Teaching Staff 2012

Claire Babington
Head of Adult Improvers' and Adult Performance Courses
Since leaving the Royal Northern College of Music, Claire has had a busy and varied career as a freelance cellist working with the Hallé, Manchester Camerata and Liverpool Philharmonic. Her enthusiasm for contemporary music in particular has resulted in the participation of premiers all around the North West and London. As a member of electric string quartet Litmus she has performed at a huge variety of concerts and functions in Manchester, London, Cannes and Brussels. As a baroque cellist Claire has combined solo performance with playing continuo for a wide range of vocal and instrumental repertoire. In demand as a continuo cellist she has worked on operas by Handel, Monteverdi and Rameau in Norfolk for the York Trust as well as Purcell's Fairy Queen and Dido and Aneas in Snape, Suffolk, the Lak e District and The Lowry in Manchester. As well as many historically - informed performances of Bach's St John Passion and St Matthew Passion as well as Handel's Messiah, Claire has also played in continuo workshops with Mark Padmore as part of the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment's St John Passion project at Snape Maltings. She has recently completed an MA at Manchester University, researching the sources and inspiration behind modern day continuo cellist's performance practices. As well as giving continuo coaching and workshops at Manchester and Liverpool University and Oxford Cello School, Claire has recently performed two Vivaldi Cello Concertos with the Manchester University Baroque Orchestra. She also gave a recital of early Italian cello sonatas by Lanzetti, Caporale and Bononcinci, as a result of extra research on cellist/composers resident in London at the beginning of the 18th century. Other recent baroque performances include Bach's Solo Suite in G as part of a recital given at the Town Hall in Dewsbury and Bach's B minor Mass in Glasgow and Acis and Galatea in Tel Aviv with the Dunedin Consort. Claire plays on a modern copy of an early Stradivarius model.

Kwêsi Edman BMus 
Head of Performance, Advanced and Alpine Cello Courses
Kwêsi studied at the Royal Academy of Music, with David Strange and Philip Sheppard. Whilst at the Academy, Kwêsi participated in master classes with Mats Lidström and Josephine Knight. In 2001 Kwêsi formed the Prêsmaki Duo with pianist Peter Dodsworth in a recital tour. As a soloist he has performed the concertos of Elgar and Dvorak, and has recorded Tchaikovsky's Variations on a Rococo Theme. He has recently premièred and recorded Alex Hills' solo cello work, The Fountain and the Garden. Kwêsi recently played at the prestigious service at Westminster Abbey (broadcast live on the BBC) commemorating the 200th anniversary of the abolition of slavery. In 2005 Kwêsi joined the Amber Players with whom he has performed across the UK. Kwêsi has also worked in popular music, having performed with Elton John (Royal Opera House), Shirley Bassey and Sir Paul Macartney (Queen's Jubilee Party at the Palace celebration). He has also played on BBC's Top of the Pops. Kwêsi was previously Head of the Junior course at Oxford Cello School for seven years. He works in London as a freelance teacher and orchestral player and in 2005 co-founded the Caesar Cello Ensemble for adult amateurs. Kwesi recently appeared on a lift emerging out of a double-decker bus with David Beckham in the Bird's Nest stadium in the closing ceremony of the Beijing Olympics. Amberplayers

Erin James
Head of Junior Course
Erin is a Freelance cellist, teacher and musicianship trainer. She was awarded an Associate Performance Diploma with London College of Music at the age of 17, after studying for 5 years with Anne Christine Smith from the Halle Orchestra. Erin then went on to study cello at Birmingham Conservatoire with Jill Heartfield & Catherine Adagh-Walter of the CBSO. During her studies at the conservatoire, she was part of the Folk, Andean & Medieval music groups  and even took Medieval Harp as her 2nd study instrument! Erin then got into playing at traditional folk sessions. From this wide & varied background, Erin now performs with her guitar & cello duo 'Strings Attached' and her Folk-Pop band 'Banska', performing their own material. Erin has recorded with several local artists & bands, and 'Banska' released their 3rd album 'Adverse Camber' in March 2007.In her teaching Erin works for Birmingham Music Service, the Midlands Arts Centre and privately. Her work at BMS includes cello, double bass, and musicianship classes, coaching string quartets & conducting a local Area String Orchestra. Erin is a qualified Colourstrings Music Kindergarten Teacher and has also studied, Kodaly and Dalcroze Eurythmics which form the basis of all her lessons. At the Midlands Arts Centre she works with 6 months to 7 year olds in the Colourstrings Musicainship training programme. Classes include: listening, singing, percussion, dance, movement & musical games. In 2006 she was also asked to take the daily musicianship class at Repton International Summer School. Her private teaching also includes piano & non-pedal harp, putting on a twice yearly concert of her own pupils including  a cello ensemble.

Marianne Gottfeldt
Head of Exam Booster and Intermediate Courses
Marianne was born in Copenhagen and began the cello at the age of ten with Hans-Erik Deckert. While living and working in Geneva  in the late fifties she studied with Pierre Fournier. After returning to England she received a diploma in music from Westminster College in Oxford, whilst studying with Helen Just in London. From 1974-75 Marianne returned to Geneva where she studied at the Conservatoire with Wolfgang Drechsler. In 1976 she became a cello teacher for the Oxfordshire Music Service from which she retired in 2006. Thirty years ago Marianne decided to run day courses for cello students. These courses were so successful that they continue to the present day - the Oxford Cello School!

Spike Wilson  
Spike Wilson has many years experience of teaching all ages, having been a Director of the Oxford Cello School and coached and conducted amateur, youthand student orchestras as well as teaching in schools and having had many private pupils. He has a particular love of chamber music, is the cellist of The Holywell Ensemble, and enjoys coaching groups of all sizes and levels, believing strongly that chamber music is the best way to develop confidence within a framework of individual responsibility and common endeavour, without having to suffer the paralytic nerves caused by solo performance. He also finds that one of the strengths of a summer course lies in looking for ways of overcoming each player's difficulties through sharing ideas and problems, aiming to reduce stress and increase enjoyment in cello-playing. Spike is also performance co-ordinator at Oxford Brookes' University.

Matthew Forbes BMus (Hons) LRAM
Since graduating from the Royal Academy of Music with First Class Honours in 2000, his career as a musician has been varied and eclectic. He has been guest principal cello of Scottish Opera, as well as enjoying regular work with ensembles such as the Royal Opera House orchestra, the Philharmonia Orchestra, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Northern Sinfonia, the BBC Concert and Symphony orchestras, Royal Philharmonic, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, the City of London Sinfonia, the Academy of St-Martin-In-The-Fields and the English Chamber Orchestra among many others. Matthew is the cellist of the Trelawn String Quartet who have recently been Ensemble-in-residence at Middlesex University and who have given recitals all over the U.K. He is also one half of the acclaimed Czardas Duo with accordionist Ian Watson, with whom he has commissioned four new works from young British composers since 1999 and made several BBC radio broadcasts. His education work is very wide-ranging too, as he is a regular workshop leader and animateur for the Royal Opera House, the Wigmore Hall and the Spitalfields Festival, as well as leading improvisation tuition sessions in schools around Britain. He teaches cello, double bass and chamber music at St. Johns Beaumont School, Windsor. As well as the cello, Matthew has worked as a jazz pianist, folk guitarist/mandolin player, conductor, arranger and writer. His ceilidh band Och Aye has been a big hit with the students at OCS and was recently guitarist and caller for his own "Ceilidh For Kids" project, taking traditional Irish and Scottish music and dancing to schoolchildren in Kent and Cambridgeshire.  

Katy Wright
Katy graduated in 2004 from the Royal Academy of Music in London with distinction and a commendation for an outstanding final recital. She studied with Josephine Knight and David Strange and also studied with Christian Giger, Principal Cello of the Gewendhaus Orchestra in the Hochshule for Music in Leipzig. Katy is currently a freelance musician and teacher working in London. She divides her time between orchestral and chamber music performance. She has worked with orchestras including the English Chamber Orchestra and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra. Katy has also worked extensively in the commercial field and has toured the UK and America with Sir Elton John and has made appearances on Top of The Pops and Parkinson alongside various pop acts. She has performed for a number of BBC and Channel 4 broadcasts including the documentary 'Born with Two Mothers' starring Oscar nominated actress Sophie Okenado. Katy is a member of the Cheung Piano Trio, resident ensemble at Bedales School, Hampshire where she is also the cello professor. She is also professor of strings at the Centre for Young Musicians, London. www.katywright.co.uk

David Kadumukasa
 David has studied the cello since the age of six. His post-school studies took him to the University of Manchester where studying under Bernard Gregor- Smith, of The Lindsay String Quartet, he performed Andrejz Panufnik cello concerto. After graduation David was offered a Leverhulme scholarship and a Countess of Munster award to undertake performance postgraduate studies at the Royal College of Music where he studied with Leonid Gorokhov. Since completing his studies David has freelanced with a number of professional orchestras including Royal Philharmonic orchestra, RTE National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland, and London Musici freelance orchestra. David has also recently appeared as soloist in a performance of Dvorak cello concerto.

Chris Doggett MA PGcert
Chris graduated in music from King's College, Cambridge in 2002. Since then he has further pursued his cello studies at the Birmingham Conservatoire where he won a place on the CBSO scheme and came 2nd in the Sylvia Cleaver chamber music prize. He has studied with John Todd and more recently Natalia Pavlutskaya. He now teaches for Luton Borough Council and directs the Beechwood Saturday Morning School.

Tim Smedley
Tim studied at Chetham's School of Music with Peter Worrall and at the Royal Northern College of Music with Hannah Roberts. After being awarded his degree, he chose to continue his studies with Hannah for a further year and was later awarded a distinction in his PostGraduate Diploma. Whilst at college he was awarded places on access schemes with the Halle, BBC Philharmonic and the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and works regularly as a cellist with orchestras such as the Halle, Manchester Camerata (including as a gues t principal) and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra. Upon leaving college, he was awarded the Amy Lindley Cello Prize, the Pilsner Bach Prize, a Career Development scholarship from the Friends of the RNCM and was chosen to give a recital in the RNCM's Young Artist Series. During his time at the RNCM, Tim developed an interest in the Baroque cello and he now combines both instruments professionally by working groups such as The King's Consort, the English Concert, English Touring Opera, the Early Opera Company, Independent Opera and the Classical Opera Company on period instruments. He frequently works as a continuo opera cellist, with recent productions including Handel's Alcina, Tolomeo, Orlando, Aces & Galatea and Il Trionfo del Tempo e del Disinganno with musical directors such as Gary Cooper, Laurence Cummings, Christian Curnyn and Peter Seymour. He is also involved in a cycle of Mozart's complete operas with the Classical Opera Company. Tim's concerto appearances include a performance of Haydn's D Major Concerto with the members of Manchester Camerata and two further performances with the Manchester Chamber Orhcestra. He has also performed concertos by Schumann and Vivaldi and frequently gives recitals around the Northwest of England including regular performances for Chester Music Society. Tim's teaching commitments include the Oxford Cello School at Junior RNCM in Manchester.

Helen Downham 
Helen began to play the 'cello at the age of eight with Doreen Cresswell. She subsequently went on to study with Catherine Ardagh-Walter of the CBSO and Bernard Gregor-Smith of the Lindsay String Quartet at the University of Manchester. Upon graduating in 2002, she received a Proctor-Gregg Performance Prize from the University. Following this, Helen gained a Postgraduate Diploma in Performance studying with Hannah Roberts at the Royal Northern College of Music. Helen has performed several concerti including the Vivaldi Concerto for Two Celli, and Tchaikovsky's Variations on a Rococo Theme. Other concerto performances include Haydn's Cello Concerto in D major with the Orchestra of the Swan and the Bridge Ensemble and most recently, Saint-Saens Cello Concerto No.1 with the Huntingdonshire Philharmonic Orchestra. Helen is a founding member of the Rivoli String Quartet which was formed in 1999 at the University of Manchester. Whilst continuing their studies at the RNCM they won prizes in several competitions. They were finalists in the 2006 Royal Overseas League Chamber Music Competition and won the Prix Ravel at the Academie Internationale de Musique, Maurice Ravel in September 2006. The quartet is a regular participant at IMS Prussia Cove and they are currently completing a Masters degree in String Quartet Performance at Sheffield University with Peter Cropper. Concerts this season have included performances with the Quatuor Danel and with Predrag Katanic of the Stadler Quartett as well as a recital at St-Martin-in-the-Fields, London. They are also regular recording artists for the Dartington Summer School Film Composition Course. Helen is currently pursuing a career that includes both chamber and orchestral playing as well as instrumental teaching. This includes teaching for the Oxford Cello School, coaching the Nottingham Youth Orchestra cello section and coaching chamber music ensembles on various residential courses.

Frédérique Legrand
Born in France in 1984 and currently based in London, Frederique Legrand began her musical studies with the piano, aged 3 with Alain Amand. Later, she began to study cello with David Lowerse and graduated in both at the Conservatory of Valenciennes; and two years later in the Conservatory of Lille with Helene Dautry and Frederic Defossez. She has taken part in many master classes with Roland Pidoux,Florian Lauridon, Stephane Manent, Christophe Dujardin, Jerome Pernoo.....), and has been a soloist for the creation of Yvon Bourrel in 2002. She frequently plays recitals in France as well as The UK. Currently a student at the Royale College of Music with Alexander Boyarsky, she plays regularly as a soloist and leader of the orchestra. She is a member of the Hannover Square Ensemble, and regularly performs chamber music. A member of the band " The Outside Royalty"( Channel 4, BBC 5, Radio 1 ...), Frederique has also recorded with several singers and professional bands in London and Paris. At a young age, she developed a passionate interest in working with her teachers and began teaching in schools of music in 1999. Between 1999 and 2005, she organised cello ensembles, summer courses and conducting orchestras. She was an active member of the "Young French cellists"(director Alain Fleau) from 1995 to 2003, and is now teacher at the OCS since 2007. The Outside Royalty

Hans Nygaard
Hans Nygaard made his first public concert at the age of 7. Already at the age of 13 he performed all over Scandinavia as a soloist in the concertos by Haydn,Wagenseil and Vivaldi. Only 16 years old he won the Berlingske Competition Gold Medal and Special Award of the Jury. He has received a large number of Prizes and Awards. The long list includes The Royal Philharmonic Honourary Award and awards from HM the Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, The Queen Mother, The Augustinus Foundation (Scandinavian Tobacco Company), MT Hojgaard, Wilhelm Hansen Edition and many more. He is the only musician twice to receive the prestigious Jacob Gade Award. In 1987 Hans Nygaard became a member of the Royal Copenhagen Philharmonic Orchestra and became a principal cellist of the Cultural Ambassador Chamber Orchestra "I Fiamminghi" in Belgium in 1992. In 1993 he was appointed the first ever non-German 1.principal cellist of the Berlin Symphony Orchestra with whom he also performed the Elgar and Brahms concertos. In 1997 Hans Nygaard was appointed principal cellist of the Copenhagen Philharmonic Orchestra with whom he has performed the Concertos by Elgar and Haydn. www.hansnygaard.net 

Amy Jolly
Amy has enjoyed an exciting study and performance path. Now undertaking a Master of Arts course at the Royal Academy of Music in London with Josephine Knight, she studied previously with Jakob Kullberg at the Royal Danish Academy of Music in Copenhagen and with Professor Valter Despalj in Zagreb, Croatia. As a busy freelance musician, particularly interested in creating new concepts for concerts through solo and small ensemble work, Amy has performed in many interesting places throughout Denmark, Sweden, the Netherlands, Croatia, Italy and of course England. Her latest project at Kirsten Kjærs Museum entitled "Inspired by Bach" consisted of mini-suites made up of solo works by Britten, Bach, Lidström and Nørgård. She has performed in numerous masterclasses as a soloist and has assisted and taught on the Thy and Askov chamber music courses. In the past year she has performed Haydn's Cello Concerto in D major twice in Denmark, was selected to be part of 'A Weekend of Russian Music' at the Malvern Theatres and was part of the Chopin Festival at the Zagreb Academy. www.amyjolly.co.uk

Peteris Sokolovskis
Peteris Sokolovskis was born into a musical family in Novokuznetsk, Russia and he took up the Cello at the age of 6 with teacher Lija Sudraba in Riga, Latvia. In his time in Latvia he won various competitions including the national competiton 'Talent Latvia'. Through auditions Peteris was selected to play in Riga's M. Rostropovich festival youth ensemble. In that festival they were conducted by Rostropovich. In 2002 Peteris took 3rd place, the Audience Prize and the best interpretation of the compulsory piece in Tallin international competition 'Young Musician', in the final he played with the Tallin Chamber Orchestra. In 2003 Peteris received a place with a full scholarship at the Purcell School of Music where he studied 'cello with Prof. Alexander Boyarsky. In his time at the school Peteris played in the Wigmore Hall as a chamber musician several times and also played the Debussy Cello Sonata there. Through Auditions for the MBF String Award Peteris received the Geoffrey Shaw Scholarship. And he also received the Young Cellist Award from the Pierre Fournier foundation. Peteris Currently studies at the Royal College of Music with a foundation scholarship and also a Henry Wood Trust Award. His teacher is A. Boyarsky. Peteris has participated in masterclass with Bernard Greenhouse, Louise Hopkins and Robert Cohen. In 2010 he performed H. Villa-Lobos's 'Jet Whistle' with his sister Renate Sokolovska at the Royal Festival Hall. In 2011 he won the RCM Cello Competition and was awarded a Martin Musical Scholarship Award through competitive auditions and he was also selected to be part of the RCM Rising Stars concert series at the Cadogan Hall. Peteris is an active chamber musician and performs many contemporary pieces composed by his colleagues. He has been a member of teaching staff at the Oxford Cello School from 2009 and has been teaching privately from the age of 15.

Elizabeth Parkin
Elizabeth first started learning the cello with Angela East and later with Rhuna Martin and Joan Dickson at the Purcell School where she was awarded a scholarship. She now divides her time between teaching around Oxfordshire and performing. She has worked at Oxford Cello School since 1999.