Our Soloists

Piano
Martin James Bartlett

In July 2022, Bartlett was announced as the recipient of the inaugural Prix Serdang, a prize awarded to him by Rudolf Buchbinder that included a recital in the Villa Serdang, Switzerland. The new prize recognises the achievements and career of a young pianist and was chosen by Buchbinder and Thomas Pfiffner in collaboration with promoters and artists worldwide.

Highlights of Bartlett’s 2022/23 season included appearances at major festivals such as Festival International de Piano de La Roque d'Anthéron, Rheingau Musik and Turku Music festivals, as well as performances with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and a UK tour with the Sinfonia of London under the baton of John Wilson.

In 2019, his debut recital album ‘Love and Death’, exploring these elemental themes, ranging from Bach to Prokofiev, received outstanding reviews in The Times, The Guardian and The Sunday Times.

Martin James Bartlett’s early public success was as the winner of the BBC Young Musician of the Year in 2014. In August 2020, Bartlett was announced as the winner of the Virtu(al)oso Global Piano Competition by Piano Cleveland. In 2021 he was awarded the Queen Mother Rosebowl by the then HRH Prince Charles and graduated with a first class Bachelor’s degree, Master’s degree and an Artist’s Diploma from the Royal College of Music.

Piano
Warren Mailley-Smith

In 2016 Warren became the first British pianist to perform Chopin’s complete works for solo piano from memory in a series of 11 recitals at St John’s Smith Square. Hailed by the critics as an “epic achievement”, Mailley-Smith will repeat the series across the UK in coming seasons.

He has given acclaimed solo recitals at The Wigmore Hall, Carnegie Hall and has performed for the British Royal Family on numerous occasions. 

A passionate chamber musician, he is Artistic Director of the Piccadilly Chamber Music Series and is founder and Artistic Director of The Piccadilly Sinfonia.  His career has taken him all over the world, with solo performances in Australia, Europe and most recently solo tours in China and the USA. He is a popular soloist on the UK concert scene.

Warren’s growing discography has made an impact on critics, broadcasters and the public alike. His recordings have been featured by Classic FM as CD of the Week and his recordings are featured regularly on Classic FM and the BBC. 

“Rapidly establishing himself as one of the best pianists of his generation Warren Mailley-Smith is that rare exceptional talent who turns out to be utterly charming and down to earth with a gentle, self-depreciating sense of humour. Combined with his formidable technical skill and mature musicality, these attributes have made him a favourite for both audiences and St Martin’s staff alike.” - St Martin in the Field, Staff Pick of the Month

Soprano
Lucy Farrimond




Lucy Farrimond is a young lyric soprano based in Greater Manchester, UK, currently studying for a master’s degree at the Royal Northern College of Music under the tutelage of Jane Irwin. Lucy has performed at venues throughout the UK and abroad, including the Royal Albert Hall, Bridgewater Hall, Snape Maltings and the embassy of the United Kingdom in Paris. At the age of 21, Lucy made her BBC Proms Solo Debut in Haydn's 'The Creation' at The Royal Albert Hall, with the BBC Philharmonic and BBC Proms Youth Choir - conducted by Omer Meir Wellber - live on BBC Radio 3.

Lucy has worked with renowned conductors, including: Sir Mark Elder, Omer Meir Wellber, Sakari Oramo, David Parry, Richard Cooke, Lee Reynolds and Martin Andre, alongside acclaimed orchestras including: The Hallé, BBC Philharmonic, BBC Symphony Orchestra and Royal Philharmonic Orchestra

Lucy is very grateful to have been generously supported by; 'Ann Gerrard Bursaries', 'Sophie's Silver Lining Fund' and the 'Hindley and Abram Grammar School Foundation' throughout her postgraduate studies at the RNCM.



























Violin
Callum Smart

Callum Smart is quickly developing an international reputation as one of Britain’s finest young violinists and an innovative pedagogue, combining his professorship at the RNCM with his following of 55k+ on Instagram. He is celebrated for the sincerity of his singing line, combining ‘brilliant technique with the confidence to take risks’ (Bachtrack) and his ‘utterly convincing’ interpretations (BBC Music Magazine).

Recognised as a rising star since winning the BBC Young Musician strings category and being the top European prize-winner at the Menuhin Competition in 2010, Smart now enjoys concert appearances with the UK’s leading orchestras, including re-invitations to the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic and the Philharmonia Orchestra.

In 2023 Callum made his full debut with the Hallé Orchestra, performing Saint Saens Concerto no 3, as well as performing Elgar, Glazunov, Tchaikovsky, Mendelssohn, Korngold, and Sibelius. It saw the return of a full recital schedule with pianist Richard Uttley and a series of trio concerts with horn player Ben Goldscheider. 

Previous season highlights include his debut with the BBC Philharmonic  and his North American debut with the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, as well as performances with the Fort Wayne Philharmonic, European Union Chamber Orchestra, Orpheus Sinfonia and Polish Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra.

Now with 3 recital discs to his name, 2020 saw the release of ‘Transatlantic’, which was a top 30 album on the UK classical charts and earned Smart features as Classic FM and Scala Artist of the Week.


Smart plays on a c.1730-35 violin by Carlo Bergonzi.

Piano
Liana Storey

Japanese-British pianist Liana Storey was born in Kansas City, USA in 2002 to a family of musicians. She began playing the piano at the age of four and studied with Marina Sultanova at the International Center for Music at Park University, Missouri, where she was given regular opportunities to perform from a young age.

After moving from Kansas City to Glasgow in 2010, she studied at the Junior department of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, formerly RSAMD, where her teachers included Marika Slater, James Willshire, and Graeme McNaught.

Liana passed her ABRSM Grade 8 piano exam at the age of 12 and gained the highest mark for piano in Glasgow, receiving the W. Lindsey Lamb Memorial Bursary Award for Pianoforte. She won fourth prize in the Moray piano competition in Elgin in 2013, first prize at the Young Pianist of the North International Piano Competition in 2014, and in 2018 she was a finalist in the James Waterhouse Piano Competition and won second prize in the Junior Intercollegiate Beethoven Piano Competition. She has also won numerous piano categories at the Glasgow Music Festival.

In 2019 she gave performances of Beethoven’s first Piano Concerto with the Glasgow Chamber Orchestra and the Junior Royal Conservatoire of Scotland Orchestra. In August 2019, she attended the Lake Como Summer Piano School in Italy, where she had lessons with Stanislav Ioudenitch and William Grant Nabore.

In 2020, she moved to Manchester to study with Dina Parakhina at the Royal Northern College of Music, where she is in her 3rd year.

More recently, she has given performances of Rachmaninov Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini with second piano, and Mozart Concerto in C minor K491, Grieg Piano Concerto in A minor, & Saint-Saëns Concerto No. 2 with orchestra.