SANDBACH CONCERT SERIES - Key Persons
Ashley Fripp - British pianist Ashley Fripp has performed extensively as recitalist, chamber musician and concerto soloist throughout Europe, Asia, North America, Africa and Australia in many of the world's most prestigious concert halls. Highlights include the Carnegie Hall (New York), Musikverein (Vienna), Concertgebouw (Amsterdam), the Philharmonie halls of Cologne, Paris, Luxembourg and Warsaw, the Bozar (Brussels), the Royal Festival, Barbican and Wigmore Halls (London), the Laeiszhalle (Hamburg), the Megaron (Athens), Konzerthaus Dortmund, the Gulbenkian Auditorium (Lisbon) and the Konserthus (Stockholm). He has won prizes at more than a dozen national and international competitions, including at the Hamamatsu (Japan), Birmingham and Leeds International Piano Competitions, the Royal Over-Seas League Competition, the Concours Européen de Piano (France) and the coveted Gold Medal from the Guildhall School of Music & Drama. In 2013, Ashley won the Worshipful Company of Musicians' highest award, The Prince's Prize was chosen as a ‘Rising Star' by the European Concert Hall Organisation (ECHO). He has also performed in the Chipping Campden, Edinburgh, Brighton, Bath, City of London and St. Magnus International Festivals as well as the Oxford International Piano Festival and the Festival Pontino di Musica (Italy). A frequent guest on broadcasting networks, Ashley has appeared on BBC television and radio, Euroclassical, Eurovision TV and the national radio stations of Hungary, Spain, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland, Belgium and Portugal. He has collaborated with orchestras including the Lithuanian National Symphony Orchestra, the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain, the Milton Keynes City Orchestra and the Kammerorchester der Universität Regensburg (with whom, in 2012, he recorded Chopin Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 2). He has worked with conductors including Semyon Bychkov, James Judd, Vasily Petrenko, Robertas Šervenikas, Hilary Davan Wetton, Jonathan Bloxham, Graham Buckland and Peter Stark. Ashley Fripp studied at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama with Ronan O'Hora. He is currently studying with Eliso Virsaladze at the Scuola di Musica di Fiesole (Italy) and undertaking doctoral studies into the piano music of Thomas Adès at the Guildhall School.
Job Titles:
- Director of Guitar at the Royal Northern College of Music
Craig Ogden is Director of Guitar at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester, Adjunct Fellow of the University of Western Australia, Associate Artist and Curator of Craig Ogden's Guitar Weekend at The Bridgewater Hall in Manchester, Director of the Dean & Chadlington Summer Music Festival and Visiting Musician at Oriel College, University of Oxford.
Craig Ogden has performed concertos with many of the world's leading orchestras in countries including Latvia, Russia, South Africa, Denmark, Spain, Sweden, Germany and Australia. In recent seasons he has performed with the Hallé, BBC Concert Orchestra, Orquesta Sinfónica de Navarra (Spain), Darwin Symphony Orchestra (Australia), Spanish Symphony Orchestra, RTÉ Concert Orchestra (Dublin), London Philharmonic, Ulster Orchestra, Orchestra of Opera North and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic. In 2015, Craig was invited to perform a series of concerts on tour with the Royal Northern Sinfonia at major UK concert halls and again in 2016 with the Royal Northern Sinfonia and the English Chamber Orchestra, both tours receiving critical acclaim. In 2019, Craig presented his own programme of "The Celebration of the Guitar" with Manchester Camerata which showcased the guitar in various styles. This season Craig performs concertos with orchestras including the BBC Concert Orchestra, English Chamber Orchestra, Oulu Symphony Orchestra (Finland) and Ulster Orchestra.
Numerous composers have written works specially for him and in 2017 he gave the world première of a concerto written for him by Andy Scott with the Northern Chamber Orchestra at Stoller Hall, Manchester, followed by the Australian première in Perth. He gave the world première of Il Filo, a double concerto for guitar and accordion by David Gordon with Miloš Milivojević in summer 2019 and gave the world première of a concerto written for him by David Knotts in March 2022 at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, London with the BBC Concert Orchestra which was recorded for BBC Radio 3, filmed for BBC4 TV and currently available on BBC iPlayer. In July 2022, Craig gave the world première of Isolation Songs (Without Words) a new guitar concerto written for him by William Lovelady with the English Chamber Orchestra for Music in Country Churches with HM The King in attendance. The work received its London première in November 2022 at Cadogan Hall. In January 2023, Craig gave the world première of a guitar concerto by Greg Caffrey with the Ulster Orchestra in Belfast, recorded for BBC Radio 3.
Craig Ogden is the most sought-after guitarist for chamber music in the UK performing with artists including the Carducci Quartet, Miloš Milivojević (accordion), Paul Edmund-Davies (flute) and the London Tango Quintet, of which he is a regular member. Craig also performs a new arrangement written for him of the Goldberg Variations by J.S. Bach with violinist David Juritz and cellist Tim Hugh. He has been invited to perform with John Williams at venues including London's Globe Theatre, where he returned for a music and poetry performance with actress Meera Syal and in 2022 he again performed with John Williams at the Royal College of Music for a concert celebrating the life of the late Julian Bream. Craig has performed at many of the major UK festivals as well as large outdoor festivals including Jamie Oliver and Alex James' Big Feastival and the Wilderness Festival. Craig gave a recital with tenor James Gilchrist at the Edinburgh Festival which was broadcast live on BBC Radio 3 and performed in the concert series devoted to Sir Michael Tippett at the Wigmore Hall, returning there with the Nash Ensemble.
Craig gave concerts and masterclasses in Hong Kong and Shanghai as part of the Hong Kong Guitar Symposium and he has performed several concerts at the Australian Chamber Music Festival at the invitation of Piers Lane. He was invited to be Visiting Musician at Oriel College, University of Oxford for two years. Craig frequently records for film and was featured on the British hit, Notting Hill. He has presented programmes on radio including The Segovia Legacy on BBC Radio 3 (co-presented with Louis de Bernières), Ten Pound Pom Mum for BBC Northern Ireland (a programme about his Mother's upbringing in Northern Ireland) and a series of four interviews with artists including John Williams for ABC Classic FM (Australia). Craig presented three short videos as part of an advertising campaign on Classic FM for Emirates Airline and was invited by Sky Arts to be a mentor for the Guitar Star television series.
Craig Ogden is Director of Guitar at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester, Adjunct Fellow of the University of Western Australia, Associate Artist at The Bridgewater Hall, Manchester and Director of the Dean & Chadlington Summer Music Festival. Craig Ogden plays a 2011 Greg Smallman guitar and strings made by D'Addario.
Job Titles:
- Artist and Consultant
- Director for the Bolsover Brass Band Summer School
Dr. David Thornton is regarded as one of the foremost euphonium players and teachers of his generation and has a global reputation. His work as a soloist, conductor and educator is renowned throughout the brass playing world to have a distinct hallmark of extreme virtuosity, professionalism and an ability to connect with audiences like few others in his field.
His work within the brass band world has seen him at the top flight for almost twenty years. He has held solo euphonium positions with the Fairey Band (1997-2000), the Black Dyke Band (2000-2010) and the Brighouse & Rastrick Band (2011-2015) having won five National titles, three British Opens and one European Championship during this time. David is currently the solo euphonium player with the world famous Foden's Band.
Born in Nottingham in 1978, David began his euphonium lessons at just eight years old and only five years later became the first ever euphonium player to gain a place at Chetham's School of Music, one of the UK's most prestigious institutions for specialist musical education.
Since then his success has earned him many awards, such as scholarships from the Countess of Munster Trust and the Yamaha Music Foundation of Europe, a hatrick of solo awards at the National Euphonium Conference 1995, 1997 and 1999, first prize at the Verso Il Millenio International Euphonium Competition, but most notably as the International Euphonium Player of the Year 2001.
David is constantly working to seek out new solo repertoire in as many different guises as possible. He has given world premieres by composers such as Philip Wilby, Peter Meechan, Simon Dobson, Torstein Aagaard-Nilsen, Peter Graham, Phillip Venables, Lucy Pankhurst, Richard Rock, Kit Turnbull and D. Edward Davis.
As a recording artist David has released four solo albums. His debut CD, ‘Three Worlds', was awarded Solo CD of the Year for 2004 by the British Bandsman magazine. David released his second solo album, ‘Devil's Duel' in May 2007, Sempre Libera in January 2014 and Parallel Realities in March 2015. Furthermore, David features as a soloist on 30 different albums of band music, including ‘Epic Brass' and ‘Jubilee Brass' - live recordings of two concerts at the Royal Albert Hall.
Considering David's relatively young age, his achievements in education are also quite remarkable. He tutors at the RNCM, the University of Huddersfield and Chetham's School of Music. His current and former students already hold principal positions in many leading bands around the UK.
David is a course director for the Bolsover Brass Band Summer School and has been a course tutor for the National Youth Brass Band of Great Britain, National Youth Brass Band of Wales, National Children's Brass Band of Great Britain, National Youth Wind Orchestra of Great Britain, the International Brass Band Summer School (Swansea) and the Wessex Band Summer School. David is also a fully certified member of ABBA.
David Thornton is a Sterling Musical Instruments performing artist and consultant and plays exclusively on the Sterling Virtuoso Euphonium. He also holds an undergraduate degree from the Royal Northern College of Music and a DMA from the University of Salford.
Job Titles:
- Assistant Treasurer
- Trustee
Jonathan Radford - Praised for his "exceptional musicianship and emotive playing", saxophonist Jonathan Radford is the 2018 Royal Over-Seas League Music Competition Gold Medalist and first prize winner. He is currently a Philip and Dorothy Green Young Artist with Making Music (PDGYA), a Park Lane Group Young Artist, a Tunnell Trust Artist and a Countess of Munster Musical Trust Recital Scheme Artist. He is featured as a Rising Star in the August 2018 BBC Music Magazine. Jonathan has given recitals at major venues in Europe including Wigmore Hall, St John's Smith
Square, Bridgewater Hall in Manchester, Grieg Hall in Bergen, the Centre Pompidou and Philharmonie in Paris. He has appeared as soloist with several orchestras including the Slovenian
Chamber Orchestra and Liverpool Mozart Orchestra. A keen advocate of contemporary music he
Job Titles:
- Founding Member and Vice - President of the Portuguese Saxophone Association
João is founding member and Vice-President of the Portuguese Saxophone Association. He took part of the EURSAX 17 European Saxophone Congress boarding team. He is saxophone and chamber music professor at the Lisbon Metropolitana Professional Music School and Palmela Regional Conservatory of Palmela. He is normally invited to give masterclass and workshops. He is the artistic director of FISP - Palmela International Saxophone Festival.
Katerina Piperakis is an 18 year old mezzo-soprano/borderline soubrette. A Sandbach resident and former pupil of Sandbach Sixth Form College, she has performed in many productions, festivals, and concerts with companies such as Leeds Youth Opera, Opera Britain and Masquerade School of Performing Arts, as well as a solo performer. Some of her favourite roles across all genres include Tracy Turnblad (Hairspray), Fantine (Les Miserable) and Susannah (Marriage of Figaro).
In 2019 and after a lengthy and competitive audition process, Katerina was successful in obtaining a place in the Glyndebourne Academy; an intensive training programme for gifted classical singers under the guidance of renowned vocal coach, Mary King. This month she has embarked on the next stage of her vocal journey having just started a Vocal Studies degree at the Royal Conservatoire of Birmingham where she will be spending the next 4 years under the tutelage of Amanda Roocroft.
Job Titles:
- Trustee
- Spotlight Concert Director
Linda Richardson was born in Cheshire and studied at the Royal Northern College of Music, where she was a Peter Moores Foundation Scholar and winner of the Frederic Cox Award, and then at the National Opera Studio.
An English National Opera Company Principal between 1997 and 2005, her roles there included Virtue The Coronation of Poppea, Fiordiligi Così fan tutte, Lauretta Gianni Schicchi, Micaela Carmen, Gretel Hansel and Gretel, Gilda Rigoletto, Zerlina Don Giovanni, Sophie Der Rosenkavalier, Mimi La Bohème, title roles The Fairy Queen and Alcina, Violetta La Traviata, Woglinde Rhinegold, Helena A Midsummer Night's Dream and Donna Anna Don Giovanni. Elsewhere she has sung Karolka Jenufa, Mimi, Nanetta Falstaff, Pamina Die Zauberflöte Countess Marriage of Figaro, Violetta La Travata Gilda Rigoletto with Opera North, Lisetta La Vera Constanza at Garsington, Norina Don Pasquale for Clonter Opera, Fairy Queen in Barcelona, First Niece Peter Grimes at Netherlands Opera, Amina La Sonnambula Mimi La Boheme and Alice Falstaff for Opera Holland Park.
Linda performs extensively on the oratorio and concert platform, and is a frequent recitalist. She appeared as Annie in Jonathan Dove's TV opera When She Died on Channel 4. Recordings include Hearts and Flowers, a collection of Victorian Parlour Songs, and Oscar Un Ballo in Maschera for Chandos.
Robin Humphreys is a graduate of the University of Birmingham and a holder of the prestigious Diploma in Professional Performance from the Royal Northern College of Music, where he studied piano accompaniment with David Lloyd. Appearing in concert both as a soloist and an accompanist for over 35 years, he now pursues a successful career as an accompanist and repetiteur, the breadth of his repertoire being reflected in television and radio broadcasts ranging from BBC Radio 3 to Emmerdale!
A Principal Lecturer at the RNCM, Robin is a senior music coach within the School of Vocal Studies, for whom he was also chief répétiteur on the majority of college opera productions from the late 1990s until 2013. He has appeared with the Manchester Camerata in the world première of "A Feast of Fables" by Paul Reade, has been Musical Director for Feelgood Theatre Productions and, from 1990-2000, Opera & Concert Productions (Worldwide) Ltd with whom he toured throughout the Gulf, the Indian sub-continent and the Far East. Robin has a particularly close association with Clonter Opera Theatre in Cheshire, where he regularly works as Assistant Musical Director and Accompanist. He is also an accompanist member of the British & International Federation of Festivals.
Job Titles:
- Secretary
- Trustee
- Vice - Chair