covent Garden and the Lollibop Festival at The Olympic Park.  Harry began learning magic tricks to entertain his younger brother, Thomas, who is one of his greatest fans together with his Mum and Dad, Carol and Andy. 

Harry Hilarious Video Interview

Benjamin Grosvenor 

Autumn Concert 2013 ~ Saint-Saëns Piano Concerto No 2 in G Minor Op 22  

Benjamin first came to prominence as the outstanding winner of the Keyboard Final of the 2004 BBC Young Musician Competition at the age of eleven. Since then, he has become an internationally regarded pianist performing with orchestras including the London Philharmonic, RAI Torino, New York Philharmonic, Philharmonia, Tokyo Symphony, and in venues such as the Royal Festival Hall, Barbican Centre, Singapore’s Victoria Hall, The Frick Collection and Carnegie Hall (at the age of thirteen). Benjamin has worked with numerous esteemed conductors including Vladimir Ashkenazy, Jiří Bělohlávek, Semyon Bychkov and Vladimir Jurowski.  During his brief, but sensational career to date, Benjamin has received Gramophone’s ‘Young Artist of the Year and ‘Instrumental Award’, a Classic Brits ‘Critics’ Award’, UK ‘Critics’ Circle Award’ for Exceptional Young Talent and a Diapason d’Or ‘Jeune Talent’ Award. 

www.benjamingrosvenor.co.uk

Chloë Hanslip 

Summer Concert 2013 ~ Tchaikovsky: Violin Concerto 

At age 24, Chloë Hanslip has already established herself as an artist of distinction on the international stage. Chloë made her BBC Proms debut in 2002, her US concerto debut in 2003, and has performed in major venues in the UK and Europe as well as Carnegie Hall, Metropolitan Arts Space in Tokyo and the Seoul Arts Centre.  Chamber Music has become an integral part of Chloë`s life.  Chloë studied for ten years with the Russian pedagogue Zakhar Bron. She has also worked with Ida Haendel, Salvatore Accardo, and Gerhard Schulz.  In addition to her usual repertoire - including violin concertos by Britten, Prokofiev, Beethoven, Korngold, Shostakovich, Barber, Bernstein, Mendelssohn, Bruch, Elgar Tchaikovsky, Walton and Sibelius - Chloë has been championing contemporary works by Adams, Glass, Corigliano, Nyman and Brett Dean.

www.chloehanslip.com

Finn Collinson

Family Concert 2013 ~ Gordon Jacob: Suite for Recorder and String Orchestra

Finn was born in 1998 and started playing the recorder at the age of five. He now studies with Evelyn Nallen in Cambridge and also plays ‘cello, piano and mandolin. Finn is a music scholar at Ipswich School and through their annual Festival of Music he has taken part in a masterclass with Julian Lloyd Webber and also performed alongside Dame Emma Kirkby and Richard Edgar Wilson. As an Aldeburgh Young Musician, Finn has participated in many exciting musical projects including performing at the Olympic Torch event in Ipswich and working with one of his favourite folk bands, Bellowhead. In May 2013, he performed with Lesley Garrett at Cadogan Hall in a special fundraising concert for Great Ormond Street Hospital.  Finn is grateful for the support he receives from a Leverhulme Bursary and the Walter Bergmann Fund.

www.ipswichschoolfestival.org.uk
www.aldeburgh.co.uk
www.srp.org.uk/water-bergmann-fund

St Pancras School Choir

Family Concert 2013 ~ African Songs
Family Concert 2012 ~ African Songs

Singing is a central part of the educational experience of all children at St Pancras Catholic Primary School, Ipswich. The Sing-Up Platinum Award-winning choir is made up of children aged 7-11 years who meet weekly to rehearse a varied repertoire of world music. The Choir performs widely throughout the year at venues in Ipswich and beyond. 

Dame Felicity Lott

Autumn Concert 2012 ~ Richard Strauss Songs

Dame Felicity Lott was born in Cheltenham and learned piano, violin and singing from an early age, before studying at the Conservatoire de Grenoble, then winning a scholarship to the Royal Academy of Music.  Dame Felicity is well known as a concert artist, working with all the great conductors and orchestras.  Felicity has received many honorary doctorates, including those from the Universities of Oxford, London, Leicester, Sussex, the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama Glasgow and the Sorbonne in Paris. By the French Government she was awarded the titles Officier dans l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 1990 and Chevalier dans la Legion d'Honneur in 2001. In 1990 Felicity was made a CBE. In 1996 she was created a Dame Commander of the British Empire. In 2003 Felicity was awarded the title of Bayerische Kammersängerin and in 2010 she was awarded the Wigmore Hall Medal.

www.felicitylott.de

Family Concert 2012 ~ Keiko Abe: Michi

Tom was born in Ipswich in 1981 and works locally as a Freelance Musician – teaching, conducting and performing.  He started learning percussion more than 20-years ago, playing the drum kit at primary school.  Tom studied the marimba while at university, and says the biggest challenge was developing the special technique of holding two sticks in each hand.

Family Concert 2012 ~ Nie Er: Dance of the Golden Snake

The ACCE Drumming Ensemble is one of many groups belonging to the Anglo-Chinese Cultural Exchange. The ACCE is a multi-service regional charity established to promote Chinese music and traditional Chinese culture here in Ipswich. Their chairperson, Lydia Tse, is also Headteacher of the Chinese Community School. Lydia leads the drumming ensemble, having had years of experience with the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra, and she shares her experience with children from all backgrounds, aged from 4 to 14. The group performed at the sold-out ACCE Chinese New Year Festival 2012 at the DanceEast studios in Ipswich.

ACCE on Facebook

Autumn Concert 2011 ~ Dvorak: 'Cello Concerto

Natalie’s exceptional musicality has earned her a number of prestigious prizes since 1994 when she won the BBC’s Young Musician of the Year was the first ever British winner of the Eurovision Competition for Young Musicians.  She was awarded the Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother Scholarship by the Royal College of Music before completing her studies with Heinrich Schiff in Vienna.  Natalie made her concerto debut at the BBC Proms in 1997 .  She is also in great demand as a recitalist, and is an avid chamber musician; passionate about combining traditional repertoire with more experimental pieces.  Natalie is an extremely committed mentor of young talent and has worked extensively around the world with young musicians including giving frequent master-classes and leading educational workshops.

www.myspace.com/natalieclein

Summer Concert 2011 ~ Mozart: Clarinet Concerto
Autumn Concert 1995 ~ Weber: Clarinet Concerto No 2
Autumn Concert 1992 ~ Mozart: Clarinet Concerto in A Major

Emma is one of the few clarinettists to have established an international career as a soloist. Emma has performed across Europe, the USA and the Far East, as well as in Africa and Australia in venues such as the Kennedy Center, the Concertgebouw, the Louvre and the Barbican. In Britain she has achieved particular popularity. Emma Johnson has appeared with many leading orchestras including the London Symphony, Philharmonia, Hallé, Tokyo Philharmonic, Salzburg Camerata and Netherlands Philharmonic in repertoire which includes over forty different concertos. Emma is also in demand as a recitalist and chamber musician. She has collaborated with quartets such as the Takacs, Brodsky and Contempo and she is director of her own ensemble, Emma Johnson and Friends, a versatile wind and string group.

http://www.emmajohnson.co.uk/

Family Concert 2011 ~ Saint Seans: Danse Macabre

Andrew started playing the violin at the age of five following the Suzuki Method.  From Purley and an Aldeburgh Young Musician, Andrew has played with the National Children’s Orchestra and the Barbican Youth Orchestra with Sir Colin Davis.  He is also learning the piano and is a member of Trinity Boys Choir.  Andrew was the winner of the Trinity Musician of the Year Competition 2010.

Autumn Concert 2010 ~ Beethoven: Violin Concerto

Nicola Benedetti began violin lessons at the age of five, and has studied at the Yehudi Menuhin School, in London, and in Vienna.  She was winner of the BBC Young Musician of the Year competition in 2004, and the Classical BRIT Award for Young British Classic Performer in 2008.  Nicola has captivated audiences and critics alike with her ability to communicate and enthrall audiences with dynamic and energy-filled performances, and is now an exclusive Universal/Deutsche Grammophon artist.  As well as taking part in many prestigious events, Nicola has devoted herself to humanitarian and educational causes, visiting schools to encourage pupils of all ages to enjoy classical music. Nicola is also a UNICEF Celebrity Supporter.

www.nicolabenedetti.co.uk

Family Concert 2010 ~ Massanet: Meditation, Monte: Czarda

Paul is 12-years old, lives in Ipswich, and attends Northgate High School.  He being violin lessons at the age of 5 and, from the age of 7, has also been learning jazz and classical piano.  Paul competes regularly in the Suffolk Festival of Music and Dance and is the current String Champion.  As well as being a member of the Suffolk Youth Orchestra, Paul leads his school string quartet, and has been the Soloist with the Scarborough Spa Pavilion Orchestra.  He played violin in the modernoperation, Tarantula In Petrol Blue, at Snape Maltings, which involved learning mandolin and performing with professional musicians.  Since 2008 Paul has been a member of Aldeburgh Young Musicians.  Paul has recently taken up the oboe, and playing in the percussion section of the Wolsey Orchestra.

www.suffolk-festival.org.uk

www.aldeburgh.co.uk/aym

Sophie Cashell

Summer Concert 2009 ~ Shostakovich: Piano Concerto No 2

Sophie Cashell, from Balbriggan in Ireland, started playing the violin when she was just four years old but turned her attentions to the piano when she was ten or eleven.  Sophie was thrust into the spotlight in late 2007 when she was named the winner of BBC Two's Classical Star competition.  Sophie's performance of Shostakovich's second piano concerto swayed the judging in her favour, and with the victory came the opportunity to release an album with Universal Classics and Jazz.  Sophie's ultimate ambition is to have a performance career with solo and chamber music.

www.sophiecashell.com

Autumn Concert 2008 ~ Weber: Clarinet Concerto No 1

Michael Collins' virtuosity and sensitive musicianship have made him one of today's most sought after soloists. At 16 he won the woodwind prize in the first BBC Young Musician of the Year Competition, and at 22 made his US début at Carnegie Hall, New York. Since then he has performed as a soloist with many of the world's major orchestras, with conductors such as Rattle, Dutoit, Sinopoli, Salonen, Slatkin, Marriner, Pinnock and Otaka.  Michael is also in demand as a chamber musician, regularly performing with the Belcea Quartet, Martha Argerich, Stephen Hough, Mikhail Pletnev, Lars Vogt, Joshua Bell, Steven Isserlis and Isabelle van Keulen. In 1988 he founded London Winds who have since appeared regularly throughout the UK and at many international festivals. London Winds premièred Robin Holloway's Octet at the 2001 Cheltenham Festival.

www.michael-collins.co.uk/

Summer Concert 2008 ~ Tchaikovsky: Variations on a Rococo Theme 

Summer Concert 2005 ~ Elgar: Cello Concerto No 1

Widely regarded as one of the most creative musicians of his generation, Julian Lloyd Webber has collaborated with an extraordinary array of musicians from Yehudi Menuhin, Lorin Maazel, Neville Marriner and Georg Solti to Stephane Grappelli, Elton John and Cleo Laine. Julian has given more than fifty works their premiere recordings and has inspired new compositions for cello from composers as diverse as Malcolm Arnold and Joaquin Rodrigo to James MacMillan and Philip Glass. Recent concert performances have included three further works composed for Julian - Michael Nyman's Double Concerto for Cello and Saxophone on BBC Television, Gavin Bryars' Concerto in Suntory Hall, Tokyo and Philip Glass's Concerto at the Beijing International Festival. Julian's recording of the Glass concerto with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic conducted by Gerard Schwarz was released on the Orange Mountain label in September 2004.

www.julianlloydwebber.com/

Family Concert 2008 ~ Darious Milhaud: Concerto for Percussion & Small Orchestra

Sam Wilson’s interest in percussion began at the age of three when he discovered that hitting his Parents’ pots and pans was more fun than putting them on his head. Luckily for his family, he did not take this interest any further until the age of ten, when he was asked to join his school orchestra to play woodblock. The joy of making music with others and the realisation that he could now hit anything he wanted to inspired a love for percussion.   Now sixteen-years old and a pupil at Ipswich School, Sam studies percussion with Joby Burgess at Junior Trinity College of Music in London, where he also learns piano and composition. Sam has performed at the Royal Opera House; the Cambridge Corn Exchange; the Royal College of Music; and – on numerous occasions - at Snape Maltings. Overseas engagements include concerts in Germany, Italy, Spain, France and Switzerland. He is a member of both the Junior Trinity and Suffolk Youth Orchestras, and also enjoys playing drums in jazz and rock bands. 

Autumn Concert 2007 ~ Bruch: Violin Concerto

Born in 1976, Matthew Trusler graduated from Philadelphia’s Curtis Institute of Music in 1998, soon after which The Times exclaimed “we might just have an authentic, though British, virtuoso”.  Matthew has performed with most of the UK’s major orchestras. In 1999 he gave a highly successful tour with Australian orchestras. In the same year he made his US début, playing several concerts with the Minnesota Orchestra and being subsequently invited to perform with the orchestra during its European tour.  Matthew Trusler is also an accomplished recitalist. He made his Wigmore Hall début in 1998, giving a further appearance there in the following year, as part of the BBC’s New Generations series, and in 2003 with pianist Noriko Ogawa. An avid chamber musician, Matthew has teamed up with Wayne Marshall – as well as performing the core classical repertoire the duo have recorded a CD on Trusler’s own label, of short pieces by composers directly influenced by jazz.

www.matthewtrusler.com/

Summer Concert 2007 ~ Rodrigo: Concierto de Aranjuéz

Born in Beijing, Xuefei Yang began playing the guitar at the age of 7, taking formal tuition at 10 from Chen Zhi.  Quickly gaining recognition, her school years were filled with concerts in China, Hong Kong, Macau, Spain and Australia, including tours of Taiwan, Japan and Portugal. The composer Rodrigo attended her debut concert in Madrid, when she was 14.  Since 2000, she has been in England. Having studied with Michael Lewin, John Mills and Timothy Walker at the Royal Academy of Music, Xuefei Yang graduated with distinction receiving a Recital Diploma. Concerts in England include her superb debut solo recital at The Wigmore Hall.

www.xuefeiyang.com/

Autumn Concert 2006 ~ Tchaikovsky Symphony No 6 - Pathétique

Born in 1976 in Pentrebychan, North Wales, Llŷr Williams took a first class alpha degree in music at Queen’s College, Oxford followed by a postgraduate scholarship at the Royal Academy of Music where he won every prize and award.  His extraordinary performance at Young Concert Artists Trust auditions in 2002 led to his recital debut at the Edinburgh Festival that same year and he has returned each year since. In 2004 Llŷr received a Borletti-Buitoni Trust Award and in 2005 the MIDEM Classique ‘Outstanding Young Artist Award in partnership with the International Artist Managers’ Association’.

www.bbc.co.uk/wales/northeast/guides/halloffame/showbiz/llyr_williams.shtml

Autumn Concert 2005 ~ Brahms: Violin Concerto

Born in Russia in 1985 Alina Ibragimova was described by the Salzburger Nachrichten as ‘an amazing talent’ following her performance of Mozart Violin Concerto No 2 with the Kremerata Baltica at the Salzburg Mozarteum, directed from the violin.  Alina's engagements have included the RSO Saarbrücken, Norrköping Symphony, Royal Flanders Philharmonic, Trondheim Symphony, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, English Chamber Orchestra, and a solo recital at the Musée du Louvre in Paris. She is a regular guest at chamber music festivals including Lockenhaus Kammermusikfest, Festival de Paques de Deauville, and Spannungen: Musik im Kraftwerk Heimbach. Her repertoire additionally includes concertos by Mendelssohn, Brahms, Bruch, Tchaikovsky, Sibelius, Shostakovich and Britten.

www.alinaibragimova.com/

Autumn Concert 2004 ~ Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No 1, Op 23

In 1989 Ian Fountain became the youngest winner of the Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Masters Competition in Tel Aviv at the age of 19. He began playing the piano at the age of five and he was a chorister at New College, Oxford. He continued his studies at Winchester College and at the Royal Northern College of Music, working with Robert Bottone and Sulamita Aronovsky. Since that time Ian Fountain has performed extensively throughout Europe, the USA, the Middle East and the UK.  As a recitalist Ian Fountain has appeared in major centres such as New York, Paris, Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, Tel Aviv, Chicago and London. As a chamber music player Ian Fountain enjoys many longstanding collaborations with musicians such as Ulf Hoelscher, David Geringas and the Mandelring and Emperor Quartets.   Since 2001 Ian Fountain has been a piano professor at the Royal Academy of Music in London.

www.connaughtartists.com/artistdetail.asp?ID=58

Summer Concert 2004 ~ Strauss: Mein Herr Marquis, Verdi: Caro nome ehe il mio cor, and Donizetti: O luce di quest' anima

Julie Roberts began her singing career in Ipswich and was, for many years, principal soloist with the Ipswich Gilbert and Sullivan Society.  As well as continuing to perform a varied oratorio repertoire, a period at Morley College, London, has lead to a more recent focus of opera repertory.  Julie has studied with Annette Thompson at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, and taken master classes with Jonathan Hinden, Robin Bowman and Anthony Legge.  Most recently, she has completed a performance course with English National Opera's Bayliss programme (The Knack).  Julie is currently studying with Mary King (Artistic Director of the Knack). 

Summer Concert 2004 ~ Vaughan Williams The Lark Ascending

Isobel Reaville began playing the violin at the age of 10, playing in local orchestras and leading the Suffolk County Youth Orchestra.  She has also been Leader of the Trianon Music Group in Ipswich and the Britten-Pears Orchestra at Snape Maltings.  Having studied Modern Languages at Kent University, Isobel undertook Postgraduate studies at Trinity College of Music in London, gaining a Diploma in Performance, before pursuing a career as an orchestral voilinst.  Isobel now combines a teaching career with orchestral playing, and performs regularly with her string quartet, The Sole Bay Strings.

Grace Francis

Summer Concert 2003 ~ Rachmaninov Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini

Grace Francis attended the Yehudi Menuhin School before studying with Irina Zaritskaya at the Royal College of Music, where she won the Chappell Gold Medal, the highest accolade for any pianist. Since then her career has taken her across Britain, playing to critical acclaim in the Purcell Room, the Wigmore Hall, St Martin-in-the- Fields, and the Barbican, as well as making broadcasts for BBC, Radio 3. Recent engagements included a performance of Brahms 2nd Piano Concerto, and Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsody with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. Currently Grace is recording a recital of works by Chopin, Novak and John Field for Radio 3.

Summer Concert 2003 ~ Mendelssohn Violin Concerto

A former student of Ipswich High School, Kerenza graduated in 2002 from the Royal Academy of Music. She studied with Howard Davis and was awarded the D M Lloyd Prize and the Marjorie (Bunty) Llempfert Prize for Violin Playing. She led the Symphony Orchestra and Concert Orchestras at the Academy, as well as the Britten-Pears Orchestra.  Kerenza's string quartet, the Pavão Quartet, has toured in Oman, Portugal and France and represented the Academy at an International Chamber Music Festival in Latvia. Kerenza works with many professional ensembles, including the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, The Philharmonia, and the London Soloists Chamber Orchestra. She played in the Queen’s Jubilee Pop Concert at Buckingham Palace on 3 June 2002 and enjoyed working with artists such as Sir Elton John, Sir Paul McCartney, Dame Shirly Bassie, Rod Stewart, Bryan Adams, and Annie Lennox.  Kerenza performed on the 'Maurin' Stradivarius violin on generous loan from the Royal Academy of Music, with a Sartory bow kindly loaned to her by Frederick Phelps Limited. 

www.pavaoquartet.com/

Autumn Concert 2002 ~ Beethoven Emperor Concerto No 5
CENTENARY CONCERT

John Lill's rare talent emerged at an early age - he gave his first piano recital at the age of nine. At eighteen he performed Rachmaninov's Third Piano Concerto and made his much-acclaimed London debut playing Beethoven's Emperor Piano Concerto at the Royal Festival Hall.  His success was reflected in major prizes and awards, and in 1970 he won the most coveted of these, the Moscow International Tchaikovsky Competition at the Grand Hall of the Moscow Conservatory.  International demand has taken John Lill to over forty countries, both as a recitalist and as a soloist with the majority of the world's leading orchestras.  John Lill has an extensive repertoire and is recognized in particular as a leading interpreter of Beethoven. He is a regular visitor to the BBC Proms, and frequently works with the City of Birmingham Symphony, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, Royal Scottish National and the major London orchestras.  John Lill lives in London and was awarded the OBE for his services to music in 1978.

www.signumrecords.com/artists/john_lill/index.htm

Summer Concert 2002 ~ Walton Viola Concerto

Lawrence Power studied at the Julliard School of Music in New York under Mark Knight and Karen Tuttle.  His prizes include: First Prize, William Primrose International Viola Competition; Third Prize, Maurice Vieux International Viola Competition; Winner, Trever Snoad Viola Award/Bernard Shore Viola Competition; and Silver Medal, Shell/LSO Scholarship Competition.  Lawrence's past performances include recitals and concertos in London, New York, Toronto and Paris.  He has appeared as soloist with many major orchestras including the London Symphony and Philharmonia.  Lawrence has also given recitals at venues such as the Wigmore Hall and South Bank Centre.  He isviolist with the Nash Ensemble, and has joined the BBC Radio 3's New Generation Artists Scheme.

www.hyperion-records.co.uk/artist_page.asp?name=power

Summer Concert 2001 ~ Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No 3

Born in Lincolnshire, Ashley Wass began to play the piano at the age of five. He studied at Chetham’s School of Music in Manchester and in 1995 was awarded a scholarship to the Royal Academy of Music.  Ashley is the first British pianist to achieve the distinction of First Prize in the coveted World Piano Competition in London.  In 1995 he became the first pianist to win First Prize in the Royal Over-Seas League Music Competition for thirteen years and shortly thereafter made his debut at Wigmore Hall. Further competition successes include 5th Prize in the 2000 Leeds International Piano Competition.

www.ashleywass.com/

Autumn Concert 2000 ~ Bruch Violin Concerto No 1

Summer Concert 2000 ~ Dvorak Cello Concerto

Raphael Wallfisch was born into a family of professional musicians; his mother being a cellist and his father a pianist.  Even so, he was eight before he discovered that the cello was his instrument.  However, from the age of 14, it became apparent that the cello was to be his life's work.  At the age of 24, Raphael won the Gaspar Cassado International Cello Competition in Florence. Since then he has continually played world-wide. He regularly appears in the United States and Canada, as well as in Australia and all the principal countries of Europe. He is a professor at the Winterthur Konservatorium, Switzerland and also teaches at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London.

www.raphaelwallfisch.com/

Autumn Concert 1999 ~ Strauss: Four Last Songs

Summer Concert 1999 ~ Gershwin: Rhapsody In Blue

Anthony Goldstone is recognised as one of Britain's most respected pianists.  Born in Liverpool, Anthony studied at the Royal Manchester College of Music (which later honoured him with a Fellowship) as well as in London.  He was won international prizes in Munich and Vienna, and a Gulbenkian Fellowship launched him on a busy schedule of recitals and concertos, of which he play eighty.  Complementary to the mainstream repertoire is Anthony's avid interest in exploring intriguing musical byways, in regard to not only unknown works by acknowledged masters, but also to unjustly neglected nineteenth-century composers. 

www.divine-art.com/AS/goldstone.htm

Autumn Concert 1998 ~ Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No 2

Summer Concert 1998 ~ Bruch: Scottish Fantasy for Violin and Orchestra

Family Concert 1998 ~ Weber: Andante & Hungarion Rondo, Godfrey: Lucy Long

Autumn Concert 1997 ~ Beethoven Piano Concerto No 4

Summer Concert 1997 ~ Mozart Violin Concerto No 5

Autumn Concert 1996 ~ Shostakovich: Piano Concerto No 2

Summer Concert 1996 ~ Tchaikovsky: Rococo Variations, Bruch: Kol Nidrei
Summer Concert 1993 ~ Elgar: Cello Concerto

Robert Cohen is firmly established as one of the world's leading cellists, with an international career which has taken him on several major tours of the USA, Europe, Scandinavia, Australia and New Zealand, performing with conductors such as Abbado, Dorati, Jansons, Marriner, Masu, Muti, Rattle and Sinopoli.  Born in London, Robert began playing the cello at the age of 5, and for five consecutive years from the age of 8 he won the Suggia Prize for potential soloists under 21; making his London debut at the Royal Festival Hall at the age of 12.  Robert appears regularly with all the major British orchestras.

www.robertcohen.info/

Summer Concert 1995 ~ Schumann: Piano Concerto No 1

Peter Frankl began his career in the late fifties, when he won first prize in several international competitions. He made his London debut in 1962 and his New York debut with the Cleveland Orchestra under George Szell in 1967. Since that time he has performed with the world's finest orchestras including the Berlin Philharmonic, Concertgebouw, Israel Philharmonic, Vienna Symphony, Leipzig Gewandhaus, all the London orchestras, and the major American orchestras. He has collaborated with such eminent conductors as Abbado, Boulez, Colin Davis,Maazel, Mazur, Muti, Salonen, Rozhdestvensky, Sauderling, and Solti.

Tasmin Little

Autumn Concert 1994 ~ Brahms: Violin Concerto in D Major

Tasmin Little is now one of the world's leading violinists. She studied at the Yehudi Menuhin School, the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, where she won the Gold Medal in 1986, and in Canada with Lorand Fenyves. Tasmin has played with many of the greatest orchestras and conductors and has given recitals throughout the world. She has given eleven performances at the Proms in the Royal Albert Hall, most notably at the Last Night in 1995 which was televised worldwide. In 2000 she gave performances of the Ligeti concerto with Sir Simon Rattle in London and Vienna and teamed up with Rattle once again for the Brahms concerto at the Aix-en-Provence Festival. Among her world premieres of contemporary works are concertos by Dominic Muldowney, Robert Saxton, Paul Barker and David Earl.

www.tasminlittle.org.uk/

Summer Concert 1994 ~ Beethoven: Piano Concerto No 5 (The Emporer)

Maxim Philippov was born in Moscow in 1972 and, in 1984, was the winner of the All-Russian Competition for Young Pianisits.  After completing Central Music School he entered the Moscow State Conservatoire in 1990 and, in the same year, received an award at the National Power Competition in London.  He gained First Prize in 1991 at the Oporto International Competition (Portugal), was awarded Second Prize at the Arthur Rubinstein Piano Master Competition (Tel Aviv) in 1992, and in 1993 he received three major prizes: at the Moscow International Piano Competition, the Harveys Leeds Pianoforte Competition, and the Rachmaninov Prize, awarded by the composer's grandson. 

Autumn Concert 1993 ~ Hummel: Trumpet Concerto

Ray Simmons studied at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, where he became Professor of Trumpet.  He has been the principal trumpeter of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra since 1977, having held positions previously in Birmingham, Bournemouth and the Royal Opera House.  Ray's debut with the RPO was in 1983 with Sir Yehudi Menhuin conducting a performance of Haydn's Trumpet Concerto.

Summer Concert 1992 ~ Beethoven: Violin Concerto in D Major

Born in Japan, Mayumi Fujikawa began studying the violin with her Father, then at the Toho Conservatory, Tokyo.  She continued her studies in Belgium and Nice (where she spent three Summers as a pupil of Leonid Kogan).  In May 1970 she won the Grand Prix Henri Vieuxtempts in Belgium with unanimity of the jury.  She caused a sensation in Moscow the next month at the International Tchaikovsky Competition and was engaged for an extensive tour of the Soviet Union. Soon after, in 1971, she made an enormously successful American début with the Philadelphia Orchestra and Ormandy.  They were so impressed that she was immediately re-engaged for several more concerts with this Orchestra, and since then has returned to America every season playing with many of the major orchestras.  Her active career includes regular appearances in London, with all four orchestras, and in other major cities in Europe such as Vienna, Salzburg, Hamburg, Munich, Berlin, Brussels and Amsterdam.

Summer 1991 ~ Beethoven: Piano Concerto No 1

Following her studies at the Yehudi Menuhin School, the Lancashire born Kathryn Stott graduated to the Royal College of Music.  Her international career was launched after winning fifth prize in the Leeds International Piano Competition in 1978.  Since then, she has performed with the major Great British Orchestras alongside their foreign counterparts in the Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, France and Hong Kong. Her schedule also includes extensive recital and chamber music performances at venues such as the Konzerthaus, Vienna, the Suntory Hall, Tokyo and at the Wigmore Hall, London, where she gave a series of concerts in December 1998.  Kathryn Stott works extensively as a chamber musician and, as well as her regular performances with Yo-Yo Ma, she regularly appears with Michael Collins and with the Lindsay, Chilingirian, Skampa and Yggdrasil String Quartets. 

www.kathrynstott.com/