Trevor S.

About Trevor S.

Trevor is a composer, singer and conductor, with more than twenty-five years teaching experience. He is passionate about creating opportunities for students—regardless of age and experience—to develop skills and engage with music, to inspire them to develop as musicians and individuals. Trevor was awarded a PhD in Composition from the University of Bristol after completing his Masters at Manchester and studying composition and voice at McGill University in Montréal. In addition to this, he holds QTS (qualified teacher status), and has led music departments at both sixth form college and high school level, as well as teaching undergraduate music at a prestigious performance school. Trevor welcomes students at all levels, and with an interest in any musical genre; for those who want to pursue a future in music, he has a proven record of preparing students for further professional study at conservatoire, university and performance schools.

Whatever you want to learn, lessons with Trevor will be adapted to your individual needs and objectives. In all of his teaching, Trevor believes in the importance of building good technique and a solid foundation while encouraging and developing each student’s unique musicality and creativity. As progress in all areas of music is dependent on regular work or practice, Trevor works with all his students to develop good practice habits and strategies.

Singing

Trevor teaches beginners to advanced students across a range of vocal genres. Whether you want to sing for your own enjoyment, prepare for an audition, or work through graded exams, Trevor will be able to help you find your voice.
Classically trained, Trevor has performed in both Operas and Musicals, and has been a professional choral singer. As a musical director and conductor, he works with singers preparing roles in musicals such as West Side Story and Sweeney Todd, as well as operas from Purcell to Ravel. But good technique and musicality translate across genres, and he also works with students interested in jazz and pop.
Graded exams offered: ABRSM & Trinity College London - grades 1-8 and Diploma - in Singing, Singing for Musical Theatre, and Rock & Pop Vocals.

Theory

From beginners, learning to read notation, to advanced students exploring four part harmony—and life beyond Bach Chorales—Trevor can support your learning through lessons that explore theory through creative, musical and practical activities.
Graded exams offered: ABRSM & Trinity College London - grades 1-8

Composition

Lessons in composition will be tailored to each student’s interests and objectives; supporting and unlocking a student’s creativity, while providing a ‘toolkit’ to help the student realise their ideas. Trevor welcomes students from beginners, wanting to explore how we shape sound, to postgraduate composers. Composition lessons can cover a variety of areas from melody writing to advanced orchestration, analysis and style studies to electronic composition.

GCSE/A Level Tutor

Trevor has experience of teaching all four exam boards at A level and GCSE: Edexcel, AQA, OCR and Eduqas. Lessons can be customised to help a student prepare for any or all of the three aspects of the qualification - in composition, performance or the understanding/listening/analysis section.

Piano

Trevor teaches beginner to intermediate piano students of all ages. As with voice lessons, students will be encouraged to develop good technique alongside exploring their musicality and creativity with the instrument.
Graded exams offered: ABRSM & Trinity College London - grades 1-5

During a first lesson, we will chat through your interests and your expectations. If you have any experience as a performer or composer, it would be good to come prepared with something you’ve sung/played before or something that you’ve composed so that I can get a feel for where you’re at. For beginners, we’ll do some activities to determine where to start and what might work best for you. All students should come with a notebook and pencil!