EQ Apprentice 2026

Enthralled by River-dance’s violinist at age 6, Emily’s captivation for the viola has only blossomed since. Under the tutelage of Matthew Jones, she is studying for her Masters in Orchestral Artistry with the London Symphony Orchestra at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. Awarded 2nd place in the Nina Drucker Haydn String Quartet Competition and most recently winning the Cavatina String Quartet Competition, Emily is looking forward to a growing chamber career with her quartet: Tamesis Quartet. The Tamesis Quartet are quickly forming a strong working partnership with the Folkestone Music Society and look forward to undertaking a series of concerts with the society. Having received her orchestral training from the London Symphony Orchestra’s String Experience, Philharmonia Instrument Fellowship and the Royal Birmingham Ballet Sinfonia Scheme, Emily has performed with major UK orchestras including the London Symphony Orchestra, Philharmonia, Royal Ballet Sinfonia and the Hallé.

Hattie McGregor is studying modern and historical cello at the Koninklijk Conservatorium Den Haag with Lucia Swarts. As a graduate of the Yehudi Menuhin School, she also previously studied with Matthijs Broersma, as well as with John Myerscough (Doric String Quartet) at the Royal Academy of Music in London. A prize-winner of Musica Goritiensis International Competition, Prinses Christina Klassiek Concours, and laureate of the French Connection Academy, she has participated in masterclasses with Adrian Brendel, Gary Hoffman, Jakob Koranyi, Colin Carr, Claudio Bohórquez , Sebastian Klinger, Zlatomir Fung, Natalie Clein, Sung-Won Yang, and Denis Severin, among many others. Participating in the Saline Royale Academy programme with Marc Coppey has been a major influence, and recent performances include those at London Handel Festival, Kings Place, Cello Biënnale Amsterdam, Maiastra chamber music programmes, as soloist with Südwestdeutches Kammerorchester Pforzheim and others,, and in a multitrack recording for DEUSS music publishing. She has been supported by the Agar Trust, Musica Maxima, and the Nationaal Muziekinstrumenten Fonds, and plays a Mirecourt 1830 cello which was generously gifted to her in 2023.

Eve Quigley is an Irish violist, in the first year of her master’s degree with Gary Pomeroy at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. She has performed with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, Irish National Opera Orchestra and the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland. Eve was awarded the 2025 Irish Heritage Homan Potterton Bursary for Strings, where she performed at Wigmore Hall, and first place in the Guildhall Max and Peggy Viola Prize in 2024. Eve has had masterclasses with musicians including Santa Vižine, Alastair Tait, Máté Szücs, and Robert Levin.

Megan is a cellist currently completing her Masters of Music at the Royal College of Music with Richard Lester. In 2022 she completed her undergraduate at Trinity Laban Conservatoire with first class honours as a Gladys Bratton and Trinity College London scholar and studied with Naomi Butterworth. Passionate about chamber music, Megan is the cellist of the Turner Quartet, founded at the RCM, and enjoys regular concerts with repertoire including Haydn, Schubert and Shostakovich. Megan is the current Cello Fellow for The Royal Academy of Music Community First Strings Experience scheme and is a Benedetti Foundation ambassador.

Celia Griffiths was born in Hamilton, New Zealand and completed her Bachelor of Music with 1st Class Honours at the University of Waikato under Dr Lara Hall in 2023. She is in her second year of study towards a Master of Music degree in violin performance at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. Highlights of her time in Scotland have included performing with the Dunedin Consort, the Scottish Ensemble, the Lodestar Trio and being a young artist at the ‘Mendelssohn on Mull’ festival hosted by the Maxwell Quartet. Celia has co-founded a group of string players called Āe Ensemble, and is excited to build a career where she can share the joy she finds in chamber music with others.

George Wilkes is a British Cellist currently studying at the Guildhall School of Music under Louise Hopkins. He has received invitations to renowned festivals including the Nume Festival in Italy, the Schiermonnikoog and Apeldoorn Festivals in the Netherlands, the Santander Festival in Spain, and the Hellensmusic Festival in the UK. He has appeared with the Chipping Campden Festival Orchestra and spent two years based in Belgium, performing widely in major venues such as BOZAR, MIM, the Parlamentarium, and the Korean Cultural Centre. As a chamber musician, George has collaborated with distinguished artists including Bruno Delepelaire (principal cellist, Berliner Philharmoniker), Misha Amory (Brentano Quartet), Mihaela Martin (Kronberg Academy), and Maya Iwabuchi (leader, Royal Scottish National Orchestra), among many others.

Natalia Vázquez is a 24-year-old Spanish double bassist from Madrid, currently finishing her second master’s degree at the Royal College of Music in London, where she studies with Rodrigo Moro. Alongside her studies, she already works regularly with orchestras such as the BBC National Orchestra of Wales and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and she is part of the BBC Symphony Orchestra Pathways Scheme. While most of her experience is orchestral, both in the UK and Spain, she is deeply passionate about chamber music. She has organized her own small chamber music festival in her mother’s hometown, fostering strong connections with the local community and nature, and collaborating with professional musicians and close colleagues she met during her studies in Spain, the Netherlands, and the UK. She also collaborates with singers, recently performing original works by Mozart and Bottesini, and enjoys researching the double bass and its repertoire.

Clare Juan is an Australian cellist having performed frequently in leading venues such as Wigmore Hall, Royal Albert Hall and the Royal Festival Hall. As an avid chamber musician, she has performed alongside the Marmen Quartet as well as Ensemble 360 at Wigmore Hall and her piano trio recently won 2nd prize and Audience prize at Wigmore Hall’s Cavatina Chamber Competition. Clare is currently studying with Gemma Rosefield at the Royal College of Music as the The Sir Peter & Lady Walters Scholar supported by the Pauline Hartley Award as well as Help Musicians UK, the Royal Philharmonic  Society and the TAIT Performing Arts Association. Clare plays on a cello made by William Forster Junior in 1804, commissioned by George IV and previously owned by His Majesty King Charles III, loaned to her by the Royal College of Music, London.