Sam Pearce
Originally from East Sussex, Sam Pearce studied the French horn at the Royal College of Music, achieving a first class bachelor degree and postgraduate diploma. Since his graduation in 2010 he has enjoyed a varied career as a freelance musician, performing with many leading British orchestras and touring musical productions. He is the principal horn of the Covent Garden Sinfonia and the Orpheus Sinfonia, and has appeared on many occasions with the Philharmonia Orchestra, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra, and the Aurora Orchestra. As a regular in the session orchestra Chamber Orchestra of London, Sam has more than twenty cinema and television credits to his name including Edge of Tomorrow, Ant Man, and the recent Scarlett Johansson film Ghost in the Shell.
In addition to his busy orchestral schedule, Sam is a member of the band for Mercury Prize nominated folk singer Kate Rusby and can be heard on her recent five-star Christmas album The Frost is All Over, and was a founding member of the critically-acclaimed, award-winning ensemble Oompah Brass. In March 2017 he appeared as a soloist with the BBC Concert Orchestra on Friday Night is Music Night, not playing the French horn… but the hosepipe!
Lisa Ridgway
Lisa studied at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. She has been playing professionally both nationally and internationally as a freelancer since graduating, combining a mixture of orchestral, chamber and show work. Highlights include playing in the orchestra for the Sound of Music when it toured to Jordan, Egypt and Lebanon. It was the first western musical to be performed in Jordan, with the King of Jordan in attendance. She was also involved in the UK tour of Oklahoma. Lisa has recorded music for the West End and also for Spartan Press. Lisa also teaches at some of the South of England’s highly regarded independent schools, including the Royal Grammar School in Guildford and Cranleigh Prep School.
Chrissie Ranson-Thompson
Chrissie began her musical life in brass bands on tenor horn at the age of 7 in Swansea, discovering horn aged 16 having learned tenor horn through the peripatetic system at school. Mostly self-taught for 2 years, Chrissie was an active member of various National Youth Arts Wales ensembles, and was particularly influenced by the National Youth Orchestra of Wales.
Chrissie studied at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama with Ian Fisher and Tim Thorpe. Whilst at the RWCMD she frequently played principal horn with all of the major ensembles, including the orchestras, ten piece brass, and in numerous masterclasses.
Chrissie’s Postgraduate Studies were funded by RWCMD. On this course she was also awarded the Ivor Coles Memorial Prize, the Leonard and Marian Jones Distinguished Scholarship, was a finalist for the Russell Sheppard Memorial Prize, and was awarded placements with both the BBC National Orchestra of Wales and the Welsh National Opera. Graduating with a distinction, she missed the ceremony to accept a place at the LSO St Luke’s Academy: Brass 2008.
In 2009 Chrissie moved to London to continue her freelancing career, performing with a wide variety of orchestras and ensembles. Chrissie teaches at Gatehouse School, and for the Sutton Music Service.