General Information
Individual instrumental lessons for children and adults have always been at the heart of Fitznells. Being held after the normal school day or on Saturdays means parents can easily liaise with the tutor and keep in contact.
Lessons for very young students can be 20 minutes but most are normally half an hour long. For more advanced grades they often need to be 45 minutes or an hour.
| We offer individual tuition in: – Piano – Guitar – Ukulele – Singing – Percussion – Drum Kit – Music Theory – Clarinet | – Saxophone – Flute (including Jazz Grades) – Trumpet – Trombone – Horn – Euphonium – Recorder – Can’t see what you want? Ask us anyway and we’ll try our best to find you a teacher. |
Meet Some Of Our Tutors
Sophie-Lee Colchester – Musical Director – Piano, Singing, Percussion
Monday evening, Tuesday evening, Thursday evening, Saturday daytime
Margaret Byde – Flute, Clarinet, Recorder
Tuesday evening, Saturday daytime
I hold an honours degree in Education and Music and am a member of the Incorporated Society of Musicians.
I have a special interest in pupils with specific learning difficulties and also hold an OCN Level 2 qualification in Music and Dyslexia from the British Dyslexia Association.
I offer individual lessons in flute, clarinet and recorders, teaching all grades and abilities from beginners to grade VIII standard. I also offer alto saxophone lessons up to grade Vl standard. With over 30 years teaching experience, both privately and in schools, I have taught over 500 successful exam candidates and many who simply want to play for fun.
Richard Henderson – Drums, Percussion
Friday evening, Saturday daytime
I am an enthusiastic, highly skilled and ambitious teacher with extensive experience in guiding young
people to achieve success in music.
Continuously striving for excellence, I adapt my teaching
methods through student feedback while maintaining a commitment to my own musical development.
My students have achieved remarkable success, including signing to major record labels, performing
at prestigious venues such as Glastonbury and national arenas and appearing on well-known TV and
radio programmes.
Lydia Ward – Piano, Singing
Thursday Evening
Lydia is a Nottinghamshire-born Mezzo-Soprano who recently completed her Master’s Degree in vocal performance with distinction from Trinity Laban Conservatoire.
She began her musical journey as a vocal specialist at Wells Cathedral School and later graduated with a First Class Honours Degree in Music and German from Royal Holloway, University of London, where she was awarded a prestigious choral scholarship.
A recipient of the Southwell Choral Society Music Bursary Prize, Lydia has built a vibrant career in London as both a soloist and ensemble singer. She has performed with renowned groups such as Siglo de Oro, Sansara and St Martin’s Voices, featured on their latest CD release, A Winter Breviary, and Ensemble OrQuesta, where she portrayed Iphis in Céphale et Procris at the 2023 Grimeborne Festival. In December 2023, Lydia starred as Ruby in César Cui’s Little Red Riding Hood with St Paul’s Opera. In May 2024, she performed Judith Weir’s one-woman unaccompanied opera, King Harald’s Saga. Later that summer, she sang with Trinity Laban Opera as Second Woman in Errollyn Wallen’s opera, Dido’s Ghost.
Andrew Wilson – Concert Band Director
Andrew grew up learning music from a very early age. His mother was a singer with the BBC, and was
often performing at the BBC theatre in Shepherd’s Bush, and the house was always full of music of one
sort or another.
Andrew started learning the violin at age 5, then became a student of Fitznell’s, switching to trombone at age 10 before settling on the tuba. During his teenage years he became the first and very often the only tuba with the Kingston Youth Concert Band.
At the age of 12 Andrew joined The Epsom & Ewell Silver Band, who were conducted by the head of
brass at Fitznell’s. He has played for numerous brass and concert bands, has performed in 14 countries throughout Europe and also in Canada, and has won honours at full band, solo and quartet competitions.
He has been involved in a number of television shows playing theme and incidental music, most notably Heartbeat and Horrible Histories.
Andrew is a qualified music teacher with over 30 years experience, and having also qualified as a
conductor has conducted Epsom and Ewell B Band, Cranleigh Youth Concert Band and Encore Schools
Orchestra, and was the MD and founder of Trafalgar Tubas, a tuba ensemble that performed in Trafalgar
Square every Christmas from 1994 to 2005, raising money for cancer research. Andrew became Musical
Director of Mole Valley Silver Band in 2003, and became Musical Director of the Fitznell’s Concert Band in 2017.
Away from music Andrew is a keen swimmer, enjoys playing golf and owns two classic morris minor
vehicles.
Fitznells 