Professional Development Programme Alumnis

Emily - Trombone

Emily was born in Portsmouth where she began learning the tenor trombone at the age of ten, playing predominantly in local windbands. After achieving her Dip ABRSM and completing her A-levels, she moved to London. Now in her third year of study at the Royal Academy of Music, she studies trombone with Ian Bousfield and Dudley Bright, and sackbut with Adam Woolf. During her time at the Academy, she has benefitted from the opportunity of working with many distinguished musicians including Marin Alsop and Robert Trevino, as well as with leading trombone players Jorgen van Rijen, Gordon Campbell and Mark Templeton. Passionate about music education, Emily enjoys teaching and is currently working towards her Licentiate of the Royal Academy of Music teaching diploma, and has taken an active role in workshop delivery in local primary schools. The Mark Elliott Scholarship and the Harold Nash Award have provided generous support, for which she is most grateful. Outside of music Emily is an enthusiastic climber, and enjoys discovering new recipes to add to her growing collection.

Jan - Trombone

Jan is a bass trombone player from the Hague in the Netherlands. He started playing the piano at age 4 and the trombone aged 7, and upon joining a local dutch brassband, switched to the bass trombone aged 12. Upon graduating from the International School of the Hague in 2018, he moved to London to study the bass trombone at the Royal Academy of Music with Bob Hughes. Jan enjoys playing a wide variety of music, therefore is also experienced in bigband and pit orchestra playing. Jan’s plans for the future are to finish his degree and become a successful orchestral/chamber/session bass trombonist.

Siddhartha Lethbridge – Tenor Trombone

Siddhartha grew up in a small town near bath called Shoscombe. He was fortunate enough to have a musical family, his father singing and his mother being a piano teacher. This led onto an early musical start of learning the violin through the Suzuki method at only age 5. In 2007 upon entering secondary school he started playing the trombone and just 2 years later gained a music scholarship into the prestigious Millfield School. Since then he has played in many orchestras and groups, most notably the Divine Symphony orchestra who played at the Culture of the Spirit festival and the Universal Exposition in Milan, alongside the Antonio Vivaldi Orchestra. At the moment Siddhartha is on a scholarship to study at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, where he studies trombone under the tuition of the great Graham Lee. He is part of numerous projects within and outside of College, enjoying jazz and klezmer trombone on top of his main study of the classical trombone.

Alice Sophie - Cello

Born in Hamburg in Germany, Alice Sophie received her first cello lessons from Year 1 in primary school. In 2008 she went to Wells Cathedral School in order to complete her A-Levels. Together with her teacher Penny Driver, she accomplished her Grade 8 Cello in 2010. In 2014 Alice achieved her Bachelor Degree of Music at the University of Aberdeen with the main emphasis on all three aspects: performance under the guidance of the cellist James Halsey, composition and dissertation. During her time in Scotland, Alice was involved in many orchestral projects such as the Edinburgh Youth Orchestra in 2013-2014 as well as in many chamber projects. During the Aboyne Cello Week, which is an annually cello course founded by James Halsey, she has enjoyed having masterclasses with Philip Higham as well as Alice Neary. Upon her graduation Alice has taken a year out during which her main focus remained on her cello studies. During this year she received private tuition with Leonid Gorokhov (Professor at the Hanover Conservatoire). In September 2015 Alice started her two-year Master’s degree at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance and receives tuition from Richard Markson. Throughout her time there so far, she has been involved in many chamber and orchestral projects both inside and outside of the conservatoire. Most recently she was involved in the Teenage Cancer Trust Concert in the Royal Albert Hall on the 22nd April, in the ‘Lost in Love’ concert series organised by soprano Natasha Hardy as well as in many recording projects.

Elliot - Trumpet

Elliot is an undergraduate at the Royal College of Music. He started playing the trumpet at the age of nine in his home county of Surrey, quickly acquiring his first teacher Andrew Mitchell with whom he studied for eight years. Elliot grew up as an active member of Surrey Arts, while also playing in the National Youth Wind Orchestra for two years. He spent four years at the Guildhall School of Music Junior Department prior to starting his degree at the RCM. He currently studies under Mark Calder. Elliot also enjoys contemporary music making, and often plays with popular bands and big bands.

Freya - French Horn

Freya is currently in her second year at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, where she studies with Michael Murray and Roger Montgomery. Originally from Edinburgh, Freya started learning the horn aged ten under Jacquie Johnstone. From the age of fifteen she studied at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland's Junior Conservatoire, with Sue Baxendale. Freya is a previous member of the National Youth Orchestra of Scotland, with whom she performed at the BBC Proms at the Royal Albert Hall in 2012.  Freya has played in a variety of chamber and orchestral ensembles since she moved to London, and is greatly excited to have been offered the position of Principal Horn with the London City Orchestra in association with their Professional Development Programme. She looks forward to playing some fantastic repertoire with them this season.

Izabela - Bassoon

Izabela was born in Czestochowa, Poland, where she started playing the bassoon at the age of twelve. She graduated from the Academy of Music in Wroclaw (BMus), and the Academy of Music in Poznan (where she studied with Arek Adamczyk and obtained an MA with distinction).  In 2014 she moved to London to start her Artist Diploma course at the Royal College of Music, where she has been awarded the Big Give Scholarship and Soirée d'Or Scholarship. She is studying with Andrea de Flammineis, Sarah Burnett and Martin Gatt.

Louise - Oboe

Louise is a 22-year-old oboist and English horn player from London. She has recently graduated from the University of Chichester achieving a First Class BMus Performance Degree and is currently preparing for Postgraduate Studies in London.   Louise gained early performing experience from recitals at a young age as well as having extensive orchestral experience including the Hounslow Youth Orchestra and Orion Orchestra.

Vanessa - Trombone

Born in London, Vanessa is a tenor trombonist currently in her third year at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance. At age thirteen she joined the Centre for Young Musicians where she was taught by Geoff Nash for six years and received the Jack Petchey Award for Excellence in her final year.  In 2013, Vanessa went on to accept a place at Trinity Laban and received the Sir John Cass scholarship award.  She has enjoyed many opportunities to play in various major venues throughout the city, and plays regularly with the all-female Bellazona Brass Quintet and the GMT Brass Ensemble. She looks forward to continuing her studies at Trinity Laban under the guidance of her teachers, Graham Lee and Phil White.