Biography..

Born and raised on the Wirral, Alexander Thomas is a young dynamic musician who has graduated with a BA (hons) from the University of York and an MA in composition from the University of Sussex. Primarily a harpist, he is also a flautist, saxophonist and singer alongside composing, arranging, song-writing, directing, repetiteuring and teaching. He sees his greatest strength as his versatility – a hugely important asset for a 21st Century musician - having worked across a wealth of genres, from pop to jazz to gospel, musical theatre and opera, but with a firm focus on classical music. As an instrumentalist he has over a decade of extensive performance history in the concert hall, the theatre, in smaller intimate gig venues, outdoor events, festivals and even pubs. He has performed with the University orchestras at York, Durham, Leeds and Sussex, as well as with a wealth of community and semi-professional orchestras and in solo and chamber music recitals in the North West, in London and across the South East.

He is passionate about teaching and introducing new people to the joys of expressing oneself through a musical instrument. He is particularly keen to break down the barriers that sometimes prevent people from enjoying classical music, helping both children and adults explore it in an exciting, rewarding and thoroughly enjoyable way. A particular crusade of his involves the exploration of new repertoire for the harp, particularly in an accompanimental role to singers and instrumentalists in works initially written for piano accompaniment. He is currently studying harp in London with Gabriella Dall’Olio.

Alexander has studied composition with Thomas Simaku, Martin Butler, Ed Hughes and Malcolm Singer, and has had orchestral, solo, chamber and theatre works performed in York (including being awarded the University of York Undergraduate Commission in 2007 and as part of the York Late Music Festival in 2008), in Brighton, Cambridge and on the Wirral, and further afield in Spain and Italy. He also co-devised a new piece of theatre-with-music - Berlinernacht - with international research-based theatre company Root Experience staging a sell-out run to five-star reviews in the 2011 Brighton Fringe Festival, based on the music of the Berlin Kabarett scene of the 1930s, for which he arranged the music and wrote English lyrics himself. A keen arranger, his orchestral version of Vaughan Williams’ song cycle The House of Life was performed to acclaim by the Wirral Symphony Orchestra and baritone Louis Hurst under Jonathan Small in Hoylake in November 2012.

Alexander is currently based in north London.