Isabel Thompson, Grace Harman and Lauren Turner

Saturday 11th October 2025 1:45pm – 2:30pm

Isabel Thompson and Grace Harman (trumpets), Lauren Turner (piano)

Programme

Erik Morales Concerto for Two Trumpets

Oskar Bohme Scherzo Op.10

Anderson/Ulvaeus arr. Grace Harman I Know Him So Well

Philip Sparke Moon, Song, Sun Dance

Konstatin Vilboa Sailors

Louis Armstrong arr. Grace Harman Basin Street Blues

Jacob Gade. arr Grace Harman Jealousy

Biographies

Isabel Thompson

Isabel is a trumpeter from York and a recent graduate of the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester. Having grown up in brass bands through the Shepherd Group Brass Band organisation, she recently joined the cornet section of the Hammonds Band, having formerly played with both Elland Silver Band and Wardle Anderson Brass Band.

She is also a member of Brazen Brass Band, a collective of the UK’s finest female brass and percussion players, who recently performed across the duration of the Durham International Brass Festival.

In addition to her brass band work, Isabel has enjoyed performing in the production Robin/Red/Breast at Aviva Studios (Factory International), in collaboration with Manchester Camerata.

Grace Harman

Grace is a dynamic and versatile musician who recently graduated with First Class Honours in Classical Trumpet Performance from the Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM). She is an in-demand freelancer across the UK, performing in prestigious venues such as Snape Maltings, Bridgewater Hall, Ronnie Scott’s, and at festivals including Latitude and Aviva Studios’ opening season.

Equally accomplished as a pianist, Grace has worked as a soloist, accompanist, and rehearsal pianist, notably with the Co-op Juniors Theatre Company. As an educator, she teaches with Lancashire Music Service, Music in Unison, and the E & M Academy, delivering instrumental lessons, ensemble coaching, and exam preparation. She also leads music outreach as Performance and Outreach Lead with the Cadishead Training Band and is Musical Director of the Kearsley Youth Brass Band.

Grace is a founding member, arranger, and performer with Brazen Brass Band, an international all-female brass ensemble, with whom she will perform at the 2025 Durham Brass Festival. Her previous credits include touring the UK in Elf the Musical, serving as Musical Director for Cinderella at Salford Arts Theatre (2024), and performing as an actor-musician in Robin Redbreast with Manchester Camerata and Maxine Peake. She’s also an experienced presenter, regularly appearing on BBC Radio Suffolk and hosting her own show on IO Radio.

Lauren Turner

Lauren Turner completed her Undergraduate and Postgraduate studies at the Royal Northern College of Music where she studied solo piano and piano accompaniment with John Gough. A former pupil of Chetham’s School of Music, Lauren now performs regularly as a soloist, accompanist and chamber musician.

As a member of The Sterling Trio (flute, clarinet and piano) Lauren was a finalist in the Tunnell Trust Music Club Awards Scheme and with UK Young Artists. The Trio were also finalists in the Park Lane Group Young Artists Concert New Year Series and as part of this, gave a recital at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, London. Other performances have included recitals at St. James’s Piccadilly London, The Leeds International Concert Season and a tour through Enterprise Music Scotland. Committed to expanding the repertoire for their instrumental combination, the Trio has collaborated with distinguished British composer Howard Blake OBE, to create and première a selection of new works at St. Martin-in-the-Fields, London, as artists with the Concordia Foundation.

Lauren teaches piano at The Grange School in Hartford and is staff accompanist for the school’s soloists and choirs. She is also official accompanist for the Chester Young Musician Competition and The Laurence Singers choir who are based in South Manchester. Lauren lives in Altrincham with her husband and two young children.

Next week’s concert – Ziluo Huang (violin) Yidong Lin (piano)


Outstanding Young Pianists

Saturday 4th October 2025 1:45pm – 2:30pm

Outstanding Young Pianists

Julie Zhang, Melody Zhao and Yinuo Xiao

Yinuo Xiao
Bach Prelude and Fugue in B flat major Bk.1
Fricker Toccata (Étude No.2)
Chopin
Tarantella

Melody Zhao
Bach Prelude and Fugue in C# major Bk.1
Haydn Sonata in E flat major No. 52, 1st movement
Prokofiev Sonata No. 2, 1st movement

Julie Zhang
Beethoven Sonata Op.53, (Waldstein) 1st movement
Liszt
Transcendental Étude “Feux Follets”
Stravinsky “Danse Russe” from Petrouchka

Biography

Yinuo Xiao is 11 years old. She started to learn piano in Shanghai, China at the age of 6 and completed her ABRSM Grade 3, 5 and 6 exams. When she was 9 years old, she moved to the UK and studies with Mr. Simon Bottomley. She is working towards her LTCL diploma. She has been studying at Chetham’s School of Music since September 2024.

Melody Zhao is 13 years old and started playing the piano when she was 6 years old. She is in her third year at Chetham’s School of Music where she is a pupil of Mr. Simon Bottomley. Melody has won prizes in several local music festivals and was a finalist in the EPTA piano competition in Belgium. Melody recently passed her LTCL with a high distinction.

Julie Zhang was born in 2008 and started learning piano at the age of 5. At age 6, she achieved ABRSM Grade 5 with distinction. In 2016, she entered Chetham’s School of Music, studying piano under Mr. Simon Bottomley. In 2018, Julie achieved Distinction for the ATCL Diploma. Just one year later in 2019, she achieved a High Distinction for the LTCL diploma, also the Second Prize in Category 2 for the EPTA International Piano Competition. And finally, she achieved the FTCL Diploma. Julie has also won many online competitions. Her repertoire stretches from Baroque to Modern music. Julie particularly enjoys the Romantic Period, especially the sheer beauty of Chopin. Julie also enjoys chamber music and piano concertos.

Next week – Grace Harman, Isabel Thompson (trumpets), Lauren Taylor (piano)


WACIDOM – a short note about us

WACIDOM is a voluntary run music society and charity that holds free lunchtime concerts on Saturday afternoons at Holy Trinity Church in Warrington Town Centre. All our concerts are funded by donations.

Our main aim is to offer opportunities to young student musicians, most often from the Royal Northern College of Music and Chetham’s School of Music, but sometimes further afield. We also support musicians at the start of their careers as they build repertoire, confidence and platform skills.

In 2024 we celebrated our 500th free concert which was played by Patron, Leon McCawley and Patron, Sir Stephen Hough kindly offered to play a December concert, to bring our celebratory year to a close.

Sir Stephen asked that donations were to go to WACIDOM to support our work with young and aspiring musicians. He was there once!

Our location link. Our next/current series programme information. Previous concerts link.


Our Facebook page

After each concert the WACIDOM Facebook page is updated to reflect the concert in words and pictures.

The page can be accessed from:

Main Menu (above) – Links – WACIDOM Facebook and then click on the logo or blue text.

Click here for a shortcut to the link.


Welcome to our website

We prepared this website in time for the start of our February 2024 concert series and hope that you find it useful. Explore the Main Menu bar at the top of this page to see what it offers. This Home Page has information about the next concert and any ‘latest news’.

To see our current programme either go to the Main Menu and select Concerts then Programme or click Current Programme. Clicking blue, underlined text will take you directly to that item without having to navigate the Main Menu.

You may find the ‘Links’ menu items useful, this will take you to other local music related sites.