“As a violin fellow this year with Sinfonia Smith Square, I enjoyed participating fully in our two back-to-back festivals leading up to Easter.

Not only did I perform with the orchestra in four concerts during the London Festival of Chamber Music and Easter Festival, but I also got to play in a unique chamber masterclass with a panel of renowned visiting artists, and was invited to curate and present an organ recital on Maundy Thursday.

It was a privilege to welcome such an illustrious collection of artists into our home at Smith Square Hall for the inaugural LFCM. They inspired us with their exceptional musicianship, as well as their friendly positivity, and openness to the wide and varied scope of the Festival. We were delighted to be joined again by our Artist in Residence, Eugene Lee, as concertmaster for the three concerts, whose wealth of experience and exemplary leadership never fails to inspire us. Three visiting artists also demonstrated their conducting skills with the orchestra, each of them bringing out the best in our ensemble. We benefited from the valuable experience of working with six of the artists through various concertos, and a particular highlight was performing Schubert’s Fifth Symphony under the baton of star-oboist François Leleux, whose musical genius, infectious wit and unwavering standards made him a favourite of the orchestra.

Outside of Smith Square, I am also an organist, and it was a treat to finally get my hands on the hall’s Sainsbury Organ. It was especially fortunate to have my recital scheduled on Maundy Thursday, as part of the Easter Festival, during what is such a pivotal time for liturgical music. I really enjoyed programming some of the most moving and uplifting music for this season in a recital that represented that spiritual journey from light into darkness. I was kept busy alongside this recital too, as the fellowship strings had valuable mock auditions with panels from the Academy of St Martin in the Fields this week, and we also performed a final programme of the term featuring Poulenc’s intricate Sinfonietta and Faure’s Requiem. These were certainly two weeks to remember, and a fitting end to an action-packed term for Sinfonia Smith Square!”