Academic Music Department Staff
John Brierley
Head of Academic Music
Subjects Taught
Music Theory / GCSE / A-Level / Organ
A native of Liverpool John Brierley read music at University College, Durham where he was Assistant Organist and a Rothwell Prize winner. He won a Major State Studentship for post-graduate study at King’s College, London and held the post of Director of Music at St Peter’s Church, Streatham. Now living and working in
Worcester, John enjoys a varied freelance career which includes directing choirs, being Musical Director for Shakespeare at the Commandery productions, working as an accompanist for both singers and instrumentalists and teaching at the Elgar School of Music in Worcester where he is also a School Governor. He is Organist and Choir Director at St John-in-Bedwardine, Worcester. As an organist, John gives recitals throughout the country at cathedrals, concert halls and major churches.
Fiona Hudson
Subjects Taught
Theory / GCSE / Composition / Oboe / Cor Anglais /Piano
Qualifications
BA, LTCL, PGCE
Fiona studied at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, followed by a Post Graduate year at Trinity College of Music, London. She worked as a freelance oboist and session musician, before ending up as a recording engineer for EMI Music at Abbey Road. Since completing her PGCE, she taught in Worcestershire for 16 years and has especially enjoyed bringing her academic and practical skills to the classroom. She plays regularly with various orchestras, chamber groups and continues to enjoy specialist wind teaching/coaching and delights in the challenges of organising new musical adventures. Fiona is currently Director of Music at Sibford School in Oxfordshire.
Chris Long
Subjects Taught
Composition / Piano / Jazz Piano
Chris has had a diverse musical career, enabling him to bring an open-minded approach to his teaching and to draw on a broad knowledge of repertoire across many styles. He has worked as a performing musician in areas ranging from classical & contemporary music to rock, jazz, musical theatre & experimental music.
After gaining his degree at Kingston University he undertook an MA in Composition with Gavin Bryars at De Montfort University, Leicester.
Over the years he has written music for choirs, orchestra, dance and TV, and his song 'Mr Capability' (commissioned by the National Trust for the 300th anniversary of the birth of Capability Brown) was recently performed at Croome Court by over 800 singers.
As well as having worked with (among others) members of folk-punksters The Pogues and psychedelic rockers Kula Shaker, in 2007-8 Chris worked with Damon Albarn (of pop band Blur) playing keyboards in the world premiere run of "Monkey: Journey to the West", an opera in Mandarin which ran at Covent Garden and theatres in the UK and abroad. He has taught all aspects of music (theory, aural, history, technology, composition, performance etc) as a fulltime lecturer in Further and Higher Education contexts, and he now works as a freelance musician. As well as accompanying choirs and teaching, Chris also performs as a soloist and in the early Music duo 'Aphelion' with singer Paula Evans. His compositions and other work can be found at www.chrislongmusic.co.uk.