Eilidh Gillespie - Profile

Eilidh is a young flautist who has established herself as a dynamic, versatile performer and teacher. After completing her studies at the Royal College of Music, Eilidh spent the first few years of her professional career in Hong Kong. She has now returned to the UK where she works as a freelance orchestral musician, chamber musician, soloist and teacher.

Orchestral Work

Eilidh moved to Hong Kong in 2004 to take up the position of Principal Flute with the Hong Kong Sinfonietta. Besides regular orchestral concerts, this job involved playing for opera and ballet productions, educational work, recording sessions and tours to destinations such as Japan, mainland China and Europe.
During her time in Hong Kong, Eilidh also freelanced on a regular basis with the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra and Macau Orchestra, both as Guest Principal and as 2nd Flute / Piccolo.
Whilst studying at the Royal College of Music, Eilidh performed regularly with the RCM Symphony Orchestra, as well as participating in side-by-side schemes with the LSO and the BBC Symphony Orchestra. Eilidh also played with various orchestras around the UK including Camerata Scotland, Britten-Pears Orchestra and the National Youth Orchestra of Scotland.
Eilidh has worked with many eminent conductors and soloists, including Bernard Haitink, Sir Roger Norrington, János Fürst, Edo de Waart, Jirí Bêlohlávek, Tan Dun, Emanuel Ax, Pinchas Zukerman, Shlomo Mintz, Placido Domingo, Emmanuel Pahud and Jacques Zoon to name but a few.
Eilidh currently works as a freelance orchestral musician around the UK. She is on trial for the position of 2nd Flute with the London Symphony Orchestra and Principal Flute with the RTE Concert Orchestra in Dublin.

Solo and Chamber Work

Eilidh has given numerous recital and concerto performances in Hong Kong, as well as at home in Scotland and in London.
Among the most prestigious of these performances was Eilidh′s appearance as concerto soloist with the Hong Kong Sinfonietta for Mozart′s 250th Birthday concert, broadcast live on RTHK Radio 4.
In Hong Kong, Eilidh worked on several occasions with the Grainger Quartet (formerly the Australian String Quartet) performing varied repertoire including Mozart′s Flute Quartets and Ravel′s Introduction and Allegro.
She is now a member of Flutes en Route Flute Quartet who, besides giving recitals, are active in the field of outreach work, and currently work for Live Music Now.

Education

Eilidh studied Music at the University of Edinburgh, where she was awarded the Sir Thomas Beecham Instrumental Scholarship and studied flute with David Nicholson. Eilidh graduated in 2002 with a first class honours degree. Eilidh went on to study for a Postgraduate Diploma in Advanced Performance at the Royal College of Music, graduating with Distinction in 2004. Her studies at the RCM were funded by an Andrew Fraser Scholarship, Sir James Caird Scholarship, and a Craxton Memorial Trust Award. Eilidh studied flute with Simon Channing, Paul Edmund Davies and Jaime Martin; Piccolo with Stewart McIlwham; Baroque Flute with Rachel Brown; and orchestral training with Celia Chambers.