the ensemble
The Scottish Clarinet Quartet
(SCQ) consists of four prize-winning musicians who met whilst students
at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. Over the past four
years, the group has enjoyed acclaim and success as Scotland’s foremost
clarinet quartet, performing at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe,
Glasgow’s West End Festival, and venues across the UK from Cambridge to
Campbeltown. SCQ's principal goal is to communicate the players' own
enjoyment and
excitement to their audiences, inspiring and
entertaining in equal
measure. The versatility of the clarinet and the virtuosity of the
players enable them to present a fascinating range of material, making
for unforgettable concerts. SCQ also has a strong focus on
commissioning and performing
new music, whilst exploring the kaleidoscopic soundworld offered by the
extended clarinet family.
the players
Andrew Langford
graduated from the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (RSAMD) in
2001 and now enjoys a successful career as a freelance clarinettist,
performing with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra (RSNO), BBC
Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Ulster
Orchestra, Scottish Opera, Scottish Ballet and Paragon Ensemble. He
also teaches at Jordanhill School and Strathclyde University.
Nicola Long holds the
MMus and PGDip qualifications from the RSAMD, graduating in 2004.
Whilst a student at the Academy she was awarded the Governors’ Prize
and the Mary D Adams Prize for chamber music, as well as gaining a
place on the RSNO apprentice scheme and participating as a soloist on
commercial (Naxos) recordings with John Wallace (Principal, RSAMD).
During her previous studies at Napier University, Edinburgh, she gave
Scottish premieres of works by Sally Beamish and Kenneth Dempster.
Nicola is much in demand as a soloist, recent performances including
John Macleod’s Dramatic Landscapes (RSAMD, 2004) and both concertos by
Weber (No.1 with the Edinburgh Philharmonic Orchestra in 2003, No.2
with the Kelvin Ensemble in 2002). She is dedicated to taking music
into the community, and gives frequent performances for the Council for
Music in Hospitals.
Rebecca Smith trained at
the RNCM in Manchester, where she performed regularly with the RNCM New
Ensemble. Returning to her native Scotland to study for an MMus at the
RSAMD, she was awarded the Governors’ Prize for chamber music and began
her orchestral freelance career with the RSNO. After graduating in 2000
she cofounded the symposia contemporary
music ensemble, with whom she organised composer workshops and gave the
first performances of pieces by John Hails, Matthew Rogers, Oliver
Searle and many other composers, during a residency at the Arches,
Glasgow. Rebecca’s speciality is bass clarinet, and she recently
travelled to Rotterdam to study with Henri Bok, who runs the world’s
only bass clarinet degree course at the Rotterdam Conservatoire.
Alex South is a
graduate of the University of Cambridge and the RSAMD. He has studied
the clarinet with Kate Romano, Nicholas Cox and John Cushing, and bass
clarinet with Michael Huntriss and Henri Bok. Alex is now based in
Glasgow, where he specialises in the performance of contemporary
chamber music, working with SCQ and the recently-formed Research
Ensemble. Solo work this year has included two performances of the
Mozart concerto, with the Helensburgh Chamber Orchestra and Collegium
Laureatum. His other interests include philosophy and hill-walking.
This page
last updated 09/07/2006