Lydia grew up in Hereford and, as part of  musical family, began playing the oboe at the age of 7. For sixth form she boarded at Wells Cathedral School, where she gained a scholarship as a “Specialist Musician”, learning with Liz Fyfe. Lydia studied at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama before completing her studies with a Masters at the Royal College of Music. Her music college teachers included Gareth Hulse, Chris Cowie, Richard Simpson, Christine Pendrill, Jane Marshall, and fellow Oxford Philharmonic oboist Gordon Hunt!
Lydia enjoys a varied freelance career, regularly performing with orchestras including the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra and English National Ballet, as well as depping on Les Miserables and Wicked in the West End.
Lydia was a prize-winner at the Barbirolli International Oboe Competition in 2014 and won the Chandos Symphony Orchestra Young Musician Competition in 2009, leading to a performance of Strauss’s Oboe Concerto with the orchestra. She has since performed concertos by Marcello, Vaughan Williams and Mozart in venues including St Martin-in-the-Fields.
Lydia lives in North Oxfordshire with her civil partner, James, and their cat, Florence.

Born into a musical family, Oliver’s interest in music first began as a choirboy at Brecon Cathedral. He then went on to win a music scholarship to Wells Cathedral School in Somerset, where he studied bassoon, cello and piano. This was followed by studies at the Royal Northern College of Music, and the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama. 

Oliver was the winner of the 1999 Texaco Young Musician of Wales and also a semi-finalist in the BBC Young Musician of the Year 2000.

Oliver joined the Band of Her Majesty’s Welsh Guards in 2005 as principal bassoonist, and during this time there, he could regularly be seen in the Guards’ trademark fluffy hat performing in the Changing of the Guard ceremony at Buckingham Palace, and at other high-profile events such as Beating Retreat, Trooping the Colour and the State Opening of Parliament. 

Oliver left the Army in 2011 and embarked upon a successful freelance orchestral career. He now enjoys performing regularly with many of the UK’s top orchestras, including City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Orchestra of Welsh National Opera, Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra & Royal Shakespeare Company.

Alongside his position as sub-principal bassoon of the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra, Oliver is also sub-principal bassoon in Orchestra of the Swan. He is also a busy chamber musician, musical outreach practitioner and teacher.

Oliver lives in Cheltenham with his wife (a professional viola player), their young son, and two cats.

Andrew held the Principal Clarinet chair of the London Symphony Orchestra from 1986 to 2019. During his orchestral career he maintained his place on the worldwide solo concert platform alongside an active role in the field of chamber music. He first played with the LSO in 1977 under Sergiu Celibidache and as guest principal on their 1983 world tour. He later became principal of the Academy of St Martin in the Fields, held alongside his LSO commitment until 2008. His extensive solo career has taken him to La Scala, Milan; La Fenice, Venice; Musikverein, Vienna; much of Europe, and across the USA and Australia. His concerto performances have been in collaboration with some of the world’s finest conductors: Leonard Bernstein, Sir Colin Davis, Michael Tilson Thomas, Valery Gergiev, Andre Previn, Mstislav Rostropovich, Sir Antonio Pappano and his father Sir Neville Marriner amongst many. Andrew has worked with some of the most distinguished individuals in the world of chamber music such as Alfred Brendel, Andre Previn, Sandro Vegh, Andras Schiff, Lynn Harrell, Emmanuel Ax, Hélène Grimaud, Sylvia McNair, Edita Gruberova and with many leading string quartets. He currently tours with ‘Magdalena Kožená & Friends’. In addition to hundreds of recordings with the LSO and the Academy of St Martin’s, on disc and for film and television, Andrew has recorded the core solo and chamber clarinet repertoire with various major record companies, principally Philips and EMI. Andrew is in demand as a teacher and woodwind consultant and gives masterclasses, coaches orchestras and adjudicates competitions all around the world. He teaches in London at the Guildhall School and the Royal Academy of Music and is a Buffet Crampon Artist and a D’Addario Woodwinds Artist.

Gordon Hunt was appointed Solo Oboe of the Oxford Philharmonic in 2022. He performs throughout the world as soloist and conductor, directs masterclasses and plays with renowned chamber ensembles. He has a distinguished orchestral career as Principal Oboe of the London Chamber Orchestra and formerly, the Philharmonia Orchestra and the London Philharmonic. Regarded as one of the world’s leading oboists, he has appeared as soloist with conductors such as Ashkenazy, Giulini, Muti and Rattle. In 2005 he played the Adagio from Albinoni’s D minor concerto at the Service of Dedication and Prayer to celebrate the marriage of The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall. Gordon has recorded a wide range of music for BMG, EMI and Virgin, including all of Mozart’s solo music. His recording of the Richard Strauss Concerto with the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra and Vladimir Ashkenazy (Decca) has been named the finest available by the Penguin CD Guide. Gordon is Professor at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama and Honorary Associate of the Royal Academy of Music.

Laura Ruiz Ferreres is Solo Clarinet of the Oxford Philharmonic and Professor of Clarinet at the Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst in Frankfurt am Main. Previously, she was First Solo Clarinettist of the Komische Oper in Berlin under Kirill Petrenko. She is the artistic co-director and co-founder of DeltaChamber Music Festival, an international chamber music festival that takes place every August in Amposta (Spain). Her solo work includes performances with several orchestras such as Komische Oper Berlin, Brandenburger Symphoniker, Deutsches Kammerorchester Berlin and Orquestra Simfònica de Barcelona i Nacional de Catalunya. At present, Laura regularly collaborates as solo clarinettist with the Staatskapelle Dresden, Bayerisches Staatsorchester, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Staatskapelle Berlin, Cadaqués, Orquestra del Gran Teatre del Liceu, Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen and Mahler Chamber Orchester. She has played with renowned conductors such as Kirill Petrenko, Daniel Barenboim, Teodor Currentzis, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Bernhard Haitink, Sir Neville Marriner, Kent Nagano, Sir Colin Davis, Christoph Eschenbach, Paavo Järvi, Daniele Gatti and Pierre Boulez.

Since 2017, Bence Bogányi has served as Principal Bassoon of the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra, a role that is especially close to his heart. He is one of the most versatile and internationally acclaimed bassoonists of his generation. A winner of the Crusell, Gillet–Fox and other major international competitions, he has held leading orchestral posts in Helsinki, Berlin, Munich, Budapest and Oxford, while pursuing a distinguished solo and chamber music career. As professor at the University of Music, Drama and Media Hanover, he plays a central role in shaping the next generation of bassoonists.

Born into a family of musicians, Bogányi began bassoon studies at age 9 and later studied at the Sibelius Academy (Helsinki) and the Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler Berlin, graduating with honors under Klaus Thunemann. He went on to serve as Principal Bassoon of the Finnish National Opera, Helsinki Philharmonic, Berlin Radio Symphony and Munich Philharmonic before joining the Oxford Philharmonic in 2017. He also appears regularly with the Budapest Festival Orchestra as Guest Principal.

As a soloist, Bogányi has performed with major orchestras across Europe and Asia. Three contemporary bassoon concertos has been composed and dedicated to him: Kalevi Aho’s Bassoon Concerto (2005), Máté Bella’s Laniakea (2015), and Gergely Bogányi’s Concerto Intenso (2022). A passionate chamber musician, he tours internationally with ensembles such as the Chantilly Quintet and Berlin Philharmonic Octet, and he has released several recordings including Le Charme du Basson (2011), The Hungarian Bassoon (2014), and albums with the CultureTone Ensemble, which he co-founded in 2023.

Regularly invited to festivals and masterclasses in Europe and Asia, Bence Bogányi continues to enrich the bassoon repertoire and inspire young musicians worldwide.

Clara Dent was born in Berlin. She began her oboe studies with Arthur Jensen at the Mozarteum in Salzburg and, under the tuition of Günther Passin, graduated with a master’s diploma from the Hochschule für Musik in Munich. She is Prize-winner of the ARD Competition in Munich and the Intern. Competition in Geneva. Clara Dent also won the international stipend of the Kulturvereinigung in Munich. She performs as a soloist with many renowned orchestras and has had numerous solo performances recorded for CD and radio. Her solo albums (Les Folies d`Espagne, La Primadonna) were highly praised by critics. She was the principal oboist of the Radio Symphony Orchestra in Berlin for many years and plays as guest principal with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, the Budapest Festival Orchestra, the Bavarian State Opera in Munich, the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and many more. Clara Dent has taught oboe since 2005 in Munich and Augsburg, and since 2009 as professor at the Hochschule für Musik in Nürnberg. She also gives international master classes in Europe and Asia. As a chamber musician she is invited to festivals all over Europe.

Described by The Times in 2015 as a player of ‘distinction and intelligence’, Anthony Robb has been a member of the Oxford Philharmonic since its inception and currently holds the position of Solo Flute. He has appeared as soloist with the orchestra in concertos by Vivaldi, J.S. Bach, C.P.E. Bach, Mozart and Howard Blake. He has also appeared as soloist with the Hallé, BBC Concert Orchestra and the Academy of St Martin-in-the-Fields. His discography includes a disc of chamber music by Jean Francaix for Oboe Classics, and two discs of chamber music by English and French female composers on the Ambache label. His recording of the Tailleferre Concertino was described as ‘shining’ by Gramophonemagazine (April 2016). Anthony is firmly committed to outreach and educational work. He has helped develop and lead hospital projects for Oxford Philharmonic and leads projects for Wigmore Hall’s ‘Music for Life’ working with people living with dementia.

*The participation of Antony Robb is supported in loving memory of Kenneth Miles.