Clarinettist

I began learning the clarinet at a young age, but it was only in my final years at school that I discovered a love of performing. When I was 18, I won the Highgate Young Musician of the Year competition and performed Stanford’s Clarinet Concerto with Ealing Youth Orchestra.

As an undergraduate at Cambridge, I held an Instrumental Award and received lessons at the Royal Academy of Music through the CAMRAM scheme. I went on to complete my postgraduate studies at the Royal College of Music, where I performed as principal clarinet with both the RCM Symphony Orchestra and RCM Opera and featured in their In Focus and Chamber Essentials concert series.

Since 2022, I’ve regularly performed with pianist Antonio Morabito as the Mercadante Duo. Our repertoire spans from new commissions to romantic classics by Weber and R. Schumann. One of our favourite pieces to perform is Nino Rota’s Clarinet Sonata, a lyrical work that beautifully showcases the clarinet. You can hear us perform its second movement below.

Alongside my performing work, I teach clarinet at Saffron Walden County High School and Katherine Semar Junior School in Essex, where I work with many talented young musicians. I also offer private lessons and masterclasses on performance practice.

I regularly prepare students for ABRSM practical and performance exams as well as GCSE and A-Level performance assessments. However, I don’t view grade exams as a singular goal; for some students, they are a valuable motivator but for others, different performance opportunities can be more meaningful. Nevertheless, I am rigorous in encouraging solid technique and technical proficiency: a well-formed embouchure and relaxed finger technique open up a huge amount of repertoire end enjoyment for pupils.

Performing with Antonio Morabito at St Michael's Church, Highgate, 2025

Ensemble Playing Excerpts

Performing Rachmaninov's Symphony No 3 as principal clarinet with the Royal College of Music Symphony Orchestra. This Symphony is full of wonderful writing for clarinet, especially in the Adagio: towards the end of the movement, the entire orchestra falls away, leaving just the solo clarinet, before the strings quietly rejoin to restate the Symphony's motto theme.

Performing Stravinsky's 'The Soldier's Tale' for the RCM's 'In Focus' series of films. This work is notoriously difficult to get together as an ensemble. However, the most difficult section for the clarinettist, 'The Devil's Dance', is also the most enjoyable to play; the clarinet soars over the top of the ensemble, finally coming out from the violin's shadow.

Arrangements for Clarinet and Piano

My transcription of the Allegro leggiero from Felix Mendelssohn's Lieder ohne Worte, Op. 67. This arrangement is not hugely faithful, with some more 'Brahmsian' voicings than in the original. However, making the piano writing more densely resonant, I have sought to enhance the change in sound that comes from the addition of the clarinet to Mendelssohn's original for solo piano.

My transcription of the Andante molto from Clara Schumann's Three Romances, Op. 22. To remodel this from a work for violin and piano, I transposed the middle section down an octave in the clarinet part and revoiced the piano part to accommodate. This creates a more 'Brahmsian' texture again (especially in bars 46-48), but I think it works, embracing the richness of the clarinet's timbre.

You can find more of my arrangements here.

Clarinettist

Recital Excerpts

Ensemble Playing Excerpts

Arrangements for Clarinet and Piano

This website uses cookies.