Illuminati are a dynamic young chamber ensemble who have performed across the UK with great success. Formed whilst studying at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama for the Carlisle Cathedral Composition Competition they continued to play together, recognising the challenge and enjoyment that could be gained from exploring the untapped wind quartet repertoire. As a chamber group they perform formal recitals as well as for background entertainment at functions and events.
Illuminati are renowned for their entertaining rapport with their audiences whilst in concert wherever they perform and have taken part in highly prestigious seasons, recently at The Leeds International Concert Season as well as local music and arts festivals such as Wavendon’s Music in the Garden and the Swaledale Festival. As well as these concerts, the group make regular appearances for music societies across Scotland as well as elsewhere in the UK and recently were winners of the prestigious Tunnell Trust Award in 2007. As they embark on the Tunnell Sponsored Tours in 2008/09 they continue to be in demand, frequently invited back on return visits. Illuminati have solidified their reputation as an ensemble with sparkle and energy in their music.
As a member of Exeter College’s Chamber Orchestra Katie was a soloist when the orchestra won its section in the National Festival of Music for Youth in London’s Queen Elizabeth Hall. A recipient of many scholarships and awards for her playing, Katie recently completed a Masters Degree in Performance at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama under Richard Blake, Alison Mitchell and Janet Richardson (piccolo). In 2004 she won the RSAMD Governors’ Recital Competition and the John Macgregor Flute Prize and in 2006 was awarded the John Knox Prize for general excellence. She has performed with the RSNO, Scottish Opera and Edinburgh Grand Opera Company and is also much in demand as a pit band musician for stage shows on flute, clarinet and saxophone. In 2006 she performed in two musicals in the final of the Cameron Macintosh Highland Quest for a New Musical. In 2007 Katie toured with Reeling and Writhing theatre company’s production of Only the Men which is scored for solo female flautist with music by Eddie McGuire. In January and March 2008 she toured Germany and Scandinavia with ABBA The Show, and is about to embark on the ABBA The Show UK Tour, including a performance at Wembley Stadium.
Born and educated in Edinburgh, Fraser initially trained as a violinist, graduating from the RSAMD with a Bachelor of Arts Degree. Following this, he continued his studies at the Academy on the bassoon, studying with David Hubbard, Janet Bloxwich and Alan Warhurst, and gained a BMus (performance) with 1st Class Honours and a Postgraduate Diploma with Distinction, finishing in June 2008. During this time Fraser was successful in winning The Governors’ Wind Recital Prize, The Mary D Adams Prize for Chamber Music, The Mozart Concerto Prize and The Concerto Competition as well as being awarded the Peter Morrison Prize for overall excellence and contributions to the corporate life of the Academy. His solo appearances have included Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante and Weber Bassoon Concerto with RSAMD Symphony Orchestra as well as several performances of Michael Daugherty’s Dead Elvis in full costume. Fraser regularly performs both bassoon and contrabassoon with all the professional orchestras in Scotland as well as with the Northern Sinfonia, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, The Hallé, BBC Philharmonic and The Royal Ballet Sinfonia. Fraser has been generously supported in the past by grants from The Dewar Arts Awards, The Wolfson Memorial Trust, and a James Caird Scholarship.
Susannah has been playing the clarinet since she was eight, although until the age of fourteen her main instrument was the recorder. The clarinet became her principal study whilst at New College, Oxford (where she graduated with a degree in English in 2000) and she held principal positions with several leading Oxford orchestras. Her numerous appearances as a soloist include Weber’s first clarinet concerto with the Glasgow Orchestral Society. She has completed a Masters Degree in Performance at the RSAMD under Yann Ghiro (principal, BBCSSO). In 2002 she was the recipient of the Olive Young Memorial Award. Susannah also enjoys a long-standing musical partnership with the pianist Jeremy Russell, with whom she performs recitals both at home and abroad. In addition to freelancing as a clarinettist and recorder player, Susannah teaches woodwind for The City of Edinburgh Council.
After graduating from Birmingham Conservatoire where she studied with Richard Weigall, Jenni Phillips and George Caird, Marian moved to Glasgow in 2001 to study at the RSAMD under Stephane Rancourt (RSNO, Hallé). In the course of her studies at the Conservatoire she won a place on the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra Apprenticeship Scheme. In 2002 she was the recipient of the Barcapel Foundation Award and she completed her Masters Degree in Performance at the RSAMD in 2003. During her studies in Glasgow Marian undertook regular outreach work in schools as a member of the Onegin Wind Quintet and successfully auditioned for the RSNO Apprenticeship Scheme. A freelance oboist and cor anglais player, she performs regularly with Scottish Ballet and during 2008 toured with the major musical production Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.
