The Nash Ensemble of London is an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

chamber ensemble Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small numbe ...

. It was founded by Artistic Director Amelia Freedman and

Rodney Slatford Rodney Slatford OBE (born 18 July 1944) is an English contemporary double bass player and teacher. He was the principal bass player of the Midland Sinfonia, Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, and English Chamber Orchestra, a founder of the Nas ...

in 1964, while they were students at the

Royal Academy of Music The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is the oldest conservatoire in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the first Duke of ...

, and was named after the Nash Terraces around the academy. The Ensemble has won awards from the

Edinburgh Festival __NOTOC__ This is a list of arts and cultural festivals regularly taking place in Edinburgh, Scotland. The city has become known for its festivals since the establishment in 1947 of the Edinburgh International Festival and the Edinburgh Fe ...

Critics and the

Royal Philharmonic Society The Royal Philharmonic Society (RPS) is a British music society, formed in 1813. Its original purpose was to promote performances of instrumental music in London. Many composers and performers have taken part in its concerts. It is now a memb ...

, as well as a 2002

Gramophone Award The Gramophone Classical Music Awards, launched in 1977, are one of the most significant honours bestowed on recordings in the classical record industry. They are often viewed as equivalent to or surpassing the American Grammy award, and refer ...

for contemporary music. In addition to their classical repertoire, the Ensemble performs works by numerous contemporary composers, including

Richard Rodney Bennett Sir Richard Rodney Bennett (29 March 193624 December 2012) was an English composer of film, TV and concert music, and also a jazz pianist and occasional vocalist. He was based in New York City from 1979 until his death there in 2012.Zachary Woo ...

Harrison Birtwistle Sir Harrison Birtwistle (15 July 1934 – 18 April 2022) was an English composer of contemporary classical music best known for his operas, often based on mythological subjects. Among his many compositions, his better known works include ''Th ...

Elliott Carter Elliott Cook Carter Jr. (December 11, 1908 – November 5, 2012) was an American modernist composer. One of the most respected composers of the second half of the 20th century, he combined elements of European modernism and American "ultra- ...

Henri Dutilleux Henri Paul Julien Dutilleux (; 22 January 1916 – 22 May 2013) was a French composer active mainly in the second half of the 20th century. His small body of published work, which garnered international acclaim, followed in the tradition of ...

Mark-Anthony Turnage Mark-Anthony Turnage Commander of the Order of the British Empire, CBE (born 10 June 1960) is a British composer of classical music. Biography Turnage was born in Corringham, Essex. He began composing at age nine and at fourteen began studying a ...

, and

Peter Maxwell Davies Sir Peter Maxwell Davies (8 September 1934 – 14 March 2016) was an English composer and conductor, who in 2004 was made Master of the Queen's Music. As a student at both the University of Manchester and the Royal Manchester College of Music ...

, and has given premier performances of more than 200 works.

Personnel

Current members

* Adrian Brendel (

cello The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a Bow (music), bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), t ...

) * Clifford Benson (piano) * Philippa Davies (

flute The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...

) * Richard Hosford (

clarinet The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The instrument has a nearly cylindrical bore and a flared bell, and uses a single reed to produce sound. Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitches ...

) * Gareth Hulse (

oboe The oboe ( ) is a type of double reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common oboe plays in the treble or soprano range. A ...

) *

Ursula Leveaux Ursula Leveaux is an English classical bassoonist. She is Principal Bassoon with the City of London Sinfonia and the Academy of Ancient Music; and is currently the bassoonist of the Nash Ensemble. Leveaux was Principal Bassooon with the Scott ...

(

bassoon The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family, which plays in the tenor and bass ranges. It is composed of six pieces, and is usually made of wood. It is known for its distinctive tone color, wide range, versatility, and virtuo ...

) *

Duncan McTier Duncan McTier is an English double bass soloist and professor. He is a member of the Fibonacci Sequence. Biography Born in Worcestershire, England, Duncan McTier studied a degree in mathematics at Bristol University before joining the BBC Symphon ...

(

double bass The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or #Terminology, by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched Bow (music), bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox addit ...

) *

Lawrence Power Lawrence Power is a British violist, born 1977, noted both for solo performances and for chamber music with the Nash Ensemble and Leopold String Trio. Career Power started out as a violist (rather than beginning studies on the violin and switch ...

(

viola The viola ( , also , ) is a string instrument that is bow (music), bowed, plucked, or played with varying techniques. Slightly larger than a violin, it has a lower and deeper sound. Since the 18th century, it has been the middle or alto voice of ...

) * Laura Samuel (violin) *

Marianne Thorsen Marianne Thorsen (born 13 March 1972) is a Norwegian violinist. Biography and career Born in Trondheim, Thorsen was taught by Bjarne Fiskum before studying at The Purcell School for Young Musicians in Hertfordshire, and later tutored by Gyö ...

(violin) * Lucy Wakeford (

harp The harp is a stringed musical instrument that has a number of individual strings running at an angle to its soundboard; the strings are plucked with the fingers. Harps can be made and played in various ways, standing or sitting, and in orche ...

) *

Richard Watkins Richard Watkins (born 1962) is a horn player. He performs as a concerto soloist and chamber music player. He was Principal Horn of the Philharmonia Orchestra from 1985 to 1996, a position he relinquished to devote more time to his solo career ...

(

horn Horn most often refers to: *Horn (acoustic), a conical or bell shaped aperture used to guide sound ** Horn (instrument), collective name for tube-shaped wind musical instruments *Horn (anatomy), a pointed, bony projection on the head of various ...

)

Former members

* Ian Brown (piano) *

Skaila Kanga Skaila Kanga (born in India) is a harpist and Professor Emerita of Harp at the Royal Academy of Music in London. After winning a Junior Exhibition to the Royal Academy of Music for piano, she switched to harp studies at age 17. She studied wit ...

(harp) *

Malin Broman Malin may refer to: Places * 4766 (1987 FF1) Malin, an asteroid, see List of minor planets: 4001–5000 * Rivière du Malin (Malin River), a tributary of Jacques-Cartier River, in Quebec, Canada * Malin, Homalin, Sagaing Region, Burma * Malin ...

(violin) *

Roger Chase Roger Chase (born in London in 1953) is a British violist who currently teaches at the Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University. Life Roger Chase was born in London and studied under Bernard Shore (with occasional lessons fr ...

(viola) * Robin Miller (oboe) * Michael Collins (clarinet) * Marcia Crayford (violin) * Mark David (trumpet) * Catherine Edwards (organ and piano) * Liz Layton (violin) * Bryn Lewis (harp) * Simon Limbrick (percussion) *

Frank Lloyd Frank William George Lloyd (2 February 1886 – 10 August 1960) was a British-born American film director, actor, scriptwriter, and producer. He was among the founders of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and was its president ...

(horn) * Judith Pearce (flute)
John Pigneguy
(horn) * David Purser (trombone and sackbutt) *

(double bass) * Christopher Van Kampen (cello; died 1997''Music to Hear'' CD (Black Box, BBM 1065, 2001) liner notes) * Paul Watkins (cello) *

James Watson James Dewey Watson (born April 6, 1928) is an American molecular biologist, geneticist, and zoologist. In 1953, he co-authored with Francis Crick the academic paper proposing the double helix structure of the DNA molecule. Watson, Crick and ...

(trumpet) * Brian Wightman (bassoon)

References

External links

Nash Ensemble of London
Chamber music groups Contemporary classical music ensembles Chamber orchestras Musical groups established in 1964 British classical music groups Gramophone Award winners 1964 establishments in England {{Classical-ensemble-stub