Gema Lu Cai is a Spanish-Chinese pianist and pedagogue. She graduated with a First Class Degree from the Royal Northern College of Music, where she studied under Professor Helen Krizos and specialised in the Music Education Pathway. Upon graduating, she was awarded the Clifford Hartley Prize for achieving the highest mark in the Piano Pedagogy course. In 2024, she became the inaugural recipient of the Lucy Hale Award, leading to a sponsorship deal with Yamaha UK.

As a performer, Gema has received nearly 20 prizes in national and international piano competitions. These experiences shape her teaching approach, helping students develop a healthy performance mindset and stage confidence.

Gema possesses seven years of teaching experience and a deep passion for healthy, nurturing, and engaging pedagogy. She adopts a flexible, student-centered approach, tailoring methods to each learner’s individual needs and goals. She has maintained a 100% exam pass rate, reflecting high standards and quality teaching.

Alongside her teaching, Gema performs regularly across the UK, striving for unique storytelling through creative and thoughtful programming.

Rachel studied with scholarships to Pembroke College, Oxford and the Royal Northern College of Music, where she was a Junior Fellow in Accompaniment and won many prizes for her collaborative work. Following her performance as a Leeds Lieder Young Artist 2018, Rachel was awarded the Hester Dickson Prize to study at Oxenfoord International Summer School with Malcolm Martineau. Following graduation, Rachel pursued some private study with Julius Drake. Rachel performs regularly across the UK and has been featured on BBC Radio 3. She has a particular interest in song and choral music.

Rachel works for the RNCM School of Vocal Studies and Opera as a collaborative pianist and teaches at Yorkshire Young Musicians, Sheffield Music Academy and on the Rodolfus Choral Courses. She is also passionate about musical outreach, and works regularly for Live Music Now, the Leeds Lieder Festival and SoundUp Arts to bring music to the community. She is in demand as a choral accompanist and works for Sheffield Philharmonic Chorus, Congleton Choral Society and Prestbury Choral Society. In 2023, Rachel was a prizewinner in the Stella Jockel Memorial Prize for choral composition.

Recent work has included repetiteur work to bring Julia Perry’s music to life as part of vocal tutor Michael Harper’s Arts and Humanities Research Council project, a French song project with Jackdaws Music Education Trust, a children’s opera with Clonter Opera Theatre and concerts at Oxford Lieder Festival and Leeds Lieder Festival. Rachel is also on the working group for Equality, Diversity and Inclusivity for Live Music Now.

Silvia Lucas is a Spanish pianist and performer, educated up to PhD level at the Royal Northern College of Music (Manchester, UK), where she was highly commended as a performer in the Gold Medal Weekend (2015). Ever since, she has been a very active performer of new music. As a contemporary pianist Silvia has premiered a large number of piano works, most of them dedicated to her, this includes three piano concertos and over 20 solo works. She has given solo recitals in the United States (Cornell University, New York), Spain, United Kingdom and Germany, amongst others.

As well as a pianist and performer, Silvia enjoys a busy teaching career in various institutions in the North West and is also private piano tutor. She is comfortable teaching a wide range of styles and abilities and tailors her lessons to the individual needs of each student.

Silvia is the artistic director and founder of noisescenes, a concert series which is funded by the Arts Council England, where she features new commissions of electroacoustic music and performance alongside her own performances of older and newer works.

Kristin Lien was born in Taiwan in 1978. She undertook her initial studies at the Kuang-Jen Music School as a pupil of Anita Cheung and won numerous prizes and awards for both piano and cello. In 1995 she was awarded a Music scholarship to Durham School and she later became Durham Young Musician after a recital in Green Palace, Durham.

In 1997, she was awarded an entrance scholarship to the Royal Northern College of Music, where she learnt with Carole Presland. During this time, she performed in numerous concerts as both soloist and accompanist, also appearing in Masterclasses with Anne Queffelec, Ronan O’Hora, Martin Roscoe and Renna Kellaway. Kristin was awarded the Gordon Green memorial award and the “Anne Cantelo” Scholarship in 2001.

Between 2002 and 2003, Kristin achieved her Postgraduate Diploma and the Professional Performance Diploma at the RNCM. Since then, she has continued with her professional development training by completing her PGCE and was awarded Certificate of Teaching (CTABRSM) by the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music in 2012.

As a highly committed teacher, she is now a member of staff at Junior RNCM, Yorkshire Young Musicians, Bowdon Preparatory School and the Bolton School.

John is a graduate of Surrey University where he studied piano with Peter Croser and since then has worked solely in music. He has been involved in music education for thirty years and has considerable experience as both a classroom and instrumental teacher. He has worked as a peripatetic piano teacher for Hull Music Service, held the position of keyboard and musicianship tutor with East Riding College and taught Music Tech A level at Wyke College. His current work includes piano tutor at Pocklington School and A level examining for Edexcel.

Throughout this time John has enjoyed a busy performing schedule as a freelance pianist / synthesiser player, and has an artist management contract with The Animal Farm Music (London) for his original compositions.

John also maintains a private studio, teaching classical and jazz piano plus music theory and music technology / recording. John has a diploma in piano performance, and was recently awarded FLCM in Jazz Performance