Charis Morgan Early Years
Tertia Sefton-Green Creative Director (Minis, Juniors, Seniors)
Jo Carey Stage Director
Livio Salvi Dance Coach, Choreographer
Alistair Burton Accompanist (Minis, Juniors)
Ben Kubiak Accompanist (Juniors, Seniors)
Julian Joseph Artistic Director
Tony Kofi Coach
Alexander Thomas-French Jazz Essentials Coach & Programme Manager
Byron Wallen Coach
Vahan Salorian Coach – Early Years
Alistair Burton Accompanist
Jade Brooks Violin, Piano, Accompanist, Ensembles
Alistair Burton Piano
Sophie Hooper Flute, Theory
Rowan Jones Clarinet, Ensembles
Kate Leigh Cello, Ensembles
Martyn Lewington Brass
Annie Morris Brass, Ensembles
Riccardo Mura Guitar, Ensembles
Lucy Gibson Bassoon, Ensembles, Theory
Vahan Salorian Piano, Choirs, Orchestra, Ensembles
Lucía Sánchez de Haro Piano, Accompanist
Vilhelms Patriks Skabardis Drums, Percussion, Piano, Accompanist
Alexander Thomas-French Jazz Blues, Jazz Piano
Juri Uchishiba Violin, Ensembles
Tom Highnam Workshop Musician, TMB SEN/D, Saplings
Tim Yealland Workshop Leader, TMB SEN/D, Saplings
Bridget Carey Workshop Musician, Trees
Jeffrey Chung Workshop Musician, Trees
Paul Griffiths Workshop Leader, Trees
Thomas Kleyn Workshop Musician, Trees
Who is who at the Saturday Programme:
Kwame Anomah - Saturday Programme Assistant
Kwame holds a BA Business (Hons) degree from Kingston University, where he graduated from in 2015. Prior to joining HMDT Music, Kwame was Music Mentor for Ark. He has been playing drum kit and percussion since he was eleven at his old school, Mossbourne Community Academy, which helped to focus his energy prior to taking up kit and tuned percussion. His musical influences have mainly been funk, drum & bass and dance music. Jamiroquai influenced Kwame with playing style and drumming beats and effective percussion play. Drum & Bass and dance music were something used in his early days to experiment with drum techniques.
Jade Brooks - CYMH (violin, accompanist, ensembles)
Jade recently received her BMus (Hons) degree from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, where she focused her studies on piano performance. As a multi-instrumentalist, she has gained extensive experience performing both as a soloist and a collaborative musician, participating in numerous chamber groups and orchestras with the piano, violin, and tuba. In addition to her performance experience, Jade has worked as an accompanist for both professional and student recitals and examinations, as well as volunteering for the Dame Alice Owen’s School music department, where she served as a teaching assistant, accompanist, and mentor for the music students.
Alistair Burton ICS! (Musical Director Minis & Juniors), Piano Coach, Fledglings
Alistair is a pianist and accompanist currently studying for a Master’s in Repetiteur Studies at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. As an undergraduate at Clare College, Cambridge, he studied music and received coaching in song accompaniment from Joseph Middleton as part of the Pembroke Lieder Scheme. As a repetiteur Alistair has worked on a number of student opera productions, including of contemporary works such as Philip Venables’ multimedia opera Denis and Katya (2020), and more recently on Cumbria Opera Group’s 2021 production of Così fan tutte.
Bridget Carey - Music Treehouse (Workshop Musician)
Bridget Carey studied jointly at the Royal Academy of Music and London University and was awarded MMus in Performance and related studies in 1987. She has pursued a varied freelance career based in London, gaining a particular reputation in the field of new music. The early years of her career saw herpremiere new chamber opera for the Almeida with Music Projects/London, whilst working in classical contemporary with Opus 20, contemporary dance with Rambert and Siobhan Davies companies, and new complexity with Ensemble Exposé. From 1995-2005 she was viola player with the Kreutzer string quartet. More recently, her chamber music interests include east-west fusion group Okeanos, the Goldfield Ensemble and the London Chamber Ensemble. She is a longstanding player with RPS award-winning experimental music group Apartment House, with whom she continues to add to her chamber music discography. She is a founder member of Britten Sinfonia, and is a regular guest with London Sinfonietta and BCMG, among others. Beyond her performing career she regularly works with composers of all ages and genres, and is deeply committed to community and participation work, particularly with young musicians.
Jo Carey - ICS! (Stage Director)
Jo was awarded a first-class BA Honours degree in Theatre, Film and Television from the University of Wales, Aberystwyth and an MA with Distinction in Film Studies from the University of Nottingham. She has been working in the theatre industry for 15 years, most recently as Participation Manager at The Almeida Theatre in Islington and has held various project management positions within the National Theatre’s Learning Department. She is an experienced facilitator and director of young people and regularly works for the National Theatre and the Primary Shakespeare Company for whom she has directed performances with Primary School students of Julius Caesar, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Romeo and Juliet. She has previously led acting workshops for The Almeida Theatre, The Old Vic Theatre and Polka Children’s Theatre and was the director of two youth theatre groups for Creation Theatre in Oxford.
Lucy Gibson - CYMH (Bassoon, Theory, Ensembles)
Lucy is a Scottish bassoonist studying at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. She began her studies with Bec Roberts at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland Junior Department where she received an ABRSM Scholarship. She was a member of many youth ensembles including the National Youth Orchestra of Scotland and the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain. During her time with NYO GB, she was involved with a recording of Holst’s The Planets and Strauss’ Also Sprach Zarathustra under Edward Gardner for Chandos Records. Lucy completed her undergraduate studies at GSMD obtaining a First Class Honours degree and a Concert Recital Diploma – for exceptional performance in her final recital. She studied with teachers Dan Jemison, Helen Simons and contrabassoon with Dominic Morgan. During her undergraduate degree, she was generously supported by the GSMD bassoon Scholarship. Lucy is continuing to study at the GSMD, completing her masters studies on the Orchestral Artistry course in association with the London Symphony Orchestra.She is supported by The Cross Trust, The Ruby and Will George Trust and the GSMD.
Paul Griffiths - Music Treehouse (Workshop Leader)
Paul is an internationally renowned music educationalist, project leader, composer and performer. His musical roots lie in jazz, rock and funk but through his work he has developed a unique artistic voice and flexible workshop style that transcends musical, social, cultural and age barriers. His work is underpinned by a commitment to providing high quality musical access to all and a profound understanding of the impact that creative arts work can have upon individuals and communities. He has over a quarter of a century’s experience of working in music, cross arts and trans cultural projects in the UK, Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia. These projects are conducted in conservatoires and music schools, arts centres and concert halls, primary and secondary schools, special needs schools, prisons and a multitude of diverse community settings. He works extensively in the field of training and professional development for musicians, artists, workshop leaders and teachers.
He successfully completed postgraduate studies on the pioneering Guildhall School of Music Performance and Communication Skills course in 1988. Since then he has worked with the majority of the preeminent London and UK based Symphony and Chamber Orchestras (LSO, LPO, RPO, BBC SO, Halle, Royal Northern Sinfonia, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, CLS, NYO, Britten Sinfonia), Contemporary Music Ensembles (London Sinfonietta), Opera Companies (ENO, Glyndebourne, Royal Opera House), Arts Centres (South Bank Centre, Barbican, Sage Gateshead, Aldeburgh Young Musicians at Snape Maltings), Conservatoires (Guildhall, RCM, RNCM, Trinity) and International Festivals (BBC Proms, Huddersfield, Bath, Cheltenham, Lincoln, Lichfield, Dartington, London Jazz Festival, Edinburgh Jazz & Blues Festival, Salzburg, Abu Dhabi). He began teaching at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in 1989 at undergraduate, postgraduate and masters levels and was a cornerstone figure within the acclaimed ‘GSMDBarbican ‘Connect’ project. This Department was the recipient of the ‘Queens Award for Services to Higher Education’ in 2006. He is a tutor on the GSMD Masters in Leadership course, Masters and Postgraduate elective courses, Undergraduate elective modules and Continuing Professional Development Courses.
He is a highly skilled educational collaborator and has worked in partnership with a wide range of UK and international artists and ensembles from a broad cross section of music including Mark Anthony Turnage, Tan Dun, the Alim Qasimov Ensemble, Robert Glasper, Gretchen Parlato, Nitin Sawnhey, Jerry Dammers, Billy Ocean, Viktoria Mulova, Julian Joseph, Denys Baptiste, Shabaka Hutchings, Christian Lindberg, Tunde Jegede, Ensemble Moderne, Steve Martland, Jef Neve and the Jazz at Lincoln Centre Orchestra.
Thomas Highnam - Music Treehouse (Workshop Musician)
Tom is a Classical, Contemporary and Jazz percussionist based in London. He is currently in his fourth year as a scholar at the Royal Academy of Music studying Classical Percussion and Timpani. During this time Tom has explored many different areas of the classical world, from performing Baroque music to displaying brand new commissions. Here he has studied with some of the best percussionists in the UK, if not some of the best in the world, including Neil Percy, Simon Carrington, Bill Lockhart, Colin Currie, Eric Sammut, Joe Locke, Paul Clarvis and Dave Hassle to name a few. He has worked with many notorious conductors as well during this time, including Semyon Bychkov where he performed at the Royal Festival Hall, Oliver Knussen, Edward Gardiner, Ryan Wigglesworth and many more. Before joining the Royal Academy as a scholar, Tom was a specialist musician at Wells Cathedral School, A specialist music school in Somerset. He was given many opportunities whilst at the school, including appearing on the television twice, firstly for an ITV show called Born to Shine which saw him teach former royal correspondent Jenny Bond to play percussion, before performing live on the ITV show. The second television appearance was after gaining a place in the percussion category final of BBC Young Musician of the Year, where he performed a short recital for the competition. Alongside these great experiences, Tom also travelled abroad with the school. Firstly to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, where he performed at the Petronas Philharmonic hall at the base of the Petronas towers. He also travelled to Budapest where he worked with renowned percussion group Amadinda as well as performing at the British Embassy. And finally he toured to Hong Kong where he performed alongside students from the Hong Kong Music Academy. Whilst abroad he also took part in and helped lead workshops in schools for both able and handicapped children, providing vital experience in a field he is now passionate about. Tom is now in his final year of study, so looking to the future he hopes to audition for orchestral graduate schemes, Contemporary ensembles, and looks to venture further into latin percussion.
Sophie Hooper - CYMH (Flute,Theory) ICS! (Mini 1 instrumental)
Sophie is a British flautist and a current MMus student at Royal Academy of Music, studying with Laura Jellicoe, Katherine Baker, and Patricia Morris. In 2019, she graduated from Royal Holloway University with a 1st class honours degree in music and was also deemed a winner of Royal Holloway’s Concerto Competition, where she performed Mozart’s Flute Concerto in D Major in December of that year. Through her avid interest in performing, she has been able to perform in countries across Europe both as a solo artist, and with multiple ensembles and orchestras. Previously, Sophie was an orchestral scholar for Royal Holloway’s Symphony and Chamber Orchestras and received a scholarship to attend ‘rarescale Summer School’ in 2019. While she has a strong interest in contemporary music, she also encompasses music from multiple eras with equal ardour and currently studies baroque flute with Lisa Beznosuik, and low flute with Carla Rees.
Rowan Jones - CYMH (Clarinet, Ensembles)
Rowan is an award-winning London based clarinettist and music tutor with a wealth of orchestral, contemporary and chamber music performance experience. Her musical education began at the Walthamstow Music Service and continued through outreach projects led by Barbican Guildhall Creative Learning. She went on to study at the Junior Guildhall School of Music and Drama where she was awarded the Principal’s Prize in 2017, the Clarinet Prize in 2016 and 2017 and was a finalist in the Lutine Prize. Rowan has graduated with a Master’s of Performance from the Royal College of Music in 2023 and a Bachelor of Music with First Class from the Royal Academy of Music in 2021 as a scholarship holder. Rowan is a recipient of the RCM Musician’s Grant Fund Instrumental Award 2023, St Marylebone Educational Foundation Grant and UMUK Sound Foundation Instrumental Award 2022/23. She has enjoyed performing with the English National Opera, Wild Arts’ opera run and tour of the Elixir of Love 2023 and recording with Shadwell Opera. Her versatile performance and instrumental skills have lead her to thrive in contemporary music settings too, having attained the 2023/24 clarinet place in the London Sinfonietta Academy and she has also recorded for Naxos. Rowan has also taught clarinet, piano, saxophone and music theory lessons privately and previously through London Music Centre for a number of years.
Julian Joseph - JJJA (Artistic Director)
Hailed as one of the finest pianists to emerge this side of the Atlantic, for over two decades Julian Joseph has been a towering figure in contemporary jazz. A prodigious composer and arranger, an admired and respected bandleader, an inspirational collaborator and educator, and a highly knowledgeable and engaging broadcaster he is, essentially, a true champion of the music. As well as four albums and a mass of original material for small band, Julian has written a number of large-scale works for big band and symphony orchestra, including The Great Sage for big band and strings premiered at the 2002 London Jazz Festival, Mountain of Hope, The Reverend: Back Home to Glory, A Ballade of Love, Guardian Angel, and an arrangement of Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue for big band, premiered at the 2003 City of London Festival. Two movements of a 5-movement suite for orchestra, Symphonic Story: The Great Exception, have been performed by the Halle and BBC Concert orchestras. In 2007 Julian toured his first jazz opera, Bridgetower: A Fable of 1807. His collaborations with HMDT Music include his opera for children, Shadowball (2010) his dance suite, The Brown Bomber (as part of the 2012 Cultural Olympiad) and Trench Brothers (2013), with composer Richard Taylor.
Thomas Kleyn - Music Treehouse (Workshop Musician)
Highly in demand multi-instrumentalist Thomas Kleyn has an exciting as well as varied musical career to date. Performing experience includes internationally touring and recording for Salsa/Jazz/African/Pop groups, competitions as a soloist, T.V and radio appearances, Musical Director for cruise ships and theatre work as well as performing with various UK Jazz and Soul groups. Thomas has been honoured to share the stage with some great musicians including: Ronan Rudnytsky [virtuoso classical pianist], Jason Rebello [pianist (Sting, Jeff Beck)], Tito Puente Jr.[Timbale (Salsa)], Derek Watkins [Jazz trumpeter (BBC Big Band)], Lucky Ranku [South African guitarist], Omar Puente [Cuban Violinist (Courtney Pine)], Wilson Manyoma [Colombian singer],
Tony Kofi - JJJA (Coach)
After studying at Berklee, in the 1990s, Tony worked with The Jazz Warriors and Nu Troop as well as appearing in the front line of innumerable high profile musicians and groups and composed original music for his 10 piece group the Afro Jazz Family. The Tony Kofi Quartet is dedicated to bringing the music and genius of jazz legend Thelonious Monk to new audiences and its 2004 Album features a selection of Monk’s work. Other work in this period includes the Anglo-American Big Band and the Rivbea Orchestra and forming The Tony Kofi Trio + 1. Instrumentalist winner of the BBC Jazz Awards and Ensemble winner of the Parliamentary Jazz Awards, Tony is the first UK artist to work with the World Saxophone Quartet and also works with Jamaaladeen Tacuma’s Coltrane Configurations Quartet, EKAYA with Abduallah Ibrahim in South Africa and the Trio Standard Time. He is committed to education work, both teaching and leading workshops on a regular basis.
Ben Kubiak - ICS! Accomapnist (Juniors & Seniors)
Ben has recently moved back to his native England to study for a post-masters qualification as a repetiteur on the Opera Course at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. Prior to this, he lived for ten years in New Zealand, where he had a busy life as a musician spanning multiple instruments and genres. Behind the piano, he worked as a repetiteur and orchestral pianist on productions for New Zealand Opera and G&T/Amici Productions. He also worked as a pianist and vocal coach at the University of Auckland and the New Zealand Opera School, alongside freelance accompanying work for various choirs. He has continued this work since arriving in London, recently working as the pianist and musical director for Curious Opera Company’s production of The Magic Flute, and freelance accompanying work, including for Voce Chamber Choir. His work as a musical director includes productions with the National Youth Theatre of New Zealand, where he was resident musical director, Auckland Music Theatre, and the Junior Theatre Festival of New Zealand. He also performs as a singer, having performed roles for The Court Theatre in Christchurch and Amici Productions in Auckland, as well as concert performances as a soloist with the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra and Bach Musica NZ. As a teacher he has lectured at the University of Auckland, and taught piano and singing in various high schools in Auckland.
