PJA and the Soho Orchestra
I worked with Arthur Elletson and Phil Lee on various new compositions performed in concert in June 2025 and August 2024.
London: Past and Present, 6 June 2025
My collaborator and friend, Arthur Elletson, composed his first a symphony, inspired by his experiences of London. The music was cinematic, reflecting his love of cinema and movies.
Arthur teamed up with Phil Lee to write four other works inspired by the history of London and Phil’s experiences growing up in the capital city. I performed principal trumpet and I brought together some of London’s best upcoming instrumentalists to form a fifty-five piece orchestra. We performed the works in the heart of central London, in King’s College London’s Chapel.
It was my pleasure to invite Sofia Grigoriadou to conduct Arthur Elletson’s first symphony. Sofia has a range of experience including studying at the Royal Academy of Music’s Sian Edwards, and has conducted as part of Trinity Laban’s internationally renowned CoLab festival.
We’re excited to be working with Phil and Arthur for another project in November 2025. More information coming soon.
Photograph credits: Harry Elletson Photography
Soho Sunsets, 03rd August 2024
Over the last six months, I have been working with Arthur Elletson and Phil Lee on a brand new composition project. Phil is a professional musician who has worked in the industry over the last 40 years. Back in his 20s, he composed a piece of music that he since lost. Recently, he rediscovered his notes and reached out to Arthur and myself to re-orchestrate the music for chamber orchestra.
Since then, we have collaborated on eight compositions. We premiered six of these compositions at the Club for Acts and Actors (CAA) based in the heart of Covent Garden. We brought together a chamber orchestra of 18 musicians, featuring musicians from Guildhall School of Music and Drama, Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, King’s College London, London School of Economics and early career musicians. The evening was a great success, and we’re excited to be planning performances of future new compositions in November 2024.
We’ve got some exciting plans for these compositions beyond orchestral performance. Please keep an eye on this space.
Photo Credits: James Klug
