Who we are

Timothy Dean was educated at Reading University and the Royal College of Music. He was chorus master and head of music for Kent Opera for ten years, conducting tours in the UK and abroad.

In 1987, he was appointed the first music director, and subsequently artistic director, of British Youth Opera, developing the company into a vital part of the infrastructure for training young singers and musicians in the UK.

Having spent a year as assistant music director for the New D’Oyly Carte Opera Company, conducting tours in the UK and USA, he went on to make company debuts with English National Opera and Scottish Opera. He was also conductor of the London Bach Society in the late 1980s and director of the RSNO Chorus from 2006 to 2014.

In 1994, he was appointed head of opera at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland in Glasgow, responsible for postgraduate courses in opera training for singers and repetiteurs, conducting over 50 new opera productions in Glasgow and Edinburgh. He was made a Fellow of the RCS in 2010 and subsequently a Professor of the Conservatoire. He led collaborative projects with the Conservatoire of Rostov-on-Don in Russia, culminating in performances of a new edition of Prokofiev’s ‘War and Peace’ in 2010, which subsequently received a Royal Philharmonic Society Award nomination.

He is artistic director of both the Royal Conservatoire’s ‘Song Studio’ giving recitals with young singers all over Scotland, and RCS Voices, a vocal ensemble created to perform early and contemporary repertoire, broadcasting on BBC Radio 3 and appearing at the Edinburgh and St Magnus Festivals.

He has worked with the RSNO, Orchestra of Scottish Opera, English Chamber Orchestra and the Paragon Ensemble.

In 2013, he conducted The Cunning Little Vixen for the Hong Kong Academy of the Performing Arts and in 2014 was Artist-in-Residence at the Hochschule in Nuremberg. In 2018, he relinquished his full time position in Scotland to move to Cornwall, and continues to be active as coach, accompanist, adjudicator and conductor.

He is founder of the Chapel Street Ensemble, and the Chapel Street Music Festival, and chairman of the charity, Chapel Street Music.

Currently based in West Cornwall, Danielle Poznansky Jones is an active musician and cello teacher. Danny comes from Hayle and began learning the cello with Ray Didcock in Newlyn when she was seven. She went on to attend Chetham’s School of Music in Manchester and subsequently studied at the Royal Northern College of Music; her principal teachers were Gillian Thoday and Eduardo Vassallo. Danny has performed as a soloist, chamber musician and orchestral player across the South West, and has given recitals at Truro Cathedral, the St. Ives September Festival, Golowan Festival and at Dartington Hall. Recent personal highlights have included concerts given with the highly acclaimed Sacconi and Benyounes string quartets. In February 2020 Danny performed the Saint Saens Cello Concerto with Truro Sinfonia and in March 2020 was the soloist in Haydn’s Cello Concerto in C in a performance at Truro Cathedral. Danny is an enthusiastic cello teacher, in 2017 she gained a string teaching PGcert from the European String Teachers Association and enjoys working with children as well as adult pupils. Danny’s cello was made in 2009 by Helen Michetschlager.

Emma’s passion for teaching, performing and studying music has taken her all over the world before moving to Cornwall in September 2019. She studied violin and viola at both Junior and Senior departments of the Guildhall School of Music & Drama with Tim Boulton, Krzysztof Smietana and Rivka Golani. After graduating she taught violin and viola in Abu Dhabi for eight years including setting up a youth string orchestra for Abu Dhabi’s most talented string players. Emma holds a diploma in music education from the Kodály Institute in Hungary and also completed a Master’s degree at UCLA (University of California, Los Angeles) studying with Richard O’Neill (Takacs Quartet) and Carla Maria Rodrigues (principal viola, San Francisco opera). She was awarded several scholarships at UCLA, including the Elaine Krown Scholarship for the arts. During her time in California she taught on UCLA’s music partnership programme working with underserved communities, as the teaching assistant for the strings department and for musicologist and cellist Elisabeth Le Guin’s Early Music Ensemble. Since returning to Britain, Emma has been teaching Kodály musicianship at Junior Guildhall and is working with her former teacher, Tim Boulton in West Cornwall. Since moving to Cornwall, Emma has started string programs in four local primary schools, coached Cornwall Youth Orchestra and helped organise and teach on a music summer program for the Syrian refugee families settled in the area. As a performer, Emma has a particular love for playing chamber music and is versatile in her experience, from performing with Kanye West and Harry Connick Jr. to orchestral playing and solo recitals. In the Emirates, she ran a chamber music series and in the USA, her quartet was a fellowship quartet at Apple Hill Center for Chamber Music in New Hampshire, USA.

Karen was born in Cornwall and was fortunate to learnt the flute with the late Jennet Campbell who had a profound effect on her early musical life. Studying at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, Karen also studied piccolo and piano accompaniment. Her first teaching job was with the then Leicestershire Arts in Education where she taught flute and directed ensembles. She established herself as a flute player across Leicestershire and the East Midlands, playing in orchestras and ensembles, before gaining her qualified teacher status and side stepping into the classroom for a few years. Moving back to Cornwall led Karen back into instrumental teaching and she has worked for the Cornwall Music Service Trust and currently teaches at Truro School. She plays in several orchestras and ensembles across Cornwall and the South West, and runs a thriving singing group where the focus is on wellbeing.

Born in Hayle and educated in Cornwall, Jacqueline began playing the French Horn at the age of eleven. Jacqueline soon joined the Cornwall Youth Orchestra, Cornwall Youth Jazz Orchestra, Cornwall Youth Brass Ensemble, Chimba chamber group and the Jacodell Ensemble (now renamed the Cornish Wind Quintet). Jacqueline then went on to study in London at both The Royal Academy of Music and The Guildhall School of Music & Drama. Whilst in London, Jacqueline played with many professional orchestras and ensembles, including English National Opera and the London Sinfonietta. In 1994 she was invited to join the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra – the broadcasting authority orchestra for Israel. Jacqueline lived and worked in Jerusalem for the next three years, with tours of Europe and America too – with the final concert of the USA tour taking place in New York’s Carnegie Hall. Jacqueline now lives back in Hayle and is in high demand as both a performer and teacher. She is the Horn Specialist and manager of the ‘Gifted and Talented’ awards, for the Cornwall Music Service Trust and teaches privately too. Jacqueline is a frequent performer with orchestras throughout Devon and Cornwall. She also performs regularly with chamber ensembles and as a soloist. When she is not involved in musical activities, Jacqueline enjoys – baking, knitting, crafting and mountain biking. Jacqueline can also be found playing with Lego and remote control cars in her role as STEM Adviser for Girl Guiding Cornwall.

Having attended Chetham’s School of Music in Manchester, Nat Jones graduated from the Royal College of Music before working as a freelance violinist based in London. During that time he played with the English Chamber Orchestra at the Royal Albert Hall, participated in theater productions at the Lowry Theatre, Salford, did recordings at Abbey Road and Air Studios, and toured with productions across stadiums in the UK and Europe, including Wembley, the 02 Arena, and the Heineken Music Hall, Amsterdam. Nat worked for the Cornwall Music Trust from 2016- 2019. As a musician in Cornwall Nat performs chamber music frequently as part of the Chapel Street Ensemble, leads the Cornwall Quartet, and plays with The Three Spires, Cornish Sinfonia and Truro Symphony Orchestra. He is part of a semi-regular group which plays at the Eden project, as well as other freelance work in and out of the county.

Katy Rowe is a talented and flexible professional violinist currently working across the UK and abroad but choosing Cornwall as her home. Katy’s performances span many fields from chamber music to soloist, session musician and orchestral player. With a love for collaborating with other artists and art forms, Katy has also performed in several theatre productions…singing, playing bass guitar and percussion, using loop pedals and sharing the stage with puppets! Her passion and commitment towards outreach and educational work has seen Katy work for the Live Music Now scheme, the Cavatina Chamber Music Trust, Music In Action and Hemi Help. She has led many arts projects engaging vulnerable young people with music-making and performance as well as establishing a successful private teaching practice. As a session musician and string arranger, Katy has significant experience of the studio working across radio, film and television. Katy’s studies at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama (RWCMD) began with a full entrance scholarship and upon graduation saw her being awarded a first class honours degree. She was then selected for and enjoyed a short placement at The Newcastle Conservatoire in Australia, completed two more years at the RWCMD which resulted in a distinction in performance for her Postgraduate Diploma. During her college years Katy received many prizes for outstanding performance as both a soloist and chamber musician. She was also selected three years running to take part in the prestigious string placement scheme with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales. Upon leaving the RWCMD Katy was awarded a Junior Fellowship.

Sally studied the bassoon at the Royal Northern College of Music where she won bassoon and chamber music prizes. She has played with a range of orchestras in the UK including the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and Manchester Camerata. Sally has played chamber music with the London Concertante and Chamberhouse Winds, including a recital at the Wigmore Hall. She is currently principal bassoon with the Bristol Ensemble, with a busy schedule of concerts in the Bristol area, and also plays with the Sarum Chamber Orchestra and the British Sinfonietta. Sally moved to Cornwall in 2019 and now lives at Jopes Mill, near Liskeard, where she and her husband are setting up a range of music activities, including an annual music festival and regular chamber music recitals. Since moving to Cornwall, Sally has performed with local musicians at the Eden Project, Minack Theatre and Truro Cathedral as well as performing with the Chapel Street Ensemble.

Seb was born in Chester, UK, in 1988 before moving to St Ives, Cornwall, in 1991 where he spent his formative years. At the age of seven Seb picked up a cello for the first time after being inspired by a portrait of a lady playing the cello; by that time, he had been playing the piano for two years. In 2005, Seb was offered a scholarship to study at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama where he went onto learn from the great English cellist Richard May whilst also gaining tuition from Peter Esswood. He was also fortunate enough to perform in master classes run by cellists such as Paul Watkins, Pieter Wispelwey, Leonid Gorokhov, Tim Hugh, Josef Luptak and Thomas Carroll. Seb won highly competitive and prestigious orchestral placements with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales and the Welsh National Opera whilst leading the cello section of the RWCMD Orchestra. This led to several inspiring experiences with legendary musicians such as Sir Charles Mackerris, Joshua Bell, and Maxim Vengerov. Seb gained a place at the Royal College of Music to undertake Postgraduate Studies in 2010. During this time, he learnt under one of Frances’ finest cellists and pedagogues Helene Dautry. During his year in London, he was fortunate to perform with Vladmir Ashkenazy and Bernard Haitink as a member of the RCM Orchestra. From 2011-2017 Seb was living, working, and performing in the Cayman Islands. Whilst working with the music company Musicians LTD, Seb performed at several Cayman Arts Festival events, conducted the National Orchestra in concerts during 2013/14, adjudicated for the National Children’s Festival of Arts, and collaborated with several local musicians, notably concert pianist Glen Inanga. Additionally, during this period he achieved a Trinity LTCL Diploma for Performance. Since 2018, Seb has undertaken TCL grade and diploma examining tours around the U.K. and in India, Malaysia, Vietnam, Ireland, Trinidad, Barbados, Jamaica, Antigua, and the UAE. Alongside life as an examiner, Seb is based in Hayle, Cornwall, where he lives with his wife and their two children. He performs regularly around the U.K. both as a chamber and orchestral musician, including recent work with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and the dance anthem orchestra Symphonica.

Following five years of study at the Royal College of Music, London with Christopher Cowie and Mike Winfield, Tamsin enjoyed a busy career as a freelance oboist on London’s orchestral circuit before returning to her Cornish roots to raise her family. Here, she continues as a successful orchestral principal and soloist, performing extensively throughout the South West. Tamsin has specialised in double reed teaching for 15 years, and during that time she has helped many of her students achieve exceptional standards, often gaining recognition for excellence at national level. Many have gained scholarships to the top music conservatoires such as the Royal Academy of Music, the Royal College of Music, the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, Birmingham Conservatoire, and the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. Several of Tamsin’s students have also held prestigious principal positions in national ensembles such as the National Youth Orchestra and the National Youth Wind Orchestra. Tamsin is also responsible for coaching the woodwind section of Cornwall Youth Orchestra. When not playing or teaching, Tamsin loves to run through the Cornish countryside with her dog Bertie, and enjoys cooking and baking for her hungry family!

Jacob began playing the clarinet at the age of eight with the Cornwall Music Service Trust before undertaking Undergraduate and Postgraduate studies at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire with Jo Patton, Anna Hashimoto and Sally Harrop. Jacob won the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire Woodwind Prize in 2018. Whilst at Conservatoire Jacob received chamber music coaching from the renowned Atea Wind Quintet, and his own wind quintet ‘Lumos’ were invited to perform as the resident outreach ensemble for the Hot Springs Music Festival in Arkansas in 2019. Jacob has enjoyed a varied freelance career so far, including working with Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Bath Philharmonia, Southern Sinfonia, St Petersburg Classic Ballet, Orchestra of the Swan and London Contemporary Orchestra. He has appeared as a soloist with Cornish Sinfonia, Stafford Sinfonia, Royal Birmingham Conservatoire Symphony Orchestra and St Mary’s Sinfonia performing concertos by Mozart, Weber and Ian Stephens. In 2022 Jacob gave the world premier of Ian Stephens Carricknath for Solo Clarinet and orchestra at the Minack Theatre.