Staff A-Z

John has taught clarinet at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (formerly the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama) since 1978 and has given masterclasses and recitals throughout the country, primarily with pianist Scott Mitchell.

He was very proud to be awarded an Honorary Doctorate from RCS in July 2014 and in 2015 was the recipient of the Royal Philharmonic Society Salomon Prize. John is a trustee of the RSNO Foundation.

Huw Daniel was a pupil at Ysgol Gyfun Ystalyfera, South Wales, and continued his education as an organ scholar at Robinson College, Cambridge, where he graduated with first-class honours in music in 2001. He then studied baroque violin at the Royal Academy of Music for two years with Simon Standage.

Guido De Groote was born in Cape Town, South Africa to a family of professional musicians. He studied with Jack De Wet at the University of Stellenbosch, and then with Simon Fischer on full scholarship at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. He spent a number of years freelancing with British orchestras, in recording sessions and with alternative performing groups, until he became a permanent member of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra.

Mr Deacon is a lecturer of violin, viola and chamber music at the RCS. Mr Deacon also enjoys leading sectional rehearsals for the RCS Symphony Orchestra. Donnie also enjoys online teaching with students in the Middle East and North America.

Timothy Dean studied music at Reading University, and then piano and conducting at the Royal College of Music. He has been the Director of the RSNO Chorus since 2006 and is the Artistic Director of the RCS ‘Song Studio’.

Born in Glasgow, graduate of the New University of Ulster, Joyce trained as an actor at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (now Royal Conservatoire of Scotland), then studied at Ecole Jacques Lecoq in Paris.

Born in Glasgow, Scott Dickinson (viola) studied at the Music School of Douglas Academy and then in Manchester, London and Salzburg, where he won the Mozarteum Concerto Competition.

Born and raised in Alaska, Joshua arrived in Scotland in 1992 to study Scottish Gaelic at the University of Aberdeen (MA, 1996). He then undertook doctoral research in the history of the piping tradition of the southern Outer Hebrides at the School of Scottish Studies, University of Edinburgh (PhD, 2001), now published under the title When Piping Was Strong: Tradition, Change and the Bagpipe in South Uist (John Donald, 2006).

Bernard Docherty is a prizewinning violin graduate of the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama and was for many years co-leader of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. He is in constant demand as a guest orchestral leader at home and abroad.

Visiting Artist in Classical Improvisation

Ruari has been Principal Timpanist with Scottish Opera since 1998 and guest timpani player with other orchestras including the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Opera North, the Northern Sinfonia and the Halle.

Emily Doolittle was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and educated at Dalhousie University, Indiana University, the Koniklijk Conservatorium in the Hague (where she studied with Louis Andriessen on a Fulbright Fellowship), and Princeton University (PhD 2007). Prior to moving to Glasgow in 2015, she was an Associate Professor of Music at Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle.

In 2004, Andy joined the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (then the RSAMD) after a long career as an award-winning journalist and broadcaster. He is responsible for the Film Studies strand on the BA Filmmaking programme, which encompasses film history, film theory and critical thinking.

Former Principal Tuba, Ulster Orchestra

Mel holds an MA in Voice Studies from the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. She trained as an actress at Queen Margaret College, Edinburgh, gained a Postgraduate Certificate of Education from Moray House Institute, is a Fellow of the Higher Education Authority and is an accredited teacher of Nadine George Voice Work.

Dr Rachel Drury (she/her) is a researcher and creative artist working in the field of music psychology and education. In addition to co-developing the new MA Psychology in the Arts programme, she also lecturers on the Postgraduate Learning and Teaching programmes and undergraduate programmes at the RCS. Aside from her work at RCS, Rachel holds the post of Musician in Residence at Rachel House Children’s Hospice in Kinross (CHAS) and works as a freelance artist. She has devised and delivered a number of creative projects for national arts organisations including Starcatchers, Scottish Opera, RSNO, Children’s Classic Concerts, and Chamber Music Scotland. Rachel is also a trustee of Nevis Ensemble.

Rachel’s current creative and research work focuses on Coorie Doon, a song-writing project with Chamber Music Scotland for parents of children with life-limiting conditions (CHAS 2017/18) and infants in Neonatal intensive care (2019/20). Rachel’s current research interests include song-writing in therapeutic settings; music in prisons; teacher vs performer identities, and mental health in the arts.