Presented by the Royal College of Music
Cairdeas String Quartet was founded in 2015 at the Royal College of Music, London, the Cairdeas String Quartet is an international mix of young musicians coming from Asia, Europe, and the United Kingdom. Since their inception, the quartet has worked with renowned musicians including Simon Rowland-Jones, Gabrielle Lester, Johannes Goritzki, Thomas Zehetmair, and the Sacconi Quartet. The quartet performs regularly in concerts and competitions at the RCM, and is regularly requested for external private events.
Singaporean musician Wilford Goh is an accomplished violinist and pianist based in London. He is currently in his final year of undergraduate studies at the Royal College of Music as a Wall Trust Scholar supported by the Keith Poole Award, studying with professors Jan Repko, Chen Jiafeng, and Niel Immelman. Beginning his musical studies at the age of three, Wilford studied primarily with teachers Fang Yuan and Chin Chee Mee at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, School of Young Talents department (NAFA-SYT. Since embarking on his studies in London, Wilford has performed in venues such as the Royal Festival Hall, Alexandra Palace, St. John Smith Square, and abroad in Indonesia, France, Italy, and America. Earlier in July this year, he led the Orchestra of the Music Makers on tour to the Taipei National Concert Hall premiering Elgar’s “The Music makers”. Wilford plays on a 1928 Carlo Carletti violin on generous loan to him by the Rin Collection.
Winner of the 2017’s edition of the Arkady Futer Special Prize, Inês Delgado was this year invited by the Tchaikovsky Camerata in Gijón, Spain as a soloist. Inês started her musical studies at the age of five in Porto, Portugal and she moved to London in 2014 to study with violinist Yuri Zhislin at the Royal College of Music where she is currently in a final year undergraduate. In the Royal College of Music, she has served numerous times as concertmistress, and was second solo violin in Stravinsky’s Pulcinella under Vladimir Jurowski’s direction. Inês was awarded the English National Opera’s 2017 Evolve scheme, and also collaborates regularly with other professional orchestras in and outside of the United Kingdom. Ines is a prizewinner of national and international competitions that include the VII National Competition of Paços de Brandão, the 14th International Competition of Fundão, and the 15th International St. Cecilia’s Competition. Inês plays on a 1835 Pedrinelli violin on generous loan to her by the Royal College of Music.
Liam Johnson is a violist in his fourth year of studies at the RCM. Originally from Glasgow, Liam studied viola for 6 years at the Music School of Douglas Academy under Andrea Gajic before moving to study at the Royal College of Music in London under Simon Rowland-Jones and Jonathan Barritt. He has collaborated with numerous professional orchestras including BBC SSO, RSNO, Scottish Opera and the Simon Bolivar Youth Orchestra, and has worked with leading conductors such as Gustavo Dudamel, Donald Runnicles and Francoise Xavier-Roth. Liam is a passionate chamber musician and has performed all over the UK with quartets, including a performance of Steve Reich’s Variations for Vibes, Pianos and Strings in collaboration with the London Sinfonietta and Steve Reich.
Lily Hope is an English cellist who began her musical life in school at the age of 7. From 2009 she studied at the Birmingham Junior Conservatoire where she gained a DIPABRSM in performance before joining the RCM in 2014. Lily has performed at the Queen’s Gallery Buckingham Palace, St John’s Smith Square and as soloist with the Royal Sutton Coldfield Orchestra, as well as in various concerts at the RCM. She plays regularly with the Cairdeas Quartet, is a passionate chamber musician, and loves performing from a historically informed perspective, as well as being surprised by innovative new music and the mixing of genres. Lily studies with Alexander Chaushian and plays a contemporary Italian Cello by Fabio Piagentini.
Fu Weihao started playing the piano at the age of three and has since pursued his music studies consistently, graduating in 2016 from The Royal College of Music in London with Bachelor of Music (Honours). Under the tutelage of Ashley Wass, Andrew Ball and Simon Lepper, he studied and excelled in both piano solo and chamber music. He has performed at various locations in London and across Singapore as soloist and accompanist, and is currently a member of the Keyboard Faculty in Forte Musicademy, Singapore. Besides the piano, he is also passionate about singing. While receiving vocal training with Sally Burgess at the Royal College of Music, he was awarded choral scholarships by the Wimbledon Choral Society and St-Martin-In-The-Fields. One of six finalists at the Courtney Kenny Award 2015 (English Song Competition), he was described by the judges as a “sensitive, sincere, and heartfelt” performer.