Adjudicator Spotlight: Sarah Freestone
Sarah is a member of the BBC Concert Orchestra. She began her musical career aged 7 playing and singing in folk clubs and by the age of 11 she was gigging regularly on guitar with her junior school jazz combo "The Average Height Band"... She went on to study guitar and violin as joint principal studies at the Royal Academy of Music, winning several prizes and awards on the way including the Julian Bream Prize, Queensland Conservatorium of Music Guitar Prize and semi-finalist in the Tarrega International Guitar Competition. She also studied bass guitar with the late great Jeff Cline, playing with the Royal Academy of Music Big Band. Sarah was the leader of the Lullingstone Quartet, Aditi Ensemble, Marcel Sinfonia and Future Music Records Orchestra and has been in demand as a multi-instrumentalist - guitars, electric violin, percussion and backing vocals - performing worldwide with artists including Alison Moyet and the legendary Lee Hazlewood. Sarah made her professional acting debut in the UK premiere of "Playing For Time", Arthur Miller's play about the women's orchestra in Auschwitz, at Salisbury Playhouse in 2005.
Sarah has worked in a wide variety of musical genres, as both writer and performer, from classical music to jazz, rock and pop. For the past eighteen years she has been the director of the Lullingstone String Quartet and has also written and performed string parts for T.V., pop & rock studio recordings and live performances. Her guitar and mandolin work has taken her to all kinds of venues playing all kinds of styles, from folk clubs and rock venues throughout Europe and the U.S. to the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Britten Sinfonia, Royal Opera House Orchestra, Opera North, English National Ballet, classical recitals and the West End. Recent shows on electric guitar include the UK tours of Jesus Christ Superstar and Blood Brothers as well as broadcasts for Radio 2 and Radio 3.
After 10 years as a lecturer in Popular Music and Performing Arts she combined her education work with performing, writing and conducting - Sarah has been Musical Director for over 40 productions, most recently the ballet "Winter Dreams" for the Royal Opera House and has conducted the Guildford Philharmonic, Dartford Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestra of the Thames Gateway and the Kingston University Chorus and Chamber Choir. Recent learning work includes devising and leading projects for the BBC Proms, Radio 3, BBC Concert Orchestra, Trinity Laban and the London Philharmonic Orchestra. As well as her conducting and presenting work she is spending an increasing amount of time writing and arranging - in 2010 Sarah had three compositions commissioned by the BBC and her recent arranging clients include the Royal Opera House, BBC and the current West End hit show "Thriller". She is the author of 5 guitar teaching books and wrote the score for BAFTA-winning scriptwriter Roy App's film, "Common Ground". Sarah is one half of the Ancora flute and guitar duo whose debut CD "Entrada" was released last year.
She is a violinist with the BBC Concert Orchestra and can often be heard on "Friday Night Is Music Night", the world's longest-running live music programme on radio. Her work with the orchestra has included recent performances with Kylie Minogue, Kiki Dee, Westlife, Madeleine Bell, Petula Clark, Alfie Boe, Nigel Kennedy, Shirley Bassey, Lulu, Chaka Khan, Smokey Robinson, The Feeling, Barry Manilow, Will Gregory (Goldfrapp), Robbie Williams, Tom Jones, Jessie J, Annie Lennox, Randy Newman, Gary Barlow and Johnny Greenwood (Radiohead).
You can find out more about Sarah on her website: http://www.sarahfreestone.com/