Unsung Heroes Cello Ensemble
Join our international group for a magical week of playing, growth, and expansion – for cellists of all ages and stages. The minimum age is 16, with no upper limit.
Time
9.30 am–3.30 pm daily
Location
All Saints Centre, Friars Walk, Lewes, East Sussex BN7 2LE (Close to parking and the railway station)
Price
Modules 1 & 2: £725 for 6 days ● Module 1: £365 (Sunday to Tuesday) ● Module 2: £365 (Wednesday to Friday). The fee includes lovely lunches and all drinks & snacks.
Your music is sent out 1 month before the course. I recommend listening to performances of the original and getting familiar with your part ahead of rehearsal.
Cellos are available to rent for £50 each.
Refunds & Cancellations
Please read our cancellation policy before booking.
Summer School 2026 – Course
Summer School 2026 – Course
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The end of all good music is to affect the soul.
INTRODUCTION
A course provides space and time for you to absorb, expand, think, experiment, evolve & grow
I hope that the immersive experience of a course, exploring stunning and inspiring music with other like-minded players, is a wonderful and full experience for you. There are now several courses throughout the year. Each is different. Each will have a theme and their own set of ideas I want to share with you.
Flying or travelling a long way?
If you are joining us from afar, and don’t want to bring your cello, I can have one here for you to rent. We charge £50 per cello + bow. Some cellists bring their bow, but if yours has any ivory on it, please don’t risk it being taken away at customs.
Both Extreme, Icons and Through Coloured Glass is standard-specific
Elsewhere, the ensemble workshops are suitable for cellists from Grade 3 standard (you don’t need to have done an exam) to infinity.
Food on our courses
Playing the cello is very physical and needs a lot of energy. You need proper nourishment and we have a fabulous cook called Tina Deubert, who is also a nutritionist and provides us all with imaginative food that caters for all diets on both of our Summer Courses. It's quite common that people's diets become more sensitive. Tina prepares food that works for you and will send out a dietary requirement sheet to fill in so everything is right for you. Do let me know if you have any special dietary requirements.
SUMMER SCHOOL
What players love about the summer school is having the time to focus deeply on four pieces of music, carefully chosen to inspire you, and expand your relationship with the music, increasing your enjoyment and your freedom of expression.
We have daily classes that explore technique and how it serves the music we are studying. You leave the course with detailed note packs so that you can continue to develop the ideas. You will also find your ensemble skills boosted, and the group's identity grows as we work, coming together to be a consistent musical voice.
I hope your time with us helps you feel more communicative as a musician and player, with solid confidence. All of you have a cello voice and have a valuable part to play in the magical shared process of learning. Most of all, we have a truly enjoyable time together. I love preparing and teaching this course.
REVIEWS
READING LIST
We all want to grow as players and musicians and, on a course, there is time to get under the skin of the music we play. Learning more about the composers, their times and other historical references brings everything more into focus. If you want to, why not read more about the repertoire? It’s fascinating.
Here is a small reading list that I think you will enjoy. To help you navigate around so many good books, here are a few good, all-rounders. For each course, I can recommend books for specific composers. Do ask me!
- The Story of Music — Howard Goodall, Vintage Publishing
- Big Bangs — Howard Goodall, Vintage Publishing
- A Concise History of Western Music — Paul Griffiths, Cambridge University Press
- The Master Musicians series — Dent
- The Language of Music — Deryck Cooke, Clarendon
- The Cello Suites — Eric Siblin, Vintage Publishing
VIDEOS
Watch individual thoughts on the Unsung Heroes Summer School course and what it meant to different players as cellists and musicians.
Michael
Michael is a Swiss composer, educator and performer and joined us in Lewes for the celebratory 20th Unsung Heroes Summer School.
Katie
Katie has been on the Unsung Heroes Summer School for two years now. Here she is talking about the work we do.
Penny & Susan
Penny and Susan came to Unsung Heroes 2025 for the first time. They both do a lot of orchestral playing. Here they tell me about what the course did for them as musicians.
Claudia
Claudia is an educator in Switzerland and was a joy to have on the Summer School this July. I asked her about he experience of Unsung Heroes.
Kat
Kat had a very full on cello-summer as she came to Unsung Heroes and then came back to Through Coloured Glass. Intense Here she is talking about Unsung Heroes in July.