Nevis Ensemble is delighted to announce the appointment of Uchenna Ngwe as Chair of the Board of Trustees, as the organisation looks to develop and expand its activities over the coming years.

Uchenna is a researcher at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, where her academic explorations into creative practice investigate the lives and work of historical Black classical musicians in Britain from the perspective of a performer-curator-activist. She is founder of plainsightSOUND – an online research project uncovering and promoting the work of historical Black classical musicians.

In addition to being a busy freelance musician and educator, she is the artistic director of Decus Ensemble – a flexible, mixed-instrumental group dedicated to performing lesser-known and under-explored works for classical chamber ensemble.

The Trustees of Nevis Ensemble would like to express its gratitude and thanks to outgoing and founder Chair of the Board, Dr. Jamie Hill, whose guidance and generosity of time have been instrumental in Nevis Ensemble’s first three years.

Uchenna says: I’m extremely honoured and delighted to be joining Nevis Ensemble as Chair of the Board of Trustees. Nevis has been doing amazing work in Scotland over the last few years and recent projects that have continued so brilliantly through such challenging times. This is an exciting moment to become part of guiding its mission for the future, and I look forward to sharing my interests in music performance, research and pedagogy as part of a board comprising such experienced and talented individuals. Becoming part of Nevis Ensemble – an organisation passionate about the transformative power of inclusive music-making – is a real privilege.

Outgoing Chair Jamie Hill says: “It has been a great privilege, and a highlight of my early retirement, to have been associated with Nevis. What has been achieved in three years since its inception has been remarkable.  To all the wonderful people involved, and to the Nevis Ensemble, thank you, and all my very best wishes for your future.”

Nevis Ensemble has the simple aim of making music for everyone, everywhere. Since August 2018 the orchestra has given more than 200 concerts to people across Scotland, performing everywhere from a farm in the Borders, and supermarkets in Glasgow to the summit of Ben Nevis itself, and the remote islands of St Kilda, whilst collaborating with organisations to run projects for those experiencing homelessness, women seeking refuge from domestic violence, children in care, young carers, older people living with dementia, and refugees.

Artistically led by Holly Mathieson and Jon Hargreaves, Nevis aims to remove barriers to accessing orchestral music, bringing it to where people are, and when they are there. During the coronavirus pandemic, Nevis Ensemble has continued to deliver music to everyone, everywhere, including the commissioning of 18 new works, and participatory projects with participants from 130 countries, reaching almost one million people.