Information About Joseph - Oxford teacher

Personal Description:

Praised for his sensitive and nuanced playing, Joseph is a pianist, composer and teacher currently based in Oxford, UK. He received a scholarship to study piano under Philip Fowke and Penelope Roskell as well as composition under Deirdre Gribbin at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, graduating with a first-class Bachelor's Degree with Honours in 2019. Joseph has played in several venues including Cadogan Hall, New College (Oxford), the Denis Arnold Hall (Oxford), 49 Queen’s Gate Terrace (South Kensington) for the Vernon Ellis Foundation, St. Alfege Church, the Old Royal Naval College and venues in and around Nice (France). One of his passions in repertoire lies with modern and contemporary music. Joseph has worked with Robert Saxton, commissioned works by composer Caitlin Harrison, and has frequently played and recorded new works by young composers for auditions to the national colleges of music and composition competitions. Despite this preference, Joseph also feels at home when performing staple repertoire such as Beethoven, Bach and Rachmaninoff. Some past engagements include participating in the Oxford Chamber Music Festival with violinist Marie Schreer, an all-improvisation recital in Oxford and the New Lights Contemporary Piano Festival.

As a composer, Joseph has frequently played his own works. 2019 saw the premiere of his piece A Sense of Living and he premiered his piece Litany in a solo piano recital in Sherborne (Dorset) in 2017. In the same year, Joseph was commissioned to write a clarinet quartet for students of Trinity Laban. Joseph was granted the Michael James bursary in 2011 for compositions performed in the Wimborne Minster (Dorset). As well as studying under Deirdre Gribbin, Joseph also received composition tuition from film-score orchestrator John Ashton Thomas, Sam Hayden and jazz trumpeter Laura Jurd.

Tutoring Experience:

I have been teaching privately since 2011 working with a range of abilities from complete beginners to advanced students of all ages. I teach peripatetically at D'Overbroeck's School alongside my private teaching in both Oxford and London. I teach both casually and through graded syllabuses. I am also able to help with GCSE/A level courses and composition, depending on the student's needs. As well as teaching one to one, I have run multiple workshops in schools around the UK to classes of up to forty students.

Tutoring Approach:

Regardless of age or ability, Joseph's aim is to work with his students at their own pace to cultivate the needed skills at the instrument and beyond. At the heart of the teaching is the importance of a well-rounded musical education; fostering deep musical communication at the instrument, with the belief that that is fundamentally the origin of technique. In addition to aspects taught in graded syllabuses such as scales, sight reading etc… Joseph encourages personal musical exploration and expression to allow his students to find their musical selves. Often a broadening of awareness to the nuts and bolts of music and therefore an opportunity to further grasp the deeper meanings of it comprises the work. Alongside this, Joseph has experience in a variety of fields including Alexander Technique and Taubman Technique which inform his approach. While methodical in his approach however, Joseph aims for a relaxed and friendly environment with the needs of each student at heart. With that in mind, lesson length and schedule can be tailored to suit individual requirements.

Rates are the following.

£30 for 30 minutes
£40 for 45 minutes
£50 for 60 minutes
£65 for 90 minutes

Lesson length is negotiable.