BIOGRAPHY
I am a classically trained musician with an LRSM Performance Diploma on the Flute and the ABRSM diploma on the piano, flute and recorder. My interest in Brazil stemmed from after learning with Brazilian flute teacher aged 10. I then went on to attend the Junior Academy (Royal Academy of Music).
My interest in Latin America led me to study Spanish and Portuguese with Music at the University of Birmingham, taking flute lessons at Birmingham Conservatoire. I spent the third year of my degree in Buenos Aires, Argentina, studying tango and Argentine folk at the Conservatorio Nacional Astor Piazzolla. For my final year in Birmingham I specialised in Music performance and ethnomusicology, graduating with a 1st Class degree. After graduating, I spent 8 months in Brazil, where I played as much choro as possible and led community music projects. I directed a children's play in a favela in Rio, and led music workshops in the Amazon.
I returned to complete a Masters in Music Leadership at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama. This included composition, performance, community music and cross-arts collaborations. I attended creative residencies with sound artists, composers, theatre directors and visual artists, and led music projects in the UK, Argentina and Palestine.
I am now a freelance flute flute player in diverse styles of music, ranging from Brazilian music to jazz, Latin and folk. I perform frequently at venues and festivals around the UK and internationally, including Kings Place, The Royal Festival Hall, Shambala, the Barbican and Wilderness. My primary bands are the award-winning choro quintet Alvorada, with which I recorded two albums, and rootsy flute-fuelled Olayá, with which I have an album on the way. I also collaborate with a multitude of artists, for example Luiz Morais (Brazilian jazz), Nubiyan Twist (afro/jazz), Novos Londrinos (original bossa nova), Camilo Menjura (Latin), Identidades (flamenco), Lydia Samuels (UK folk). I am artistic director of the London Choro Festival, which premiered in 2025.
As a composer, I write frequently for my bands Alvorada and Olayá. I was commissioned to write a tune for the ABRSM 2026 Grade 4 flute syllabus (Pula Pula), plus arranged traditional choros for various instruments/ grades. I co-created and composed the music for the children's puppet show show Stories on a String.
I have been working in the field of music education for many years. I teach the flute and piano privately, teach group multi-instrument ensembles and lead music workshops in both Brazilian music and songwriting / collaborative composition- see Education & Outreach for more info.