Born: Sutton, Surrey

Studied: Joining the National Youth Orchestra when I was 15 was really life-changing for me. That’s when I fell in love with orchestral playing and the banter between the musicians that goes with it. I moved to Manchester when I was 18 to do the Joint Course at the University of Manchester and the Royal Northern College of Music, and then completed my Postgrad at the Royal Academy of Music. I was very fortunate to have incredible teachers throughout my studies. Big shout out to Emma Ferrand, Josephine Knight and Hannah Roberts in particular for all their support, patience and guidance. I freelanced for about ten years before joining the Royal Ballet Sinfonia and still enjoy fitting a mixture of freelance work around our schedule when I can.

Joined: 2025

Favourite piece of music: This probably changes daily, or hourly! Mendelssohn’s Octet and Tchaikovsky’s Souvenir de Florence are pretty high up there for me. When I got married, lots of my lovely friends and colleagues played both these pieces during our wedding ceremony, which was very special. I also love the Beatles and have a secret soft spot for 90s/00s pop!

First ballet or concert you saw: I was very fortunate to grow up in a musical household. Both my parents were musicians and my sister learnt the piano, viola and bassoon. Any visitors were treated to a family concert and we often used the random instrument combination we had in the family to rewrite string quartets for flute, recorder, bassoon and cello! It must have sounded pretty dodgy but we all had a great time performing together. That’s my earliest memory of a ‘concert’... of sorts!

Why the cello? I remember my dad playing me a recording of Schubert’s C major Quintet. There’s a moment early on in the first movement where the two cellos play the most beautiful duet. I was sold on the cello from that moment and just wanted to get good enough to play that piece! The only thing better than the sound of the cello is the sound of lots of cellos!

Favourite ballet to play: Prokofiev’s Cinderella, I think. The harmonies are mind-blowingly beautiful. It’s very challenging but totally worth it!

Most challenging non-musical thing you have done: I ran a marathon on an extremely hot day a few years ago. It made a two-show day feel like a walk in the park!