About Vanessa
I cherish creating music through sharing ideas with others, finding combined sounds with which to communicate.
I learned violin and then viola from an early age through the Suzuki method, and then at Junior Guildhall and postgraduate at the Royal College of Music.
Particular formative times in finding my way to becoming a musician include working with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra while still a student, 5 years as a member of the Tavec String Quartet, and masterclasses and Open Chamber Music at the International Musicians Seminar Prussia Cove.
My performing now spans chamber music, chamber orchestras and opera, all opportunities for collaborative music making. I am currently based in Oxford, where I play regularly with the Adderbury Ensemble and Instruments of Time & Truth. I am principal viola with Orchestra of the Swan, Gascoigne Orchestra at Grange Park Opera, and the Presteigne Festival Orchestra.
In 2020 I created Sollar Music to enable sharing music in Oxford’s local community, inspired by the lack of performing opportunities during the Covid-19 pandemic.
CV
Orchestral
- Glyndebourne Tour Orchestra – principal & sub-principal
- Gascoigne Orchestra at Grange Park Opera – principal
- Orchestra of the Swan – principal
- Orchestra Nova/Presteigne Festival Orchestra – principal
- London Mozart Players – guest principal
- Birmingham Royal Ballet – guest principal
- Britten Sinfonia – extra
Historical Performance
- Instruments of Time and Truth
- London Handel Orchestra
- Musical & Amicable Society
- Oxford Bach Soloists
- La Serenissima
Chamber Music
- The Harborough Collective / Le Page Ensemble
- Adderbury Ensemble
- Tavec String Quartet – Founder Member
- Configure8 Octet
- CHROMA
- Contemporary Consort
- Invited participant in chamber music festivals including Open Chamber Music at the International Musicians’ Seminar, Prussia Cove.
Prizes
- Royal Over-Seas League Bernard Shore Memorial Prize for viola
- Helen Just and Isolde Menges prizes for chamber music awarded by the RCM
- Hester Laverne Award
- Sir James Caird Travelling Scholarships Trust
- Myra Hess Trust
- Countess of Munster Musical Trust
- KPMG/Martin Musical Scholarships
- Junior Guildhall Director’s Prize
Youth Orchestras
- European Union Youth Orchestra
- Britten-Pears Orchestra
Concertos
- Mozart Sinfonia Concertante with Craswall Players
- Edward McGuire Viola Concerto with Glasgow Festival Strings
- Premiere of Audrey Mackie 7:1 at International Viola Congress
- Britten Lachrymae, Edinburgh University
- John Woolrich Ulysses Awakes Junior Guildhall String Ensemble including BBC Radio 3 broadcast
Education
- Royal College of Music – Postgraduate Diploma in Performance, with distinction
- University of Edinburgh – MA(Hons) in Philosophy and Mathematics
Teachers have included Simon Rowland-Jones at the Royal College of Music, James Durrant in Glasgow and Tim Bolton at Junior Guildhall.
Masterclasses with Thomas Riebl at the International Musicians’ Seminar, Prussia Cove and Yuko Inoue at the Britten-Pears School amongst others.