Team
Matthew O’Keeffe
Director
Matthew O’Keeffe founded the Brixton Chamber Orchestra in 2018. As a child, he attended the Centre for Young Musicians in Morley College and started conducting at the age of 15 by founding a church choir at Corpus Christi, Brixton Hill. Matthew graduated from King’s College London with a first class music degree in 2016. He lives in Streatham and works as a conductor, singer, arranger & composer. Matthew enjoys working in any musical genre -- alongside his classical base he is a keen Big Band saxophonist and sings pop & jazz. Other work includes directing the Scherzo Ensemble, Lunchbreak Opera, and the choir of St Thomas of Canterbury Church in Fulham.
Stephanie Waldron
Communications & Marketing Manager
Stephanie completed her undergraduate studies in music at King's College London before advancing to the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, where she attained both an MMus in Music Performance and an MA in Advanced Opera Performance. Throughout her studies and beyond, Stephanie has developed a genuine enthusiasm for the marketing and planning aspects of music. She is particularly passionate about accessibility in the arts and is excited to contribute to Brixton Chamber Orchestra's work in making orchestral music accessible. Alongside her role at Brixton Chamber Orchestra, Stephanie works for Scherzo Ensemble as their General Manager.
Natasha Solano
Arts Administrator
Natasha Solano is a Project Manager and Arts Administrator with over 20 years administration and operational excellence in both the financial and creative arts sectors. She has managed several cultural projects and collaboratively facilitated workshops in Musical Theatre, Literary Arts and Children’s costume design. She is a Trustee of Orchestras Live, who are working at shaping a new voice for Orchestral Music. She is motivated to be part of a team that is enthusiastic in sharing Brixton’s strong heritage, as well as use its cultural diversity to create engaging musical experiences for fresh audiences.
Rachel Hurst
Orchestral Manager
Basoonist Rachel has been involved with the orchestra for the past four years since graduated from the Royal College of Music and then the Guildhall in association with the London Symphony Orchestra. Rachel is also BCO's fixer, librarian and orchestral manager, a pivotal figure in the booking of players and managing sheet music and instrumentalists. She has played in BCO's Estates Tours and all other projects.
"My favourite thing about playing with BCO is the variety: not only the variety of music we get to play but also the variety of people we get to reach. There is nothing better than seeing the look on people’s faces when they hear a live orchestra for the first time, or when they hear an orchestra doing something totally unexpected as we often do!"
When not playing bassoon or making reeds, Rachel can be found playing women's rugby or snuggling with her puppy in Croydon.
Yasmin Fitzpatrick
Chair of Trustees
Dr Yasmin Fitzpatrick is a founding Trustee of the Brixton Chamber Orchestra. She has lived and sometimes worked in Brixton for 30 years and is currently writing and helping to develop online business ideas. As former TV news producer and Channel 4 Commissioning Editor, Yasmin has made programmes that involve a diversity of talent in front of and behind the camera. She chaired City Hall's first Cultural Strategy Group for London and was a Trustee at NESTA (National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts), providing seed funding for new business ideas. She’s keen to bring Brixton’s creative energy to the performance of classical music and share it in new and surprising ways.
Geraldine Glennon
Trustee
Geraldine Glennon is a founding Trustee of the Brixton Chamber Orchestra and lived in Brixton for two decades. A qualified Chartered Accountant, Geraldine specializes in leading transformation in Financial Services. With the Brixton Chamber Orchestra, she is seeking to unite her experience driving change with her love of music of all kinds, and her passion for all things Brixton.
Hester Warner
Trustee
Hester Warner is an amateur violinist, violist and choral singer, and Trustee of the Brixton Chamber Orchestra who lives in neighbouring Stockwell. A qualified Project and Programme Manager, Hester started her career in arts administration working as an intern for the ABO and LSO respectively. Following 10 years as a management consultant, Hester now works in the Metropolitan Police's Portfolio Office, and is happy to be living out her original dream of leading an orchestra - managerially though, not musically... We leave that to the professionals!
Henry Little
Trustee
Henry has lived in Brixton for more than twenty years and is passionate about the area and its incredibly rich and diverse culture. He is Chief Executive of Opera Rara, a Founding Director of Opera UK and a Trustee of Welsh National Opera. Henry has worked in classical music and opera for his whole career and is delighted to support Brixton Chamber Orchestra to bring the thrilling power of live orchestral music to the local community.
Marion Schumann
Trustee
Marion was the first black lady Mayor of Lambeth and CEO of Hammersmith and Fulham Volunteer Centre for 14 years before becoming a trustee of Brixton Chamber Orchestra, after attending and enjoying a performance during the Summer Estates Tour 2022. Marion is a keen volunteer and is eager to spread the message of volunteering across London. She is committed to engaging ‘hard to reach’ people into volunteering. She is now working to develop volunteering relationships with East European countries and Member States of the E.U. With her illustratious career making a huge difference to communities across London, her passion for supporting local organisations, and her love of live music made Marion the perfect candidate to join BCO as our newest trustee.