Featured Teachers

James has studied music since the age of 8 and has been professional for 14 years. His career has taken him around the world touring America, China, and all across Europe playing a number of different instruments and styles of music. Because James plays more than one instrument, his career outside of teaching has led him down many different paths. This versatility has aided James to teach a number of different styles from Classical music, Jazz and Rock, and Pop music. James Started Playing the Clarinet when he was 8 years old and graduated with a distinction in Grade 8 at the age of 18. Alongside his classical education, he always listened to and loved playing Jazz music. He started to play the saxophone during his teenage years and using the techniques he had learned on the clarinet, adapted himself into a proficient Jazz Saxophonist Alongside the woodwind background, James also started playing the guitar at the age of 14 and started playing in rock bands. With a love for modern music, James progressed very quickly at the guitar and managed to get a place at the Academy of Contemporary Music at 18 to study his degree. He learned a number of styles of music there from some world-famous guitarists (Guthrie Govan, Jamie Humphries, Mike Caswell). After spending the next three years dedicating hard work to both of his crafts James started getting jobs touring with Artists around the UK and Europe (Bad Company, Juan Zelada, Nicole Scherzinger, Pixie Lott, Leona Lewis).

Ellie started her music education in her hometown of Norwich playing for Norfolk County Youth Orchestra and then headed to the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama studying with Nicholas Carpenter, Timothy Lines and Robert Plane to complete her undergraduate degree with First Class Honors. Ellie is now studying her Master’s at the Royal College of Music with Peter Sparks, Timothy Lines and Richard Hosford, where she is a Headley Trust Scholar. Ellie has won the RWCMD Howarth of London Single Reed Prize and, after reaching the final of the RWCMD John Ireland Prize playing his Fantasy Sonata with pianist Thomas Scott, won the competition the year after playing his Clarinet Trio. She was also a finalist in the RWCMD Concerto Competition performing James MacMillan’s Clarinet Concerto ‘Ninian’. Ellie has taken an interest in exploring contemporary music having recently enjoyed giving performances of works by Eleanor Alberga, Elizabeth Maconchy, James MacMillan and Kenneth Hesketh. Ellie has started her professional career playing second clarinet with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales and BBC Symphony Orchestra. She is also a keen chamber musician and a member of the Hyde Quartet. The quartet have taken to exploring string quartet repertoire for four clarinets and Ellie has performed with them in the final of the Royal Over-Seas League mixed ensemble final and at the Elgar Rooms in the Royal Albert Hall.