Bellazona Brass
Meet the Players
Natalie Mellers
Natalie is a London based trumpet student in her fourth year at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance. Having learnt the trumpet from aged 7, Natalie has worked her way up through her County Youth Orchestra, participating in numerous tours to Europe.
Natalie is now studying under Andy Hendrie and Bob Farley and was invited to take part in a master class with Phil Cobb at the end of her second year. This May she received a place in the Chipping Campden Festival Academy Orchestra, a side-by-side weeklong course with professionals. Natalie was then invited back as a coach for their Youth Festival. She has also performed with a number of ensembles including the London Mahler Orchestra, Docklands Sinfonia, Rehearsal Orchestra, Northern Lights Symphony Orchestra, Paradisal Players and the Royal Greenwich Brass Band and has worked with conductors including Bramwell Tovey, Gustavo Dudamel and Diego Masson.
Natalie has performed at many prestigious venues across the country, including the Royal Albert Hall, Cadagon Hall, St John’s Smith Square. St Martin in the Fields, The Sage and has also performed on BBC Radio and worked on a project for Channel 4.
Freya Bell Gillon
Freya is currently in her third year at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, where she studies with Michael Murray and Roger Montgomery. Originally from Edinburgh, Freya started learning the horn aged ten under the tutelage of Jacquie Johnstone. When she was fifteen she successfully auditioned for a place at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland's Junior Conservatoire, where she studied for three years with Sue Baxendale. During her time at the Junior Conservatoire Freya played in many different youth ensembles, including the Junior Conservatoire Symphony Orchestra, the Edinburgh Youth Orchestra and the National Youth Orchestra of Scotland, with whom she performed with at the BBC Proms at the Royal Albert Hall in 2012.
A keen chamber musician, Freya plays in several brass ensembles within Trinity Laban, and recently performed with the GMT Brass Ensemble as part of the Queen's Flotilla in the celebration of her becoming the longest reigning monarch of the UK. In August 2015 Freya was invited to play as Principal Horn with the Edinburgh Youth Orchestra Chamber Orchestra on their summer tour, which was conducted by Julian Lloyd Webber. Freya has played in a variety of orchestral ensembles since she moved to London, including King's College London Symphony Orchestra and Chamber Orchestra, and Ensemble Novus and King's Opera. This year she has been offered the position of Principal Horn with the London City Orchestra in association with their Professional Development Programme, and looks forward to playing some exciting repertoire with them this season.
Anna Brown
Anna is a bass trombonist from Portsmouth, now studying and playing in London. An experienced performer on the orchestral and solo stage, Anna is an accomplished musician that settles only for the highest standards.
Currently studying for a performance degree at Trinity Laban Conservatoire under Roger Argente (internationally renowned bass trombonist), Anna has gained a wealth of playing experience with many UK and London orchestras and has accumulated a large range of orchestral and solo repertoire.
From her experience playing with orchestras such as 'Women of the World Orchestra', 'Saloman Orchestra' and 'North London Sinfonia' Anna is no stranger to playing on a large stage and having to meet the professional demands required of her. She recently performed in the Trinity Laban Wind Orchestra concert on euphonium alongside international euphonium player and mentor Philippe Schwartz for the Naxos recording.
As a soloist, Anna performs regularly at the Portsmouth Naval Club with her accompanist Blake Powell and has wide range of repertoire, spanning from Premru's 'Prelude and Dance' to Deemer's 'Brobdingnag' for Contrabass Trombone. She recently performed in a master-class with Trombone legend Zoltan Kiss from Mnozil Brass.
Anna also strives as a chamber musician, specialising in Brass ensembles and trombone duets. As a member of both Bellazona Brass, an all-female brass quintet and Thames Brass, a mixture of conservatoire students, they have performed at the Trinity Laban 2015 Graduation ceremony, 'Launch Classical', Philip Jones Brass Competition, HMDT Music Box workshops and charity busking events. Anna is also a member of many Trinity Laban ensembles, such as TL Symphony Orchestra, Side by Side Orchestra, Wind Orchestra and Sinfonia, the Kronus Project Quintet and Symphonic Brass. Significantly, also performing in Royal Albert Hall, Royal Festival Hall, St John's Smith Square London, the Old Royal Naval College Chapel and Cadogan Hall.
Eleanor Vickers
Eleanor is a London based freelance trumpet player who has performed across all aspects of the profession playing classical, jazz and even Bollywood music. She has performed with a variety of ensembles including: ULSO, London Euphonia, London Concert Band and the Women of the World Orchestra, playing repertoire such as Sibelius' Symphony No.2, Tchaikovsky's Symphony No.6 and Holst’s The Planets Suite. As well as being invited to perform in masterclasses with Phil Cobb (Principal Trumpet of the London Symphony Orchestra) and John Wallace, Eleanor has also worked with conductors such as Marin Alsop and Diego Masson and worked alongside professionals such as Paul Mayes, Tony Cross and Mike Lovatt. She has also been fortunate to play at venues across England including Cadogan Hall, Birmingham Symphony Hall, the Royal Festival Hall and the Royal Albert Hall.
Eleanor also enjoys musical theatre and has played for productions of Annie, Cabaret and Little Shop of Horrors. She became a scholar at the Aylesbury Music Centre in 2006 for 7 years. In 2012, Eleanor joined the Buckinghamshire County Youth Orchestra and accompanied them on their tour to the Czech Republic. During her younger years she also participated in tours around Central Europe.
In 2013, Eleanor started studying at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance. Now in her fourth year she is having regular tuition from Andy Hendrie and Bob Farley. Since starting, Eleanor has worked with a number of different ensembles on a regular basis. These include the Bellazona Brass Quintet and the Royal Greenwich Brass Band.
Vanessa Ritchie Suarez
Vanessa Ritchie-Suarez is a tenor trombonist currently in her 3rd year at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, born in London. At age 13, she joined the Centre for Young Musicians where she was taught by Geoff Nash for 6 years. Some highlights of her time there include playing Strauss’ An Alpine Symphony at the Barbican Hall with the London Schools Symphony Orchestra on 1st trombone, playing the Larsson Concertino on tour in Poland and receiving the Jack Petchey Award for Excellence in her final year.
In 2013, Vanessa went on to accept a place at Trinity Laban and received the Sir John Cass’ scholarship award. In the fall of 2014, she was chosen to play Judith Weir’s Psalm 148 for solo trombone and chorus in the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse at the Globe Theatre, in celebration of Weir’s appointment as Master of the Queen’s music. In 2015, she reached the final of the Charlton House Brass Competition. Vanessa has also performed in masterclasses with Dudley Bright, Matt Gee and Sue Addison.
Vanessa has enjoyed many opportunities to play in various venues throughout the city, including the Barbican Hall, Royal Festival Hall, Royal Albert Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Milton Court Hall, St. James’ Church Piccadilly, St. John’s Smith Square and more. Vanessa plays regularly with the all-female Bellazona Brass Quintet and the GMT Brass Ensemble. She looks forward to continuing her studies at Trinity Laban under the guidance of her teachers, Graham Lee and Phil White.