I started playing the violin age 7, when a violinist visited my school and demonstrated how the instrument sounds and gave trial lessons, and I decided there and then that I just had to play the violin! I remember begging my parents for weeks, who were not from musical backgrounds, to let me play the violin, and eventually they gave in. As a child I would play the violin and piano for ages, finding an emotional outlet and a sense of satisfaction from playing and practicing passages until I got them right. I still feel that way and know there is a special safe haven that I can go to to escape and experience wherever the music takes me.
I started playing the violin age 7, when a violinist visited my school and demonstrated how the instrument sounds and gave trial lessons, and I decided there and then that I just had to play the violin! I remember begging my parents for weeks, who were not from musical backgrounds, to let me play the violin, and eventually they gave in. As a child I would play the violin and piano for ages, finding an emotional outlet and a sense of satisfaction from playing and practicing passages until I got them right. I still feel that way and know there is a special safe haven that I can go to to escape and experience wherever the music takes me.
As a teenager I was a member of the National Youth Chamber Orchestra and the Kent County Youth Orchestra and during my last three years at school I attended the Junior Guildhall School of Music and Drama every Saturday. There, I discovered the possibility of taking music further and played in high quality chamber and symphony orchestras and chamber ensembles every week. It accelerated my passion and expertise on the violin, leading me to choose to study Music at University, and I won a Music Scholarship to Durham University.
Studying Music in an academic capacity in Durham was really interesting, as I also love researching and writing about music in relation to social and political moments in history. All of my extra-curricular was performing: I led the University Symphony and Chamber orchestras and Classical Ensemble as well as pit orchestras in performances such as Mozart’s
The Magic Flute and
Singin’ In The Rain. Some of the highlights of my time at Durham were performing Bach’s
Double Violin Concerto as well as Vivaldi’s
Concerto Grosso as one of the soloists in Durham Cathedral. After graduating, I studied a Masters in Performance at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, and there I played with the Symphony Orchestra at the Barbican, in side-by-side workshops with members of the London Symphony Orchestra, in opera projects, and in chamber ensembles.
Outside of Guildhall, I performed with The English Chamber Orchestra, Fidelio Orchestra and Arch Sinfonia.
This past year I have been teaching piano and violin in four schools and a music hub to children from ages 4 to 18, whilst freelancing as a performer in London and Europe. Some recent highlights include performing in Festival Orchestras in Switzerland and Austria, working with members of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra, and performing Mahler’s 7th Symphony with the Fidelio Orchestra in London. I also perform regularly and play in competitions with The Concord Quartet, a piano quartet I set up with fellow Guildhall students.
Outside of my musical interests, I love nature and frequently go hiking and exploring in the outdoors, and whenever I can I love to travel and experience new places, foods, and cultures.
EDUCATION
Guildhall School of Music & Drama
London, UK
Durham University
Durham, UK
QUICKFIRE QUESTIONS
What is your favourite piece of music and why do you love it?
I oddly enough am going to choose not a violin piece, but I just love this so much: Shostakovich’s
Piano Concerto No. 2, the 2nd movement in particular. It makes me feel such despair and bleakness, with small moments that hold glimmers of hope, only to be darkened again. I love to play music like this where I can experience emotions that I don’t live on a day to day basis; it’s almost like acting a part, getting into the mindset of the composer and their situation and their intentions and really committing to it in such a dark way in this piece – thrilling! I played the orchestra part when I was studying in Durham and felt completely moved by it.
What do you do with your time when you’re not playing music?
I really love nature and being in the countryside. Going for a hike or an adventure outdoors fulfils me! I also really enjoy swimming and reading – I am especially keen on Maeve Binchey and Agatha Christie. You also can’t beat catching up with friends and family.
