Gillian Callow

Tutor in Cor Anglais

Gill Callow has been a member of the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra for 30 years. She studied at the Guildhall School of Music with Geoffrey Browne. Her orchestral journey began whilst still at the Guildhall School of Music  in the early 1980’s when she was invited to play with the newly formed European Community Youth Orchestra, gaining valuable musical experience which shaped her orchestral playing life. Working with conductors such as Claudio Abbado, George Solti, Antonio Dorati and Leonard Bernstein at such an early stage in her life made a lasting impression.

Following on from that her early career took the form of chamber music and freelance orchestral work performing regularly with The Endymion Ensemble and the Chamber Orchestra of Europe.

In 1985 she was offered a position as 2nd oboe and Cor Anglais at Opera North, where her love affair with the  Cor Anglais began. Playing the beautiful Cor Anglais parts in operas gave her the springboard to seek a new direction as a Cor Anglais player and that dream was realised when she was appointed with the BBC Philharmonic in 1987.

Over the years opportunities have arisen to play as a guest with other orchestras such as the Philharmonia, the London Philharmonic Orchestra, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and at Covent Garden. Highlights of freelancing have been performing the Beethoven symphonies with Nicolas Harnoncourt and playing Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde at Covent Garden with Bernard Haitink.

In her present position Gill has  enjoyed playing the wonderful orchestral Cor Anglais repertoire and also had opportunities to perform solo Cor Anglais pieces including James MacMillan’s ‘The World’s Ransoming’ and Concerto by Peteris Vasks. Earlier this year she gave the UK premier of Bernard Rand’s Cor Anglais concerto.

Her teaching experience has mainly been in coaching Cor Anglais players for auditions and trials and occasionally coaching Cor Anglais players in the NYO.