25 Notable alumni of
Royal Northern College of Music
Updated:
The Royal Northern College of Music is 1608th in the world, 555th in Europe, and 103rd in the United Kingdom by aggregated alumni prominence. Below is the list of 25 notable alumni from the Royal Northern College of Music sorted by their wiki pages popularity. The directory includes famous graduates and former students along with research and academic staff.
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Stjepan Hauser
- Occupations
- cellist
- Biography
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Stjepan Hauser, known professionally as HAUSER, is a Croatian cellist, and he also sings in concert. He was a member of 2CELLOS, along with his friend Luka Šulić, and continues to perform solo.
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Don Airey
- Occupations
- conductorpianistsession musiciancomposerkeyboardist
- Biography
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Donald Smith Airey is an English musician. He came to prominence as the keyboardist of the rock band Rainbow during 1979–1982. He has been the keyboardist of Deep Purple since 2002, after the retirement of Jon Lord. As well as Rainbow and Deep Purple, he has had a long and productive career playing with many other rock and metal acts, including Gary Moore, Ozzy Osbourne, Judas Priest, Black Sabbath, Jethro Tull, Whitesnake, Saxon, Wishbone Ash, Colosseum II, Ten, Sinner, Michael Schenker, Empire, Brian May, Divlje jagode and Living Loud. He has also worked with classical composer Andrew Lloyd Webber.
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Ali McGregor
- Born in
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Australia - Occupations
- opera singer
- Biography
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Ali McGregor is an Australian soprano opera singer, actress and cabaret performer. She has performed in operas in the United Kingdom, in Australia and in New Zealand. Her cabaret performances have been seen at festivals in the United Kingdom, Ireland and Australia.
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Stephen Hough
- Occupations
- composersinger-songwriterpianistmusic educator
- Biography
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Sir Stephen Andrew Gill Hough CBE is a British-Australian classical pianist, composer and writer.
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Carly Paoli
- Years
- 1989-.. (age 37)
- Occupations
- singer-songwritersongwriter
- Biography
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Carly Alison Hopkinson, known professionally as Carly Paoli, is a British classically trained singer, born in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, England.
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Peter Jonas
- Occupations
- theatre managerintendanttalent manager
- Biography
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Sir John Peter Jonas CBE FRCM FRSA was a British arts administrator and opera company director.
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Alexander Goehr
- Occupations
- composermusic educatoruniversity teachermusician
- Biography
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Peter Alexander Goehr was a German-born English composer of contemporary classical music and academic teacher. A long-time professor of music at the University of Cambridge, Goehr influenced many notable contemporary composers, including Thomas Adès, Julian Anderson, George Benjamin and Robin Holloway.
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Alice Coote
- Occupations
- opera singer
- Biography
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Alice Mary Coote CBE is a British mezzo-soprano. Known internationally for her performances in opera playing both female and male roles, and her recitals with piano and concerts with orchestra, Coote has performed extensively across Europe, North America and Asia. Her repertoire ranges from early and baroque music to contemporary works, and includes works which have been especially written for her. She was appointed OBE in the 2018 Birthday honours for services to music.
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Elgar Howarth
- Occupations
- conductorcomposertrumpeter
- Biography
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Elgar Howarth was an English conductor, composer and trumpeter. Grove noted that "his performances are marked by powerful concentration and a clear communication of sometimes complex scores". He conducted many world premieres, including Ligeti's Le Grand Macabre and four operas by Harrison Birtwistle. He composed mainly music for brass instruments and brass bands, some under the pseudonym W. Hogarth Lear. As a player, he was one of the trumpeters who performed with the Beatles on the song "Magical Mystery Tour". The author of a feature article about Howarth in 1999 wrote that "as trumpeter, composer and conductor, he has featured in many of the important musical developments in the UK and beyond over the past 40 years".
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Graham Vick
- Occupations
- opera directortheatrical directordirector
- Biography
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Sir Graham Vick was an English opera director known for his experimental and revisionist stagings of traditional and modern operas. He worked in many of the world's leading opera houses and was artistic director of the Birmingham Opera Company.
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Catherine Foster
- Occupations
- opera singer
- Biography
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Catherine Foster is an English operatic soprano, who has appeared internationally, mostly in European opera houses. Her repertoire has focused on dramatic soprano roles in stage works by Richard Strauss and Richard Wagner, such as the title role of Elektra, and Brünnhilde in Der Ring des Nibelungen, a role which she performed at the Bayreuth Festival in 2013 for Wagner's bicentenary.
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Rosalind Plowright
- Occupations
- opera singer
- Biography
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Rosalind Anne Plowright OBE is an English opera singer who spent much of her career as a soprano but in 1999 changed to the mezzo-soprano range.
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Olga Jegunova
- Occupations
- musicianpianist
- Biography
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Olga Jegunova is a Latvian classical pianist, born in Šiauliai, Lithuania (then Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic). She is now married, mother of two children and lives in Paris.
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Richard Lewis
- Occupations
- opera singer
- Biography
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Richard Lewis CBE was an English tenor of Welsh parentage.
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Emily Howard
- Occupations
- composerchess player
- Biography
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Emily Howard is a British classical composer based in Manchester. The winner of two British Composer Ivor Novello Awards, her work is best known for its innovative connection with mathematical shapes and processes, and more broadly for the fusion between music, mathematics and multimedia. Howard is Professor in Composition and Head of Artistic Research at the Royal Northern College of Music. She holds Honorary Fellowships at Lincoln College, Oxford University, and The Royal Academy of Arts. In 2025 she was appointed to The Ivors Academy’s Board as a Director.
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Naoum Blinder
- Occupations
- music educator
- Biography
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Naoum Blinder was a Russian-American virtuoso violinist and teacher, born in Yevpatoria (then Russian Empire, now Ukraine).
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Norman Kay
- Years
- 1929-2001 (aged 72)
- Occupations
- composermusic critic
- Biography
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Norman Forber Kay was a British composer and writer.
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Jon Christos
- Years
- 1976-.. (age 50)
- Occupations
- opera singerconductor
- Biography
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Jon Christos is an English singer, local radio presenter. and a member of the Professorial Staff – Vocal Studies at the Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance.
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Annette Bryn Parri
- Years
- 1962-2025 (aged 63)
- Occupations
- pianistaccompanistcomposer
- Biography
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Annette Bryn Parri was a Welsh pianist, best known as an accompanist to opera stars such as Bryn Terfel and Rebecca Evans. Parri appeared regularly on the National Eisteddfod stage, and also at the International Eisteddfod at Llangollen.
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Leo Smith
- Occupations
- music criticmusic educatorcomposer
- Biography
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Joseph Leopold Smith was an English composer, writer, music critic, music educator, and cellist who was primarily active in Canada. His compositional output consists of works for cello, piano, choir and orchestra (most notably An Ancient Song and A Summer Idyll) and a considerable amount of chamber music (most notably String Quartet in D, Sonata in E Minor and A Horse Race Ballad).
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Harish Shankar
- Occupations
- conductor
- Biography
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Harish Shankar is a Malaysian-German conductor.
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Anthony Goldstone
- Occupations
- classical pianist
- Biography
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Anthony Goldstone was an English pianist, known for his eclectic repertoire. He also played a prominent part in promoting works for piano duo with his wife Caroline Clemmow.
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Jean Hindmarsh
- Years
- 1932-.. (age 94)
- Occupations
- opera singer
- Biography
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Jean Hindmarsh is a retired English singer and actress. She is best known as a principal soprano with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company in the 1950s and 1960s.
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Jason Alder
- Born in
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United States - Enrolled in the Royal Northern College of Music
- In 2017 graduated with Doctor of Philosophy in music
- Occupations
- music educatoraudio engineermusician
- Biography
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Jason Alder is an American-born clarinetist, bass clarinetist, and saxophonist. He is best known for his work in contemporary music, free improvisation, and electro-acoustic music.
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Andy Scott
- Occupations
- musicologistsaxophonistcomposer
- Biography
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Andy Scott is a British tenor saxophonist, "equally at home in jazz and classical contexts", and award-winning composer who has made "important and sometimes mould-breaking contributions to the repertoire". He is currently Composer in Residence for Foden's Band. He has played with the Halle Orchestra, has formed and played with several ensembles whose musical style is rooted in big band jazz, Latin and funk.
