Biographies
Amy and Katie met as girl choristers at Salisbury Cathedral, the first Cathedral in the world to establish a girls’ choir. Amy was the youngest member in the founding year and Katie joined in 1995 when Amy was Head Chorister. Their ‘Master of the choristers and Organist’ was the legendary Dr Richard Seal, whose teaching is at the core of their musical careers and who continues to inspire them in their work. Amy and Katie decided to establish The Seal Ensemble after performing together last October at St Martins Church, Salisbury in a major fundraising recital to provide musical instruments for pupils at the Cathedral School.
Katie gained a place with the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain whilst still at school, and with them performed orchestral music in all the major concert halls, working with conductors such as Marin Alsop, George Benjamin and Andrew Litton.
She has recorded Bernstein Chichester Psalms, Janecek Otce nas and Britten Ceremony of Carols – which was highly recommended by Catherine Bott on BBC Radio 3 Building A Library – with Sarum Voices.
In 2005, Katie performed the world premiere of trio Azaleas by Gary Carpenter at the Holywell Showroom, which subsequently won the chamber music prize at BBC Radio 3 Composers’ Awards. More recently, she played with the English Sinfonia. As a soloist, she has given Recitals in London with venues including the Royal Society of Medicine, the Ritz and the Museum of London. She also works regularly in London as the harpist for Duo Astraea.
Katie recently graduated from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama where she studied harp with Charlotte Seale. She is now continuing her harp studies with the renowned harpist Sioned Williams.
Amy graduated from Trinity College, Cambridge in 2005 with a music degree and went on to play the lead actress in the film of The Magic Flute, directed by Kenneth Branagh and conducted by James Conlon. She won the critics over in her role as Pamina and received a nomination for the ‘most promising newcomer’ in the Evening Standard British Film Awards.
She has performed all over the world in concert, opera and recital. Highlights of her career so far include; being selected to perform with The Endellion String Quartet in Pizzetti’s Tre Canzoni whilst still a Cambridge undergraduate, A recital in Santander with The Rare Theatricall, A tour with the OAE to Japan and Korea to perform Bach St John Passion directed by Mark Padmore, Dido and Aeneas (The Spirit and Witch) with The Northern Sinfonia at The Sage Gateshead, Soloist in Britten’s Death in Venice with the Philharmonic, conducted by Richard Hickox, Garsington Opera Chorus 2008 and creating the role of Amy Robsart with Tete a Tete Opera in their company production of ‘The Cumnor Affair’ by Philip Cashian.
Amy continues her studies at the Royal Academy of Music with Beatrice Unsworth and Audrey Hyland. She is supported by a scholarship from The Peter Moores Foundation.