Formed in 2021, the Elgar Ensemble is a group of young and versatile musicians who celebrate British music and champion the unsung heroes of the 19th and 20th century British repertoire. Taking inspiration from the Worcestershire titan, Sir Edward Elgar, it is their mission to showcase the breadth and romantic scope of the music of his time and how this fits into the repertoire timeline. Partly due to Britain’s lack of an individualistic style, much of the pre-Elgarian repertoire has been lost or forgotten and it is Elgar Ensemble’s mission to revive these works and bring them into mainstream concert programmes.
Elgar Ensemble were 2021-22 Junior Fellows at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama where they were mentored by Professors Carole Presland, Jacqueline Ross and members of the Endellion String Quartet, who were of particular inspiration. In 2022, Elgar Ensemble was invited to participate in the Wye Valley Chamber Music Festival where they enjoyed working closely with, among others, members of the Brodsky and Lindsay Strings Quartets.
The Ensemble gives regular recitals across Worcestershire and London.
CHARLIE BROOKES • VIOLIN
Malvern-born violinist Charlie Brookes has been fortunate to study with some of the UK’s finest violinists, including Lucy Gould (Gould Piano Trio) and Itzhak Rashkovsky at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama and Joshua Fisher and Alexander Sitkovetsky during his Master’s degree at the Royal Academy of Music in London. At both RWCMD and the Academy, Charlie was selected as a member of their respective String Soloist ensembles where he closely collaborated with artists including Henning Kraggerud, Adrian Brendel and Clio Gould for events at the Queen Elizabeth Hall and Buckingham Palace. Throughout his studies, Charlie was generously supported by the Elmley Foundation, Clive and Sylvia Richards Charity, EMI Music Sound Foundation and the Royal Philharmonic Society. Charlie enjoys a varied career of teaching and freelancing with ensembles including the English National Ballet, Welsh National Opera, Ulster Orchestra, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, European Union Chamber Orchestra, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, English Symphony Orchestra and the Brent Symphony Orchestra, where he currently holds the position as Concertmaster. Charlie is the founder of the Elgar Ensemble and plays an Italian violin by Antonio Pelizon made in Gorizia in 1810.
ANNA RYLAND-JONES • CELLO
Anna holds an undergraduate degree from the Royal Northern College of Music and a postgraduate degree from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama where she also completed a year as Junior Fellow. She enjoys a busy and varied career as a ‘cellist which combines teaching and performing, both as a soloist and chamber musician. Anna studied with Emma Ferrand and Petr Prause at RNCM and with Tim Lowe at GSMD and she has played in masterclasses with István Várdai, Adrian Brendel, Pierre Doumenge, Tim Hugh, Lowri Blake, Matthew Lowe, and Alice Neary. Anna has previously taught at the North London Conservatoire and is a member of the Kings Chamber Orchestra, Elgar Ensemble, and the Summa Quartet. Resident in both London and Tallinn, Anna divides her time between the UK, Estonia, and Finland, performing frequently in all three.
BRIAN RHUNG WEI LOW • PIANO
Brian Low Rhung Wei is a concert pianist and piano tutor who recently was offered to record under the Orpheus Classical music label. Currently undertaking his Master’s degree at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, Brian is under the tutelage of Professor Carole Presland and Professor Noriko Ogawa, having previously finished his BMus with a First-Class Honours at the Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM). Having taken formal piano lessons from the age of 7, Brian went on to further his music studies at Wells Cathedral School (WCS), Somerset with a full scholarship as a Specialist Musician from 2008 until 2016, where he studied piano with Head of Keyboard, Professor John Byrne. In 2017, the opportunity arose for Brian to work with renowned British composer, Mark Anthony-Turnage, where he performed Turnage’s piano solo composition of ‘True Life Stories’ in Manchester, and at the Wigmore Hall in London in May 2018. Brian was also invited from his previous piano competition success to perform in the XXIV International Chopin Festival held in Busko-Zdrój, Poland. In October 2018, Brian featured in the RNCM Composer In-Focus, Kaija Saariaho, performing her new work, Arabesques et Adages for solo piano. Brian has also played in several engagements across England, including being invited as a piano/trumpet duo alongside the Manchester Camerata in Colne and to perform Mendelssohn’s Piano Concerto No. 1 with the Exeter Symphony Orchestra.