Festival Artists
Maxwell Quartet
The Maxwell Quartet consists of four close friends (Colin Scobie, George Smith, Elliott Perks and Duncan Strachan) who grew up playing classical and folk music together in youth orchestras and music schools across Scotland. The group officially began in 2010 at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, where its founding members met as postgraduate students. The very next year, the Quartet was appointed as the Conservatoire’s Young Artists in Residence and selected for Enterprise Music Scotland’s Residency Programme.
In 2014, the line-up changed to include Colin Scobie and Elliott Perks on violin and viola respectively. Since then, the Quartet has developed a unique, fresh and genuine voice of its own in the world of chamber music. In 2017, the Quartet received the First Prize and Audience Prize at the Trondheim International Chamber Music Competition, and their performances were hailed as ‘superb storytelling by four great communicators’ by The Strad and as ‘brilliantly fresh, unexpected and exhilarating’ by The Herald.
Now based across the UK and touring regularly in Europe and the United States, the Quartet’s performances are set apart by the tribute they pay to their Scottish folk music heritage. From 2019 to 2021, the Quartet is Associate Artist at both the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and the Music at Paxton festival.
Always keen to take the possibilities of the string quartet in new directions, the Quartet has worked with musicians including Kari Kriikku, Jonathan Kelly, Benjamin Grosvenor, David Watkin, Anna Meredith, Herman Kolgen, Lunir and the Danish String Quartet. The Quartet has studied with Hatto Beyerle of the Alban Berg Quartett and members of the Endellion String Quartet.
Colin Currie
Described by Steve Reich as “one of the greatest musicians in the world today," and by Gramophone Magazine as “at the summit of percussion performance today”, Colin Currie is a solo and chamber artist who champions new music at the highest level. The soloist of choice for many of today’s foremost conductors, he performs regularly with the world’s leading orchestras and ensembles including the London Philharmonic, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, New York Philharmonic and The Cleveland Orchestra. With a particular focus on contemporary compositions, Colin has developed a close working relationship with many of today's most renowned composers. He has premiered works by Steve Reich, Elliott Carter, Louis Andriessen, HK Gruber, Sir James MacMillan, Einojuhani Rautavaara, Helen Grime, Jennifer Higdon, Rolf Wallin, Julia Wolfe and Kalevi Aho.
In addition to his career as a soloist, Colin is the founder of the Colin Currie Group, the Colin Currie Quartet, and Colin Currie Records — three ventures that celebrate and preserve the recent extraordinary developments in percussion music. As the leader of the Colin Currie ensembles, he regularly conducts performances with the Colin Currie Group, and has begun to expand his work as a conductor to work with other ensembles as well. For example, he recently conducted ‘Reich/Richter’ with the Britten Sinfonia at the request of the composer.
Colin began his musical studies at age five, and went on to graduate from the Royal Academy of Music in 1998. He was a finalist in the BBC Young Musician of the Year competition in 1994, and received the Royal Philharmonic Society Young Artist Award in 2000, was a BBC Radio 3 New Generation Artist between 2003 and 2005, received the Bortletti Buitoni Trust Award in 2005, and the Royal Philharmonic Society Instrumentalist Award in 2014. He is currently Artist in Association of Southbank Centre, London, and the Co-Artistic Curator of the 2021 Grafenegg Academy. Based in his native Scotland, he enjoys cycling and the theatre in his spare time
Thomas Foster
Praised for his “dazzling virtuosity” (The Spectator), Tom Foster has a busy career as a continuo player on organ and harpsichord and as a harpsichord soloist.
Respected for his sensitive and inventive continuo playing, Tom is the principal keyboard player of the English Concert and is a regular guest with The Academy of Ancient Music, Arcangelo, The Dunedin Consort, Early Opera Company, The Mahler Chamber Orchestra, The Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, The Scottish Ensemble and The Sixteen. These collaborations have taken him to concert halls throughout Europe, the United States, Australia, Russia and South Korea. He has performed concertos at the Edinburgh International Festival and made his US solo-debut in recital at the Carnegie Hall in February 2020.
Tom began his musical education as a choirboy at Manchester Cathedral, then as a pianist and harpsichordist at Chetham’s School of Music. He holds a first-class degree in Music (BA) from St. Catherine’s College, Oxford and gained a Distinction in Performance (MA) from the Royal Academy of Music under the tutelage of Trevor Pinnock.
Dopey Monkey
Dopey Monkey is a collaboration between Scottish composers and musicians Martin Lee Thomson (Euphonium) and Danielle Price (Tuba). An art ensemble with ambitions to venture beyond the traditional boundaries associated with their instruments, Dopey Monkey’s journey since their formation in 2015 has seen the duo explore a range of mixed media creations, and present bespoke performances that highlight the inquisitive dynamic of the duo’s partnership.
Dopey Monkey’s releases and commissions thus far have taken the shape of genre-defying collages inspired by curiosity, playful collaboration, storytelling and art, bringing a DIY approach to their compositional process and to the visual complements that they craft, while seeking to construct an exciting, inspiring space for artistic and sonic exploration, and an inviting atmosphere for listeners and collaborators to accompany them on their journey.
Katie Coventry
Scottish mezzo-soprano Katie Coventry, starts the 2023/24 season with her role début as Rosina in Rossini’s Il barbiere di Siviglia at the Salzburger Landestheater. Other roles this season in Salzburg include Prinz Orlofsky, Die Fledermaus, Cecilio Lucio Silla and Daisy Anthropocene.
Last season, Katie made her début at The Royal Danish Opera covering the role of Offred in Paul Ruder’s Handmaid’s Tale. In a season full of débuts, Katie also made her début with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra singing the solo line in the Scott of the Antartic Film with orchestra under the baton of Andrew Manze as well as her debut with English Touring Opera singing the role of Orsini in Lucrezia Borgia and covering the role of Sesto in Giulio Cesare in Egitto. A last minute stand-in, Katie reprised Scott of the Antarctic with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Martyn Brabbins.
In the 2021/22 season, Katie made her début at Nederlanse Reisopera in the role of Sesto Giulio Cesare in Egitto; a production which then transferred to the Handelfestspiele Göttingen. Later that season, Katie made her delayed début with the Hallé Orchestra as Kate Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly before returning to the Glyndebourne Festival covering Ruggiero in Alcina, stepping in to sing three performances, marking her stage début with them. Previous cover roles at Glyndebourne include Zaida in Rossini’s Il Turco in Italia, Dorabella in Cosi fan tutte and Annio in La clemenza di Tito.
In summer 2020, Katie returned to the Salzburger Festspiele singing the role of Zweite Magd in Strauss’s Elektra under the direction of Krzysztof Warlikowski and baton of Franz Welser-Möst.
As a previous Harewood Artist, Katie has a close relationship with ENO. She made her ENO début as Edith in Pirates of Penzance and in 2017 made her role début there as Cherubino. Previous roles include cover Offred in The Handmaid’s Tale, Second Woman/Second Fury in Harrison Birtwistle’s The Mask of Orpheus, covering the title role of Marnie whilst singing Shadow Marnie 2 and Kitchen Boy in Rusalka. The Rusalka production was due to transfer to the Théâtre de la Ville de Luxembourg, which would have been Katie’s house début, however this was unfortunately affected by the pandemic.
During the 2018/19 season, Katie was part of the ensemble at the Salzburger Landestheater. Roles there included Rosette Manon, Doralice La Gazzetta, CherubinoLe Nozze di Figaro, Zerlina Don Giovanni, Dorabella Così fan tutti and in Washerwoman/Frau Graubach Philip Glass’ The Trial. Other recent engagements include her House début at the Teatro Real, Madrid as Jennie Hildebrand in Street Scene and the Second Soprano Soloist in Mozart’s C minor mass, with Sir Roger Norrington and the Camerata Salzburg.
Rachel Spencer
Violinist Rachel Spencer enjoys a wide-ranging freelance career. Originally from Holmfirth in West Yorkshire, she began learning violin with Ralph Barker. She was awarded the Leverhulme scholarship to study at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland with Peter Lissauer and James Clark, and subsequently studied at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama with Alexander Janiczek, graduating with Distinction and a special award for Outstanding Performance. Amongst other major prizes won during her studies, in 2011 Rachel was selected as a Young Artist in Residence at the RCS. Rachel is violinist of the Kapten Trio, which held the position of Enterprise Music Scotland Residency Ensemble 2017-19, and she is first violinist of the Roxburgh Quartet. Rachel performs with several other ensembles across the UK and has appeared at festivals across Europe. In 2020 Rachel was appointed No 4 Second Violin of the Scottish Chamber Orchestra. Passionate about music education, Rachel has led education projects across the UK, Denmark and the Middle East through music outreach scheme Live Music Now, and she is education officer for the Loch Shiel Festival. Rachel is also in demand as a singer and is a vocal coach for Red Note Ensemble and the National Youth Choirs of Great Britain.
Chris Stout & Catriona McKay
Catriona McKay is from Dundee on the east coast of Scotland and Chris Stout is from Fair Isle, one of the Shetland Islands.
Catriona & Chris have their roots in Scottish traditional music. They are driven to use this grounding as a starting point to challenge their instruments and to develop and explore new music. The result is a dynamic and adventurous sound that retains the identity of their traditions yet allows the music to have a freedom and connection to other musical styles they are drawn to.
They have performed, explored and sculpted their musical identities together for more than 25 years. Through a respect for tradition and a spirit of experimentation they continue to evolve and create a sound sensation and style “operating at a rarefied level of expertise” (The Herald newspaper, Scotland). They recorded their first duo cd “Laebrack” in 2005 and in 2010 they present their self-penned album white nights. As trustworthy collaborators they have been part of many projects and are both members of the internationally acclaimed band Fiddlers’ Bid.
And so they merge together background, traditions and fresh vision to make their own space. Music celebrating the freedom shared by two diverse and dynamic musicians. Emotional music, music of stark beauty, using vulnerable tactile sounds. It’s a soundworld that they own, one they have created with a driving energy and a clear direction. It allows them to find those magical, elusive emotions that connect to the soul, share a freedom, a feeling of abandonment, of letting-go. They cultivate an atmosphere of trust in which they can set sail. It is an intense sensation of witnessing the creation of something immediate and essential that is so captivating for them and for their listeners.
Lisa Robertson
Lisa Robertson is a composer from the West Highlands of Scotland, particularly interested in combining sounds from nature and traditional music; examining relationships between people and the land and highlighting environmental concerns.
Recently, she was featured in BBC Music Magazine's 'Rising Stars' column. Her music has been performed by the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, The Sixteen, EXAUDI, Red Note Ensemble, defunensemble, Psappha Ensemble, Hebrides Ensemble, Lucy Schaufer, and Heather Roche, among others. Her piece, am fìor-eun, was performed by the Royal Scottish National Orchestra with Thomas Søndergård in their 22:23 season. Her music has appeared at festivals including Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival, where she also performed her own solo violin piece in 2019, Cheltenham Music Festival, Musica Nova Helsinki, West Cork Chamber Music Festival, Sound Festival and on BBC Radio 3, BBC World Service and BBC Radio Scotland.
She was four times shortlisted for the Scottish Awards for New Music (Dorico Award for Small / Medium Scale Work), was joint-winner of the West Cork Chamber Music Festival Composers’ Competition and runner-up in the Cappella Nova Composers’ Competition and the Walter and Dinah Wolfe Memorial Award.
She completed a PhD at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland with Emily Doolittle and William Sweeney and has also gained influence from masterclasses with Brian Ferneyhough at the Ferienkurse Darmstadt, Sir Harrison Birtwistle at Dartington International Summer School, Sir James MacMillan and workshops with Royal Northern Sinfonia, Bozzini Quartet and Ligeti Quartet. She took part in the National Youth Choirs of Great Britain’s Young Composers Scheme 19/20 and the RSNO Composers' Hub 21/22.