Tutors

Ian is a versatile and multi-faceted musician and teacher with over 30 years’ experience working with children young people and adults. He studied, worked and taught in London for many years and moved to Oxfordshire 15 years ago.

He is a Woodwind teacher of Flute to a high level and Clarinet and Saxophone to lower levels. He has performed in Orchestras in the UK and Spain. His first love is Chamber Music and engaging with musicians in smaller Groups or Ensembles. He has recorded 2 CDs with his Classical Guitar partner in Spain.

He is also a Singer-Tenor and has performed with many Choirs in London and the South East and is particularly interested in voices and techniques that need remedial care and

Tom Mear is an experienced musician and producer who plays drums, piano and bass guitar. He started to learn the drums at age 12. Since then he has picked up his other musical skills such as playing piano and bass guitar, producing, songwriting and music theory. He is a very keen performer and has played in many bands over the years, mainly as the drummer, playing cover and originals in various band and playing in various different parts of the country. And he is a keen producer who has a great understanding of music software such as Logic and Pro Tools, as well as having a lot of recording and engineering experience.

During his schools years, he had joined the school swing band as the drummer, performed in various musical productions and ran the school’s drum club; where he taught many younger students how to play the drums.
He then studied music for 4 years in college. 2 years of music performance and 2 years of music technology. During that time he has achieved a student of the year award, gigged with bands and has become a producer. He has produced various work of people since learning his skills, including songs, voice overs and sound effects. He achieved very high marks in both courses (performance: Distinction* Distinction, Distinctio. Technology: Distinction* Distinction*, Distinction*) both are diplomas. He will also be taking his drum grade 8 exam soon.

He is now the drummer in a progressive rock band called ‘The Mighty Bard’ who has appeared in ‘Prog Magazine’ and performed around the country. Tom is someone who wants to gain as much musical experience as possible, whether it be performing, teaching or producing. His musical styles include Rock, Jazz, Pop, Blues and Funk.

Music has always been a passion of mine.

I started playing cornet in the junior band at the City of Oxford Silver Band in the late 1960’s, then went on to have a very successful time with championship section bands including Halls Oxford Concert Brass and Hanwell, which included several appearances at the National Finals at the Royal Albert Hall.

I spent 25 years in the Territorial Army playing for the Royal Green Jackets Waterloo Band and Bugles. During my time with the band, I progressed to Colour Sargent, running the brass quintet and deputising for the musical director when needed. I played principal euphonium and regularly performed solos with the band at our many formal concerts. I also took part in many marching displays including sounding the retreat at Horse Guards parade and have performed at many prestigious venues around the world.

I am the Musical Director of a local band, Jubilee brass band, and as well as conducting the band at some very successful concerts I have also, following winning and becoming the 4th section area champions, achieved promotion with them from the fourth to the third section.

I have taught Brass for 15 years and have entered many children into the Associated Board of the Royal School of Music examinations with a 100% pass rate.

I have a very calm approach to teaching and the pupils I have taught in the past have responded well to me.

I am a highly motivated and hardworking individual who will always strive to get the best out of the people I work with.

Michael is a versatile and experienced musician, who has been teaching saxophone, clarinet, music theory and improvisation, for saxophone as well as other instruments, since 2006. He has maintained a regular performing schedule since then, which has included playing at Glastonbury, Bestival, major venues in London, touring France with the Glen Miller Memorial Orchestra and many other appearances in the UK and beyond.

Michael’s first degree was in Jazz Studies which he undertook at Leeds College of Music. This also involved studying Indian classical music, playing in a South African townships jazz band and performing in big bands, alongside regularly working in smaller jazz groups. Since then, Michael has continued to play in jazz groups in addition to playing in ska bands, soul bands, funk bands, orchestras for stage musicals, giving classical recitals, directing big bands, as well as writing arrangements for them. Michael’s students have presented him with an equally varied repertoire, with some of them learning the sax solos from their favourite pop records, others studying jazz, and many taking graded exams. Michael has experience of all the grades in the jazz and the classical syllabus of both Trinity and ABRSM exam boards, with students having successfully passed the highest grade in each. He directs a soul band at one of the schools where he teaches and also leads and writes the music for a wind band at another.

Michael holds a Master’s Degree in Performance from Birmingham Conservatoire and has either studied with or attended masterclasses by, many of England and America’s top saxophone artists. He has amassed a wealth of information about technique, harmony, jazz history, vintage saxophones and more, which he enjoys sharing with students of all ages and abilities.

Having been born into a family of violinists in Dublin, Susan was quickly recognised as having a special sound on the instrument that needed nurturing. She won a scholarship to study with Jaroslev Vanacek at the Royal College of Music in London, then further study in Amsterdam with Davina van Wely. This set her onto a successful career joining the English Chamber Orchestra in 1987. She was also in demand elsewhere at the Royal Opera House, BBC Symphony, London Philharmonic and Philharmonia Orchestras. She has performed as soloist and leader with the National Symphony Orchestra in Dublin and as has toured as a recitalist in Ireland, Holland and Austria.

Alongside this, Susan has always enjoyed and valued the importance of teaching. She has a successful private practise teaching all levels and ages in Brighton and will be joining the team at TMA as our new violin tutor from January 2020.

Andy trained for four years at The Royal Academy of Music under the renowned teacher Hector Quine. Whilst at the Academy, he won the Julian Bream Guitar Prize, and the John Mundy Prize (for distinction in the playing of a stringed instrument).  A few years after leaving the Academy, he was elected an Associate of the Academy – ARAM – for having achieved ‘Distinction in the Profession’.

Andy has a broad experience of teaching all styles of guitar – classical, electric (blues, rock etc), and folk styles, including 12 string guitar technique. He has taught both girls and boys, of all ages, as well as adults.

Andy has held a number of teaching posts over the years, principally as Head of guitar at Radley College, and as a member of the guitar team teaching in the schools in the Reading area. He has taught at various specialist Guitar Summer Schools, and was also one of the first guitar ‘mentors’ to work for the ABRSM on the Certificate of Teaching course, which helped aspiring teachers improve their teaching method and technique.

His performing experience has also involved various styles of guitar playing. He is a member of The English Guitar Quartet, with whom he has performed in all the main venues in London and the UK, including The Wigmore Hall, Purcell Room, Royal Albert Hall, and St John’s Smith Square. A few years ago he was invited to be a member of a reformed Springfields (Dusty’s first group), with original member Mike Hurst, and he does regular gigs around the UK with The Springfields.