Concert Programme
J Brahms - Clarinet Sonata in E-flat major, Op. 120, No. 2
G Finzi - Five Bagatelles, Op. 23
Originally from Cambridge, Andrew Farnden studied clarinet at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, in London. Here he held a scholarship and studied with Andrew Marriner. He will continue his studies at The Royal Academy of Music in September.
Andrew is a keen orchestral player, and rehearses regularly with orchestras across London, including the Guildhall Session Orchestra. As a soloist, Andrew has performed Weber’s Concertino and Mendelssohn's Konzertstück with orchestra. He also holds a strong interest in contemporary music and has recorded Steve Reich’s New York Counterpoint. Andrew is also a keen chamber musician, and recently performed a series of contemporary chamber works in a concert curated by Thomas Adès, to celebrate the beginning of Sir Simon Rattle’s tenure as Director of the LSO.
Nicole Johnson is a Yorkshire-born pianist and accompanist, recently graduated from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama with a Masters degree in Piano Accompaniment. She gained a first class BMus (Hons) degree from Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance (classical piano) in 2017, where she was awarded the Dave Gosling Prize for Piano Accompaniment.
Nicole works extensively with vocalists and woodwind players, bridging both classical and musical theatre genres. As a vocal accompanist, she was awarded the Accompanist’s Prize at the Association of English Speakers and Singers, sponsored by Patricia Routledge (June 2018), and performed the premiere of Timothy Ravalde’s song ‘Dreamers‘ at the subsequent prize winners concert.
Banner image of Nicole by John Erskine Photography