The Three Cellos
An enormous treat for fans of the cello, Rebecca Gilliver, principal cello of the London Symphony Orchestra, Philip Higham, international soloist and James Halsey will indulge their love of chamber playing and take the audience on a memorable journey for the evening. Characterised by rich cello sounds and fine ensemble, the trio will present an eclectic mix of music and will be augmented when Joshua Lynch joins to make a cello quartet, performing works by Klengel and Arvo Pärt.
Entertaining and friendly introductions complement the wonderful music-making and this special concert is guaranteed to leave the audience with smiles on their faces!
Rebecca Gilliver
Rebecca Gilliver is principal cellist of the London Symphony Orchestra. Originally joining the LSO as co-principal in 2001, she won the principal job in 2009. Rebecca has also played as guest principal all over the world, including the Australian Chamber Orchestra, New Sinfonietta Amsterdam, and the World Orchestra for Peace.
Rebecca studied at the Yehudi Menuhin School with Melissa Phelps and William Pleeth and at the Royal Northern College of Music with Moray Welsh and Ralph Kirshbaum. She also spent a year studying mostly contemporary music in Basel with Thomas Demenga.
Success in national and International competitions led to critically acclaimed recitals at the day the Wigmore Hall, London and Carnegie Hall, New York. Rebecca has played extensively as arecitalist and as a soloist with the LSO, the Hallé Orchestra and London Mozart Players.
As a chamber musician, Rebecca has played and recorded with major artists such as the Nash Ensemble and is a regular participant at the renowned IMS Prussia Cove Open Chamber Music.
Rebecca Gilliver is a professor at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and has given masterclasses at the Royal Academy and Royal College of Music amongst others. She runs her own cello course, The Dorset Cello Classes, and is a regular coach at Alpinekammermusik and the Aboyne Cello Festival. She has also founded a local music initiative, Worlds End Music, where she lives in Kent, bringing professional musicians together with their local audience.
Rebecca is obsessed with her two large dogs, enjoys kayaking and harbours a guilty love of Formula 1 racing.
James Halsey
James Halsey studied cello at the Royal College of Music with Eileen Croxford. Whilst still a senior student in the early 1980s, James joined the Auriol String Quartet and was straightaway involved in more than 40 recitals each season. This love of chamber music stayed and developed through his career and he is now cellist of the Bingham String Quartet and the Tagore String Trio, and also played with the Dartington Piano Trio. With these ensembles he has played all over the world, broadcast frequently, and made numerous recordings.
At present he coaches on seven annual chamber music courses. As a solo cellist, James has performed widely in the British Isles, and has played Beethoven Sonatas and unaccompanied Bach in Japan and Australia as well as the UK. He is much in demand as a teacher and several of his former pupils are cellists in professional string quartets. He is Professor of Cello at the North East Scotland Music School and the Royal College of Music Junior Department as well as being Director of the Aboyne Cello Festival.
Philip Higham
Philip Higham enjoys a richly varied musical life: a passionate chamber musician, who is also at home in concerto, duo and unaccompanied repertoire, he has performed extensively throughout the UK - including solo recitals at Wigmore Hall, Cheltenham, Bath, Salisbury and Lammermuir Festivals - and in Europe, as well as notable performances in Tokyo, Istanbul and Washington D.C. Since 2016 he has been principal cellist of the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, with whom has also performed frequently as soloist. His two solo recordings for Delphian Records, of Britten and Bach Suites, have received considerable praise, the Britten chosen as Instrumental Disc of the Month in Gramophone Magazine during 2013. He also premiered and recorded John Casken's Stolen Airs (2015) with pianist Alasdair Beatson, and has enjoyed collaborations with the Navarra, Heath, Maxwell and Benyounes quartets.
As cello professor Philip has worked at RNCM, RCS and Birmingham Conservatoire, and has been a member of the Aboyne Cello Week faculty since 2013.
Philip was born in Edinburgh and studied at St Mary’s Music School with Ruth Beauchamp and subsequently at the RNCM with Emma Ferrand and Ralph Kirshbaum. He also enjoyed mentoring from Steven Isserlis, and was represented by YCAT between 2009 and 2014. He plays a cello by Carlo Giuseppe Testore, made in 1697. He is grateful for continued support from Harriet's Trust."
Joshua Lynch
Recipient of the Freda Dinn and Ida Marbett Award, St James Chamber Music Prize and Prix de Musique de Chambre Festival Ravel, Joshua Lynch is a passionate devotee of chamber music and has already enjoyed a diverse and creative career. Joshua studied with Emma Ferrand and Gillian Thoday at the Royal Northern College of Music and then continued his studies with Ursula Smith at The Guildhall School of Music and Drama. He also enjoyed mentoring by Peter Cropper, Oliver Wille and Simon Rowland-Jones.
Joshua is the cellist of the Cambridge String Quartet, who are ‘Quartet in Residence’ at Hughes Hall, Cambridge University. He has enjoyed several European tours as part of the ‘Le Dimore del Quartetto’ network alongside performing at the Wigmore Hall, The Crucible (MitR) and St Martin-in-the-Field. Joshua has also enjoyed performing with the LSO and Britten Sinfonia.
Away from performing, Joshua is a committed teacher with positions at the Stephen Perse Foundation and St John’s College School in Cambridge, as well as an extensive list of private students. He is a regular tutor at Aboyne Cello Festival, Cambridge Chamber Academy, NLMS Summer School and ProCorda. He is also on the Advisory Council for the London Cello Society.