Staff List

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Music Director

Rachel Erdos BA (Oxford), PG dip (Trinity), MA (Oxford), BKA, MSTAT [Profile]

Deputy Director

Maryan Balkwill ARCM, GRSM [Profile]

MARYAN BALKWILL was born in London. She studied at the RCM with Antony Pini and also with Joan Dickson, with whom she continued her studies in Edinburgh. Whilst based in Edinburgh, Maryan worked with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, the Scottish Baroque Ensemble and the Scottish Opera Orchestra, touring in the UK and many European countries. She taught at Glenalmond School, Perthshire, and in Edinburgh at St Marys Music School, the Rudolf Steiner and Merchiston Castle schools.

The beautiful sound, accurate intonation and rhythmic vitality of the young players of the Helsinki Junior Strings inspired Maryan to attend a Colourstrings teacher training course in 1992. A few years later she started to teach using this approach to string teaching. She taught at the Coloustrings schools in London and Kent, until taking a break in 2005/06 to study for a few months at the Kodaly Institute in Kecskemet, Hungary. In Finland she visited the East Helsinki Music Institute to observe musicianship and instrumental lessons where this Kodaly based approach to string teaching was established by Geza and Csaba Szilvay in the 1970s.

Maryan has also taught for Music Services in Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Merton and Lambeth. More recently, in addition to teaching privately, Maryan has taught at Brighton College and at schools in SW London such as Ibstock Place, The Hall School and Putney High School. She was a founder member of the Colourstrings team at Gallions School, Beckton, where she taught for three years. In 2016 Maryan started to teach at Nikhil Dally's music school, 'Stepping Notes'.

She has played in orchestral and chamber music concerts in and around London. For four years in the 1990s Maryan directed a lunchtime chamber music concert series in Wimbledon, 'Midweek at St Marks', in which she also played duos and string quartets. She regularly plays chamber music and is a member of the Auralio String Quartet.

Maryan covered CMS Director, Rachel Erdos' maternity leave in 2017/18 and now continues behind the scenes as Deputy Director.

Colourstrings Orchestra Conductor

Blai Soler BA (RCM, hons), PG dip (RCM), MA Comp (KCL)

Choir

Holger Aston MA (Oxon), MA (Liszt Academy), ARCM, LRAM [Profile]
Angela Fogg MA Dip ABRSM LRSM CKME PGDip [Profile]
Leslie Anne Lewis MA, MMus, PhD
Myrto Loulaki 
Alan Murdock MA BMus MusEdCert

Violin

Fiona Chesterman  [Profile]
Angela Dally 
Rachel Erdos BA (Oxford), PG dip (Trinity), MA (Oxford), BKA, MSTAT [Profile]
Sanae Honda BMus PGC [Profile]
Diana Mathews LRAM [Profile]
Jane Metcalfe ARCM [Profile]
Blai Soler BA (RCM, hons), PG dip (RCM), MA Comp (KCL)
Cressida Wislocki Bmus, Mmus

Viola

Fiona Chesterman  [Profile]
Angela Dally 
Diana Mathews LRAM [Profile]
Jane Metcalfe ARCM [Profile]
Cressida Wislocki Bmus, Mmus

Cello

Maryan Balkwill ARCM, GRSM [Profile]
Miguel Calvo Mmus (Guildhall), Pg Dip (Trinity) [Profile]
Mark Dobson AGSM MSTAT

Piano

Leslie Anne Lewis MA, MMus, PhD
Petra Malik Bmus Hons
Cordelia Mathews GTCL, LRAM
John Rolfe Leverhulme Sharp BA[Hons] ARCM [Profile]
Alexandra (Szandra) Vilmányi  [Profile]

Double Bass

Liz Bradley 

Flute

Pedro Lopez BMus, MMus, ArtDip [Profile]

Guitar

Oliver Manning 
George Robinson 
George Tarlton  [Profile]

KG Teacher

Kath Cleeve  Colourstrings Associate Teacher (Music Kindergarten) ;Certificate of Music Education (Trinity College of Music) ;Counselling Children & Adolescents Diploma (Level 4) [Profile]
Ali Rycroft BA Oxon MA UEL [Profile]

Musicianship

Holger Aston MA (Oxon), MA (Liszt Academy), ARCM, LRAM [Profile]
Angela Edwards CKME, CSAK, Cert (Mus) Ed
Angela Fogg MA Dip ABRSM LRSM CKME PGDip [Profile]
Alan Murdock MA BMus MusEdCert

KG assistant

Cathy Johnson BA Mus Hons
Beccy Sharp  [Profile]

Visiting Teachers

Mr Pal Banda (Cello) 
Miss Sarah Bennington (Flute) BMUS Hons (1st class)
Mrs Marianne Dodge (Flute/Theory) Ed Hons (Cantab), Ct ABRSM
Ms Gerri Drought (Violin) 
Ms Ruth Herbert (Musicianship) 
Miss Lesley Larkum (Violin) Bmus, Mmus, ASCM, PG RCM (cond.)
Ms Bea Leadbetter (Violin/Viola) 
Ms Muriel Levin (Piano) BMus ARCM, Founder, Holiday Music Piano/Chamber Music Courses.
Dr Shay Loya (Piano) BA Hons (TAU), MA Hons (TAU), PhD (KCL)
Mrs Rebekka Poffley (KG) 
Mr Christopher Poffley (Cello/Piano) Bmus ARCM
Ms Gil Sharp (Violin) GTCL, LTCL (Mus Ed), LTCL, ATCL
Ms Caroline Tait (Violin) 
Prof David Vinden (Musicianship/Choir) LRAM, GRSM, Bmus Hons (London), Adv Cert Kodály Inst, ARAM
Miss Maiko Vinden (Assistant) 
Ms Ali Warner (KG Teacher) BA Hons CombSocSci, BKA (Inter Mus), CKME