Meet The Teachers

Mr Eastwood has been teaching for over 30 years after graduating from the RNCM. His favourite part of teaching is getting to see his pupils progress over time. He currently performs with Stockport Symphony Orchestra & Cheshire Sinfonia.

Mrs Barlow graduated from the University of Bangor and specialises in vocal teaching. Her top practice tip is to always start with the hard bits first! She currently performs regularly with the Manchester Chamber Choir and in her spare time enjoys open water swimming, gardening and keeping fit!

Mr Haslam is one of our Brass teachers and has been teaching for 15 years. His favourite musical memory is winning the 2005 National Brass Band Championship with Leyland Band. Mr Haslam leads our Intermediate Wind Band and he also works with our Infant Music Centre children.

Mrs Ashton has been teaching singing for 10 years and studied music at the University of Huddersfield. She also studied with ENO on their Opera Works course and is currently completing an MA in vocal pedagogy. 

When not teaching she loves to perform in operas and concerts and her favourite composer is Puccini. 

Mrs Clarke has been teaching piano and woodwind for over 20 years. She recommends practicing little and often to make good progress. She regularly performs with Werneth Concert Band and she also accompanies many of our ABRSM examinations. In her spare time, she enjoys long walks in the Lakes with her Cockapoo, Barney.

Mr Collins is one of our woodwind tutors, he teachers flute, saxophone and clarinet. His favourite musical memory was hiring his first ever saxophone! His favourite concert was watching Nigel Kennedy at Bridgewater Hall. A fun fact about Mr Collins is that he can play the Didgeridoo!

Mrs Wood has been teaching strings and keyboard for 20 years. She graduated from York St. John University and currently leads our String Orchestra. Mrs Wood’s favourite part of teaching is seeing her pupils progress and achieving their goals. When practicing, Mrs Wood recommends always starting slowly, it’s easier to correct mistakes whilst going slow!

Mr O’Dowda teachers the guitar, piano and the ukulele. His favourite thing about teaching is watching beginners progress. His most memorable gig was watching REM in 1996. In his spare time Mr O’Dowda enjoys walking his dog. A fun fact about Mr O’Dowda is he’s Irish!

Miss Sully is our double bass specialist. Her favourite part of teaching is working with our various ensembles including string orchestra & rock school. Miss Sully’s favourite concert was performing in front of 2000 people at her music centre leavers concert. In her spare time Miss Sully enjoys knitting and walking her dog, Shelby.

Mr Fitchett teaches piano and percussion. He recommends practising little and often! His favourite musical memory is playing alongside his two young boys for the first time. In his spare time Mr Fitchett enjoys photography and walking in the hills. He also spends time raising lots of money for charity!

Ms Yates has been teaching the guitar for 15 years. Her favourite thing about teaching is that every day is different. Her top practice tip is to keep your guitar out of its case (somewhere safe!), this way you’re more likely to pick it up to practice. Ms Yates favourite song is Love Sensation by Loleatta Holloway.

Mr Hill has been teaching the guitar for 30 years. His top practice tip is to practice every single day, even if it’s only for a minute. His favourite musical memory was organising and headlining Mackstock Music Festival for charity. In Mr Hills spare time he enjoys film making.

Christine is one of our wonderful office staff. Her favourite singer is Joan Armatrading. If she was to learn an instrument she would love to play the piano. A fun fact about Miss Allatt is she once rode a camel in the Omani Desert and rode a dune buggy!

Rick is our fabulous caretaker. He enjoys all kinds of music but his favourite album is Stars of CCTV by Hard-Fi. His instrument of choice to learn would be the harp! In his spare time, Rick enjoys walking the dog and spending time with his family, especially his grandson.

Ms Wade learned to sing before she could talk, started learning the guitar at the age of 9 and the flute at age 11.  In her teens she focussed on Classical Guitar and was fortunate to study with talented and inspirational musicians.   She went to University in Nottingham but returned to Manchester and now works in schools, and plays at festivals, weddings and other events.  She likes to listen to Vivaldi, Bruno Mars and musicals.

Miss Sunderland teaches whole class music and singing lessons to the children at Bradshaw Hall Primary school. She also directs our Beginner Wind Band and she helps to support other teachers to teach music across schools in Stockport. She regularly performs with the Poynton Royal British Legion Concert Band and the Fish Lip Soup big band.

Miss Monaghan recently graduated from the RNCM with a specialism in music education. She regularly performs with many large-scale orchestras as well as smaller ensembles and contemporary groups. She has been fortunate enough to take part in the Professional Experience Scheme with the Halle Orchestra and Opera North.

Miss Shaw is one of our brass teachers and an excellent flugelhorn player. 

Ms Weatherall teaches piano, keyboard, guitar and ukulele and enjoys making lots of fun music when working with whole classes of all ages. She studied at Birmingham Conservatoire and the University of Manchester. Ms. Weatherall loves travelling and discovering different cultures. 

This term Ms.W has challenged herself to learn the violin and is working towards her Grade 1!

Mr Allerton has been teaching for over 10 years. He mainly teaches guitar, but also plays the piano, violin, bass guitar, mandolin and ukelele! He also sings and runs a school choir. Before that, he was a social worker. His favourite musical memories are playing in a youth prom at the Royal Albert Hall when he was 16, and going back as an adult to sing with the Halle Choir at the Proms. He spends a lot of his spare time cooking or ferrying his children around.