Bassoonist, performer, workshop leader and creative practitioner.
I trained at Chetham’s School of Music in Manchester and the Guildhall School of Music & Drama in London. After completing my music degree I became principal bassoonist of the Cyprus State Chamber Orchestra, and later completed further study in orchestral playing and music leadership.
Alongside orchestral playing, I have spent many years with the North Sea Radio Orchestra, an ensemble that moves between contemporary classical music, art rock, poetry and cross-disciplinary performance. That experience sits naturally alongside the more exploratory side of my workshop and collaborative practice.
The bassoon in my work
I use the bassoon in many different ways: conventional performance, long drones, low-frequency resonance, live response to movement, mirroring, punctuating transitions, improvising with participants and holding the atmosphere of a room.
Musician and facilitator are not separate roles
The same listening needed in ensemble playing is central to my facilitation: sensing timing, balance, tension, release and what another person or group is doing before deciding what to add.
Selected musical work
- North Sea Radio Orchestra
- Cyprus State Chamber Orchestra
- Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra / Barbican creative learning
- Philharmonia Orchestra projects
- Scottish Chamber Orchestra creative composition
- Opera North projects
- BBC Proms and family music activity
Artistic research
Projects such as Smudge have allowed me to explore devised theatre, embodiment and the relationship between technique, imagination and performance. This research has fed directly back into how I understand sound, presence and collaboration.