Ellie Steemson is a versatile saxophonist and performer. With a background in jazz as well as classical music, she is involved in a variety of projects which aim to cross traditional boundaries between musical genres. She recently completed the Guildhall Artists Masters’ programme, where she studied with John Harle and Christian Forshaw.

Ellie is particularly keen to promote new music and has worked alongside emerging composers on a number of projects. In 2008 she formed Workers Union Ensemble, a group which works in collaboration with composers to create new works, and performed at the Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival Shorts series in 2009.

Ellie also performs regularly as a part of a duo with pianist Edward Pick, and with percussionist Caz Wolfson in their ensemble Joiette, which made its debut performance at St Martin-in-the-Fields in 2008. She has also performed solo, chamber and large ensemble works in venues including the Barbican, LSO St Luke’s and the Wigmore Hall. In November of 2007 she gave the UK premiere of Mike Mower’s Concerto for Alto Saxophone and Wind Orchestra with the Guildhall Symphonic Wind Ensemble.

Rob Downing was awarded a BMus (Hons) degree from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama where he studied jazz saxophone with Martin Hathaway, classical saxophone with Christian Forshaw and clarinet and flute with Glen Martin.

Rob is the quartets resident multi instrumentalist, doubling on flute, clarinet, oboe and bassoon. Which he regularly plays in pit orchestras the length of the country. Rob also plays with numerous soul and function bands, leads his own jazz band – the Rob Downing quartet.

His wide chamber music experience has seen him playing in sax quartets in all manner of settings from street performance in London’s Covent Garden Market and the Edinburgh fringe Festival (where his show was voted ‘a must see gem of the fringe’). Rob is also the saxophonist and bass clarinettist for the Essex Sinfonia.

Rob is very active in music education and beside teaching woodwinds in a peripatetic setting he is also a music leader on the London borough of Barking and Dagenham’s flagship wider opportunities whole class tuition scheme. In addition to this he also teaches African drumming and samba percussion for the London borough of Havering.

As principal saxophonist of various ensembles, Sam Corkin has toured abroad and, closer to home, performed in venues that include the Royal Festival Hall, The National Theatre and at the Edinburgh fringe festival. Recent performances include a concerto in St John’s, Smith Square, London, solo recitals in Bath Abbey and Rochester Cathedral, and a concert with the London Symphony Orchestra in the Barbican Hall. Sam is also proud to represent ‘Live Music Now’ with whom he performs across the UK.

As a member, later president, of the music department at King’s College London, Sam studied the saxophone under Richard Addison at the Royal Academy of Music. In his final year he gained his Licentiate of the Royal Academy of Music in the teaching of saxophone.

Sam has since learnt the clarinet with Richard Addison, the flute with Nick Moss and the saxophone with Christian Forshaw and John Harle. Having recently completed his Masters in Advanced Performance at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, he has been awarded a fellowship at the same institution. Sam will be organising a series of concerts for his department in his capacity as a fellow.

Ian Dingle is a saxophonist, guitarist and composer dedicated to producing the most heart-felt and exciting music to date. Pushing the boundaries of performance and communication, Ian works solo and in a number of ensembles to achieve his goal. He has been taught by some of the world’s finest saxophonists, currently studying at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama with Christian Forshaw, John Harle, Nick Moss and Mick Foster. He has also studied with Paul Stevens and Rob Buckland. Ian regularly plays and performs with the funk/soul band ‘Dance Floor Project’ as-well as saxophone quartets, jazz quartets and the guitar and saxophone ‘Dingle Port Duo.’