Solétude - A Unique Musical Experience

Solétude - Study with leading professional musicians

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Chris and Moira, your course-leaders at Solétude, are both full-time professional musicians who have been working  and ‘playing’ together since meeting whilst they were students at the Royal Academy of Music. Moira studied Piano and Singing and Chris the Trumpet and Piano.

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After graduating, they both moved on to build diverse and successful careers, both in the UK and abroad.

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Between them, they worked as a professional duo, solo artists, orchestral players, illustrated public lecturers, composer/arrangers, trainers and teachers.

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In this way, their work spanned several decades, and included contracts with the LSO, BBC Symphony, Royal Opera House Covent Garden, SNO, ECO, RSC to name but a few.  During this time Chris became a member of, and ultimately the leader of The Temperance Seven, for whom he has penned many arrangements and original compositions.

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Their work as teachers has always been an important and rewarding part of their lives, both having spent time in various schools, either as instrumental teachers or Heads of Department. Moira also undertook much Professional Development work for instrumental teachers as a CTABRSM Course Leader and Mentor. She also spent periods in Singapore and USA doing similar work and has been an ABRSM examiner for 15 years both in the UK and abroad.

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Both freelanced for many years, which enabled them to move in directions which interested them. This included composing and arranging together, with a particular highlight being the writing of and then production of a choral and instrumental piece called Music is Music is Music! The performance involved over 300 young people, from the ages of 6-18 and included styles of music from Early Man to Rock and Roll!

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Both have also held full time posts over the years, with Moira returning to teach at the RAM for a period, where she developed and taught parts of the MMus course, after having spent some years as Head of Department at The City Lit (an adult education college in London). Later she was appointed as Head of Teaching and Learning for a young musicians trust. Chris in the meantime was Head of Brass at Tiffin Boys School and then Head of Music at Merton Court School.

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However, in December 2009, Chris and Moira decided to change their lives completely.  They moved to France, where they took on the task ​of restoring and developing La Ville in order to create a residential facility for studying music in the sun! Having spent many years in and around London, confined to small rehearsal or teaching rooms, their dream was to provide a venue for music-making in beautiful, tranquil surroundings, coupled with the opportunity to relax with like-minded people in a stress-free environment.

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Solétude is the fulfillment of that dream.

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