Wind tutors

Jo studied Bassoon and Contra Bassoon at Birmingham Conservatoire and the Royal College of Music with Maria Mealey, Martin Gatt, Sarah Burnett, Margaret Cookhorn and Martin Field. She now combines freelance orchestral playing and chamber music with various groups throughout the UK. 

Jo’s orchestral work includes; BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Raymond Gubbay Ltd, Orchestra of the Swan, Opera Box, Southbank Sinfonia, Hampstead Garden Opera, Queen's Park Sinfonia, Midland Sinfonia, Spires Orchestra, Opéra de Baugé, English Philharmonic, English Camerata, Thursford Christmas Spectacular, 2004 – 10 (Bassoon/Contra), Iford Arts Opera, Alfie Boe ‘Bring him home’ Tour, Steve Hackett Tour.

She leads/conducts the Birmingham Bassoon Choir and performs with Unfaggotable Bassoon Quartet and Trio Capriccio, who regularly perform recitals, education projects, corporate functions and weddings. Recital programmes have included: Poulenc Sextet, Mozart Piano Quintet, Nielsen, Hindemith, Parker Mississippi Five, Holst, Arnold Quintet and Sea Shanties and Francaix Quartet. 

Jo’s education experience includes numerous workshops and a tour of Norfolk Schools with Elastic Band, workshops with GCSE pupils with BCMG, Bassoon days with Birmingham Music Service and Birmingham Bassoon Choir and coaching chamber music for English Camerata. She currently teaches Bassoon at Royal Birmingham Junior Conservatoire, King Edward VI High School for Girls, Bluecoat School, King's High Warwick, King Edward VI Aston School, Trent College and The Elms.

Jo teaches Bassoon across a wide range of ages, starting from Year 4 through to adults. She teaches from beginner through to Conservatoire level. This includes examinations relevant to their situation.

Contact email: jomayne@hotmail.co.uk

Please note that Music Department facilities can only be used for lessons by members of the University of Nottingham. While some of the tutors do offer tuition to members of the public, these are private arrangements and University facilities cannot be used. 

RNCM

Dana Morgan studied at the Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM), before going on to study improvisation with the contemporary flute specialist Robert Dick in Quebec, Canada. She has received many prizes and accolades for her playing, and has performed as a soloist internationally. Recent concerto performances in the UK have included the Khachaturian flute concerto; Mendelssohn's Violin concerto in E minor; Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 4; and concertos by Nielsen, Ibert and Reinecke. She has also participated in chamber and orchestral concerts in France, Italy, the Netherlands and Quebec. Dana recently returned from a solo tour around Australia and New Zealand with pianist Charles Matthews, and is a member of the Cuillin Sound wind trio. She has given masterclasses and workshops on contemporary flute techniques throughout the UK.

Dana has worked extensively on the classical and contemporary repertoire for flute and piano, in collaboration with pianist Antony Clare. She has also performed in concerts with musicians from around the world in an eclectic range of genres ranging from folk through to Bollywood and Latin American music. She has become a specialist on the rare G treble flute inanition of various bamboo flutes, pipes and whistles. Dana is an artist for Alfred Verhoef flutes.

Simon began playing the oboe at the age of eight, going on to study with teachers including Robin Canter, Douglas Boyd and Melinda Maxwell both as a music scholar at Wells Cathedral School and as a student at the Royal Academy of Music. He has won several awards for chamber music, including the Blake Prize (RAM) and being appointed Resident Artist with Chameleon Wind Quintet at Banff Festival, Canada. Playing with a number of small ensembles he has given hundreds of recitals for music societies, festivals and concert series at venues throughout the UK and abroad. Musically adventurous, these concerts have featured challenging and rarely performed repertoire by composers such as Berio, Ligeti, Elliott Carter, John Harbison and Isang Yun. This interest in contemporary music has led to two appearances for the Park Lane Group Young Artists Concert Series at the Southbank Centre, including a world premiere for wind trio and tape subsequently broadcast on BBC Radio Three. In addition, he has played for orchestras in the UK and internationally, working with renowned soloists such as Peter Donohoe, Natalie Clein, Catrin Finch and Craig Ogden. As soloist himself, Simon has performed all the major oboe concertos. He has played for several recent UK tours of commercial productions including ‘IlDivo’, ‘Genesis Revisited’ and ‘Queen Symphonic’. Recording work includes broadcasts for BBC Television and Radio, as well as sessions for film soundtracks and commercial releases by Universal Classics & Jazz, Sony Music and The Royal Shakespeare Company.

As a teacher with many years’ experience, Simon has taught pupils of all standards from beginner through to diploma and degree level. He has also provided in-depth help for booklets and fingering charts aimed at the student oboist, published by Dr. Downing Music. With a varied background in musical performance Simon has taught, given masterclasses and worked widely as a woodwind tutor and ensemble coach for schools, youth orchestras, residential music courses and with students at Birmingham Conservatoire Junior Department and Coventry University. 

Oboe tuition from beginner to advanced level.
Hand-made reeds available for all standards.
Contact email: s.dewhurst19@gmail.com

GRSM (Hons), Dip RCM (sax), Dip RCM (piano)

Born in Nottingham, Alistair is a graduate of the Royal College of Music. He has taught for more than 25 years, and many of his students have gained places at national conservatories. His professional playing work includes the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, the Birmingham Contemporary Music Group, the Flotilla Saxophone Ensemble and the Tribune Sax Octet. He leads the Northern Saxophone Quartet and the Equinox Sax Ensemble and is guest conductor of the Nottingham Symphonic Wind Orchestra.

Alistair has produced two solo CDs and performed on other recordings as ensemble member, conductor or arranger. He also works as an accompanist and adjudicator. He has performed many times on radio and television and at the World Saxophone Congress.

"A soloist of immaculate taste and lyricism" - John Fordham (The Guardian)

Born in Nottingham, Ben studied with Jan Kopinski, George Carmichael, Sheryl Bailey and Mike Hall before embarking on a career that has seen him perform with Kenny Wheeler, Andy Sheppard, Jim Mullen, Gilbert ‘O’ Sullivan, Tina May, Groove Armada, Jimmy James and Clem Curtis. He was also MD for Decca recording artist Natalie Duncan. 

Ben has recorded many albums under his own name and with The Jamil Sheriff Octet, Nicola Farnon Band, and Pat McCarthy Band, and has also recorded for radio and TV. 

Ben has taught saxophone privately for 15 years as well as being course tutor at New College Nottingham, visiting tutor at L'AULA de Música Moderna i Jazz, Barcelona, course tutor for Leicestershire Arts Rock school, and taught saxophone recording techniques at Confetti Studios and many jazz workshops in the Midlands area.

Ben teaches saxophone and flute. His teaching is mainly based on the jazz repertoire and improvisation but also includes posture, breathing and tone production, jazz harmony, modes and scales.

Ben likes to focus on building a solo, telling a story and stagecraft and performance, as well as how to put a programme of music together for a performance or recording session, recording techniques for woodwind instruments and mixing and producing live and studio sound.

Contact email: benjaminmartinmusic@gmail.com

Please note that Music Department facilities can only be used for lessons by members of the University of Nottingham. While some of the tutors do offer tuition to members of the public, these are private arrangements and University facilities cannot be used.