"Ever since I joined TYO, I've loved every minute of it. It's amazing to be given the opportunity to perform in a large-scale symphony orchestra playing exciting and challenging music. We work together week by week to put together pieces, building strong friendships along the way, and the help and support given by section coaches and conductor always pushes you to make every effort and to create the best sound possible.

TYO has not only introduced me to a wide variety of Romantic and contemporary music, but it has also created exciting new opportunities, including performing with talented soloists as well as playing in central London and abroad. Playing in such a high-calibre ensemble as TYO has taught me teamwork, discipline and communication, but most of all, it's a lot of fun."

Natalie Rukuts

The staff

Simon Ferris - musical director

Simon Ferris, founder director of the Thames Youth Orchestra, read music and was organ scholar at King's College London. As an undergraduate he pursued additional instrumental and musicianship studies with Bernard Oram at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and, after graduation, received composition tuition and encouragement from the composer and John Ireland pupil, Geoffrey Bush.

A skilled and experienced jazz pianist, Simon’s wide-ranging professional career now embraces an array of genres and disciplines, as performer, composer (published by ABRSM), arranger, writer (with programme note credits for, among others the Maggini Quartet and the Hanover Band), conductor and teacher, with duties including preparing children’s choirs for the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden.

Simon is currently Musician in Residence at Tiffin School, and Musician in Residence at Tiffin Girls' School, Kingston upon Thames, where in addition to his composing and performing duties he also teaches harmony.

Ian Stott - brass coach

Ian Stott started playing the horn at the age of 11. He studied at the Birmingham Conservatoire Junior Department and gained grade 8 at 15. At 16 he enlisted in the Band of the Life Guards and continued his studies with Denzil Floyd at the Guards School of Music and at Kneller Hall, where he won the horn prize. He became the band’s principal horn at 18 following his equitation training, and went on to play at many state occasions, including the wedding of Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson, Trooping the Colour and the Garter ceremony. He served, as a medic, in the first gulf war, the Bosnian conflict and the 1989 UK ambulance strike.

Ian continued his studies part-time at the Guildhall school of music with Jonathan Lipton and in 1996 left the army to pursue a freelance teaching and playing career. He currently teaches at Tiffin School, Tiffin Girls’ School and Epsom College and has recently been made head of brass for Richmond Music Trust. Ian also performs with several chamber ensembles - notably Chameleon Brass - and has performed with the London Concert and
the National Symphony Orchestras.

Adrian Charlesworth - violins coach

Adrian is a freelance violinist and works throughout Great Britain, but especially in London, playing for many orchestras including the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra, and in trios and small ensembles. He has played for Sir Simon Rattle, Sir Andrew Davis, Sir Charles Mackerras and Mark Elder and in the English National Ballet's production of The Nutcracker.

Adrian regularly leads orchestras and has led and played solo with the BBC Symphony Orchestra. He performed The Lark Ascending during Vaughan Williams' 50th anniversary year under the baton of Lev Parikian and leads the Brent Symphony Orchestra. He has recently played for The Queen and also one of the Queens of pop, Kylie Minogue; has perfomed on TV, gained various CD and film performance credits and played for the launch of makebelievethemusical.com

He is involved with string coaching for the I.A.P.S. Training Orchestra (as Principal string coach ) and Surrey County Youth Orchestra and has coached the National Children's Orchestra.
Adrian supplements his playing by teaching at St. George's College, Woldingham and Reigate Grammar and is on The Board of The Rehearsal Orchestra.

Pippa Hyde - lower strings coach

Pippa Hyde read music at Newnham College Cambridge, studying cello as a part-time student at the Guildhall School of Music and subsequently with Caroline Bosanquet.  Some years after graduating, she saw a performance of the Mendelssohn Octet which changed her life, and specifically her first instrument, inspiring her to start the viola from scratch and then study it part-time back at Guildhall.  She now switches happily between instruments and enjoys playing both in chamber and orchestral music.

Pippa is Assistant Director of Music at Kingston Grammar School, where she is particularly interested in developing the string playing.  In addition she is a keen and enthusiastic singer and, as Director of the Girls’ Choir of Kingston Parish Church, is passionately committed to developing singing opportunities for local girls.

Ben Porter - percussion coach

Andrew Watson - woodwind coach

Originally from Aberdeenshire, Andrew Watson started playing the bassoon at the age of 12. He studied at the University of Glasgow (2001-05) with Alison Green, and at the Royal College of Music (2005-07) with Sarah Burnett, Andrea de Flammineis and Martin Field, graduating with an Advanced Postgraduate Diploma with Distinction in 2007. In 2007-08 he continued at the RCM for a further year, holding the position of Anthony Saltmarsh Junior Fellow.

Andrew now combines teaching with performing. As a freelance bassoonist, he has played with several of the UK’s leading orchestras, including the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House and the London Symphony Orchestra. He has performed at the Cheltenham and Aldeburgh festivals, and has toured to Mumbai twice with the Symphony Orchestra of India. An enthusiastic chamber musician, Andrew is currently a member of the Alma Trio and the Mezereon Ensemble. He was appointed Woodwind Coach with the TYO in March 2008.

Represented Schools

The following schools currently have pupils playing in the orchestra:

Esher College
Esher High School
Hampton School
Halliford School
Hinchley Wood School
Kingston Grammar School
Putney High School
Surbiton High School
Teddington School
The Lady Eleanor Holles School
The Tiffin Girls' School
Tiffin School

The Orchestra