Principal Flute
I have been so lucky to be part of so many amazing concerts over the years. Everything you can imagine from breathtaking opera to the intimacy of chamber music – it’s all shaped me in some way. I’ve worked with orchestras like English National Opera, Royal Northern Sinfonia, BBC Philharmonic, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, Welsh National Opera, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, BBC Concert Orchestra etc, as well as orchestras abroad in Tenerife, Galicia and Mumbai. And Manchester Camerata of course.
I’ve played solo and orchestral concerts for The Queen, done a few television and radio broadcasts and recorded some amazing repertoire. I have also worked with a few famous faces such as Antony and the Johnsons, Barry Manilow, Bill Bailey and ABC. I was actually star struck for the first time ever when I met Martin Fry. And the Hacienda shows have brought me so much pure unadulterated joy. I’ve always particularly loved the projects which have multiple disciplines in them, you just learn so much about yourself and your own practice from experiencing other ways of being artistic.
I joined Manchester Camerata as Second Flute in 2008, and not long after that I got promoted to Principal Flute. Since then I would say I’ve experienced a real and welcome shift in what classical music concerts encompass. I am also heavily involved with Camerata in the Community, working in dementia and mental health as well as school projects and workshops. It makes a huge difference to me to be able to connect directly with the people around us, who may be isolated or living with illness and have no means of experiencing music in a meaningful way. Doing this work has allowed me to develop as a musician and as a person more than any other experience I’ve ever had. In fact, it’s led me to do a Masters in music therapy, which I’m halfway through now.
Aside from flutey stuff, I’m a qualified pattern cutter. I love clothes! So I did two years of training and a few days work experience in the costume department at Covent Garden. I could actually get a job in the fashion industry! I love cooking, mainly because I love eating so much. And travelling has got to be one of the greatest privileges on earth. I love reading books on how the brain works too – it’s all still such a mystery. And, I have two gorgeous cats – Mr Wickes and Bowie.