Formed in 2002, Belsize Baroque is a leading amateur baroque orchestra. It comprises young professionals, students, and accomplished amateur baroque players. The orchestra performs on period instruments in an historically informed style. It collaborates regularly with leading baroque directors to give orchestral performances, and performs baroque and classical works with choral groups.
The orchestra showcases the abilities of talented college students and young professional musicians, providing these players with the opportunity to perform with top directors and an experienced baroque orchestra. It runs an annual scholarship programme.
This year the orchestra turns twenty years old, and we are planning a celebratory year! We have two large choral projects: we will perform Bach’s Magnificat and Ascension Oratorio at St Peter’s on May 29th, and Bach’s Mass in B Minor at Southwark Cathedral in December. Catherine Martin will direct us again on September 25th at St Peter’s.
Our special concert and anniversary celebration is on July 24th at St Peter’s, and we look forward to seeing lots of the people who have contributed to the life of the orchestra over the past twenty years.
Belsize Baroque Orchestra Leader Scholarship
We are now welcoming applications from current or recently-graduated Masters students of music for our 2022/23 Leader Scholarship. Click here for information.
Our current Leader Scholar is Rebecca Bell.
Rebecca Bell is a recent graduate of the Royal Academy of Music, where she received her Masters with Distinction, and was awarded a DipRAM Prize for outstanding performance in the final recital. Rebecca enjoys a wide variety of work with both modern and baroque ensembles, which have included the Royal Northern Sinfonia and the LSO, and is thrilled to have recently successfully auditioned for work as an extra with the Hallé and the Gabrieli Consort. She is regularly invited to guest lead ensembles at festivals and concert series across the UK, and very much enjoys the opportunities for creative input that this brings. As an in-demand chamber musician, Rebecca performs regularly with her award winning quartet, The Bell Quartet, as well as being a founding member of The Nuevo Tango Quintet, with whom she has given sell out concerts across London, featured on BBC Radio 3’s ‘In Tune’ with Sean Rafferty, and performed in the final of the Royal Overseas League Competition in 2020.
Last year, Rebecca was awarded the prestigious Enlightenment Scholarship to continue her studies at the RAM, undertaking a Professional Diploma in baroque violin with Pavlo Beznosiuk and Rachel Podger. In spite of the pandemic, she had the opportunity to participate in some exciting projects at the Academy, including the renowned Bach Cantata series, and was chosen to lead some of the projects and to perform obbligato parts in live-streamed performances alongside guest directors such as Rachel Podger and Laurence Cummings. Rebecca is delighted to have been selected as this year’s Belsize Baroque Scholar, and is very excited to have the opportunity to work with the orchestra and its directors.
Outside of her musical endeavours, Rebecca enjoys crochet, vegan doughnuts and life by the sea in Brighton where she lives with her partner Rhys and young daughter Rosalie.
