"Manchester Reed Trio"

Bethan Roberts has lived in the North West region for twelve years, having moved initially to study music at Manchester University, and then at the Royal Northern College of Music. Having graduated with a MusM in performance, she has since been enjoying a busy and varied career as a freelance oboist. Bethan has worked with many of the major orchestras in the area such as the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra and also smaller scale opera ensembles. Chamber music has always been a huge part of her musical life and she is a member of several groups, giving regular recitals and workshops. As a member of the Langdale Ensemble Wind Quintet, she worked on the Live Music Now scheme for five years. She has worked for the Music in Hospitals charity including a tour of residential homes in Guernsey in 2005. Recently, Bethan has been involved with music and maths projects at primary schools, with the organisation Create, where she collaborated with the children to compose new and original pieces of music through improvisation and various compositional techniques, such as graphic scores. Bethan has a flourishing teaching practice and is also a keen composer and arranger, having had a student composition performed by the Lindsay String Quartet.

Rachel Fillhart was born in Holland in 1978, and moved to Canada when she was six. She received scholarships to attend the Royal Academy of Music and later, the Royal Northern College of Music. In 2004 Rachel won an audition for the Assistant Principal Clarinet position with the Orchestra of the Algarve, Portugal. She worked there for three years, performing orchestral and chamber music concerts throughout Europe, and appeared as a concerto soloist on several occasions. She now works as a freelance clarinettist, based in the northwest of England, and has performed with orchestras including the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, and the Halle. She is a keen chamber musician, and performs regularly with the pianist Kathryn Eves as the Chalumeau Duo. Rachel is the clarinet tutor at Ampleforth College; Yorkshire, as well as having her own private teaching studio.

Sarah Nixon was born in Reading in 1978. Originally a flute player, she went on to learn bassoon at The Royal Northern College of Music. Since graduating she has been pursuing a busy and varied freelance performing career. In addition to playing frequently with some of the country’s top orchestras, including a trial period for the position of Principal Contra Bassoon with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, Sarah’s musical interests are diverse, and she is passionate about teaching. Sarah enjoys working with people who have limited access to live music such as the special needs community and the elderly, particularly with her two chamber music ensembles, The Langdale Ensemble and The Manchester Reed Trio. Work with her trio has recently expanded into the benefits of music in the health, sector, an area that Sarah is particularly excited about exploring further.