Director of Music
Bloomsbury Woodwind Orchestra Director of Music
Bloomsbury Music Group
The Bloomsbury Woodwind Ensemble is seeking an inspiring Director of Music to lead the next chapter of one of London’s most distinctive amateur wind ensembles. For more than thirty years, the ensemble has brought together enthusiastic adult woodwind players in a spirit that combines openness, musical curiosity and genuine artistic ambition. The new Director of Music will shape the ensemble’s artistic direction — designing imaginative concert programmes, inspiring players to perform beyond their expectations, and creating engaging concerts for audiences.
This role will suit a conductor who enjoys working with committed amateur musicians and understands how to combine musical rigour with warmth and encouragement. Rehearsals should be purposeful, collaborative and enjoyable, enabling players of varied experience to develop their ensemble skills and confidence.
The Bloomsbury Woodwind Ensemble has a strong tradition of adventurous programming. Its library contains hundreds of arrangements alongside more than twenty original commissions, reflecting a long-standing commitment to expanding the wind repertoire. The new Director of Music will be encouraged to build on this legacy through creative programming, new arrangements and commissions.
Working closely with the committee and the wider Bloomsbury Music Group, the Director of Music will help sustain the ensemble’s welcoming culture while guiding it towards the highest possible musical standards. Above all, we are looking for someone who believes that making music together should be both ambitious and joyful.
Organisation: Bloomsbury Music Group
Rehearsal venue: St George’s Bloomsbury
Start Date: January 2027
Rehearsal fee: £108 per two-hour session approx. 45 sessions a year
Concert fee : £275 including rehearsals on the day ( 2 concerts a year)
Create and Commission Concert Programme: £350 ( 2 concerts a year)
(NB paid where the MD is developing original compositions )
The Bloomsbury Music Group (BMG) is looking to appoint a new director of music for the Bloomsbury Woodwind Ensemble (BWE).
BLOOMSBURY MUSIC GROUP https://www.bloomsburymusicgroup.org.uk
BMG runs two wind ensembles: Bloomsbury Woodwind Ensemble (BWE), founded by Graham Lyons in 1993 for about 45 adult amateur players of flute, clarinet, oboe, bassoon and saxophone and the ‘Bloomsbury Band of Flutes and Clarinets’ (BB), formed in 2010 for about 25 adult players in response to the growing length of our waiting list.
Both ensembles aim to provide adult amateur woodwind players with the opportunity to promote and develop their musical ability and ensemble skills in a relaxed and informal setting, to build a varied repertoire of woodwind ensemble music, and to perform in public. We do not audition and our members span a wide range of backgrounds and abilities.
BLOOMSBURY WIND ENSEMBLE
BWE has flourished as a wind orchestra and grown under the direction of Shea Lolin up to 2022, and with Michael McGowan 2022 to 2026. Unfortunately Michael, who works as an Army musician and conductor,
has been reposted and is unable to continue after our May 16th Concert ‘Dancing Round The World’ at St Gabriel’s Church Pimlico. Prospective candidates are invited to this concert
SCHEDULE
Shea Lolin has kindly agreed to take BWE on from the May 16th Concert to an Autumn concert at St James Paddington on November 28th. Shea has created a concert programme around the theme ‘Tales Of Midnight’ featuring an original commission, 4 new arrangements and material from our back catalogue
The new Director of Music will commence duties in January 2027 working towards a concert at St Georges Bloomsbury in late May 2027. Music for this concert must be commissioned, arranged and chosen ready to
be rehearsed as from January 4th 2027
REPERTOIRE
Both Shea and Michael have devised distinctive and adventurous programmes made up of arrangements of light music, classical repertoire and original works by contemporary composers. BWE has commissioned over twenty original works, and over two hundred arrangements are available in our library. Shea has taken several compositions originally commissioned for BWE and recorded them for broadcast and commercial distribution with the Czech Philharmonic Wind Section in Prague. https://www.shealolin.co.uk/recordings"
REHEARSALS
BWE rehearses on Tuesday evenings at St George’s Church, Bloomsbury for about 45 weeks in a year. In normal times the ensemble presents two major concerts a year as well as performing less formally in garden squares or on band stands in the summer.The Group welcomes the interchange of ideas and collaborative activities involving the music directors of the BWE and the BB.
MANAGEMENT
BMG and its two ensembles are run by a committee selected from the members. The committee is responsible for all administrative arrangements and the finances. The Group is funded largely by members’ subscriptions, supplemented by gift aid and orchestra tax relief. In addition to the fee for rehearsals, the BWE pays its director of music concert fees, a fee for creating and commissioning 2 concert programmes a year, and fees for arranging or composing new music where required. We are members of Making Music, and BASBWE
PRINCIPAL DUTIES of the BWE Music Director
To develop an adventurous repertoire for BWE by making selections from the music library, purchasing music, or commissioning original works and arrangements
To select and commission exciting concert programmes twice a year to schedule and within budgets agreed with the committee
To conduct enjoyable rehearsals for an enthusiastic but varied group of amateur players.
To prepare BWE for concerts (minimum of 2 per year) and to conduct the ensemble in these performances.
To arrange a replacement conductor for rehearsals in case of planned or short term absence and inform the committee when this is to occur.
To ensure that the highest possible standards are achieved at rehearsals and concerts, consistent with the BWE’s musical and financial resources.
ESSENTIAL ATTRIBUTES
First class conducting skills
Excellent communication skills to introduce concert programmes to our audiences
Experience of working with amateur musicians, and the ability to inspire them to perform beyond their expectations
A relaxed and encouraging manner in rehearsal
The ability to present and explain the music we play to our audiences
A sense of humour, and a firm belief that making music should be enjoyable
DESIRABLE ATTRIBUTES
Experience of playing a wind or brass instrument to a good standard
Familiarity with the wind music repertoire
Ability to arrange music and commission arrangements
An interest in commissioning new music for wind orchestra.
HOW TO APPLY
Please send a CV with covering letter to Colin Izod (BWE Chair) by email to:
colinizod@mac.com
Closing date: Thursday April 24th 2026
Interviews will take place : Tuesday 19th May 2026
4 Shortlisted candidates will be asked to conduct an audition rehearsal on
Tuesday June 16th or June 23rd 2026
Colin Izod
Chair BWE
07768663320