Philippa Barton

Philippa was born into a musical family and began playing the violin at the age of six. She studied at the Royal College of Music with Trevor Williams and Dona Lee Croft, during which time she led both the RCM Chamber Orchestra and the Young Musicians’ Symphony Orchestra.

Philippa spent three years with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra before returning to London to freelance with orchestras such as the BBC Symphony Orchestra, the London Mozart Players and the City of London Sinfonia. Her solo performances have included Tchaikovsky, Bruch, Bach, Mozart and Vivaldi concerti, Vaughan Williams’ Lark Ascending, Chausson’s Poeme and Brahms’ Concerto for Violin and Cello.

Philippa continues to enjoy a wide variety of work and leads a number of ensembles such as the Kings Chamber Orchestra, the Cornerstone Chamber Orchestra in Milton Keynes and the Essex Symphony Orchestra. She also plays throughout the UK with the London Concertante and has a growing solo repertoire.

In her teaching and coaching role, Philippa enjoys working both with individuals and with string sections, helping students to overcome technical difficulties, but most of all aiding them to find and express their own musical voice. She has returned to coach members of her own Youth Orchestra (Essex) and has led many excellent amateur orchestras, notably West London Sinfonia and Colchester Symphony Orchestra.

Philippa performed the Mendelssohn Concerto with the Brentwood Philharmonic Orchestra in 2012, having enjoyed playing the Brahms Concerto for Violin and Cello with it in 2010.