MEET OUR TUTORS

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Romanian British pianist Ancuta Nite-Doyle is the Artistic Director of MoltoPiano International Piano Summer School and as well as performing she absolutely loves teaching piano! 

Ancuta was born in Piatra Neamt, North East Romania and has been based in Scotland UK since 2000 after winning a Silvestri Scholarship  which allowed her to continue her studies at the Erskine Stewart's Melville Schools in Edinburgh. Ancuta later returned to Scotland at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland where she studied with the distinguished pianists Fali Pavri and Aaron Shorr and she was offered a Stevenson Scholarship and an ABRSM international Scholarship. She graduated in 2009 with a First Class Honours Degree in Piano Performance followed by a Postgraduate Diploma and Masters Degree. During her time at the RCS Ancuta won many prizes including the Mozart Concerto Competition performing K271 the "Jeunehomme" Concerto and performed C. Saint-Saens 2nd Piano Concerto with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra as part of her final exam.  In 2021 Ancuta released her first CD of solo piano music by Chopin & Liszt, “Post tenebras lux" (the title translates as "Light after darkness")

Ancuta is also a member of staff at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and is the Piano Coordinator at the Laidlaw Music Centre, University of St Andrews. She is the Director and Founder of the Nite Piano School (www.nitepianoschool.co.uk) in Glasgow as well as being the Artistic Director of the Ardtornish Piano Retreat Concert Series which takes place in June every year in the Ardtornish Estate, Lochaline. She has recently performed in Germany and Italy as well as in the U.K. in venues such as Edinburgh's Usher Hall, London's Purcell Room at the Southbank Centre and the New Auditorium at the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall. 

Ancuta recently finished a wonderful project for young pianists in China consisting of 30 piano lessons for beginners covering a whole year of piano lessons. As well as teaching and performing Ancuta very much enjoys adjudicating music events and recently she was invited to adjudicate the Yi Yue Classic Piano Competition in China and was in the jury for the Einbecker Klavierfruhling Piano Competition, Germany.

 Ancuta and her husband Quintin Doyle have been ambassadors for Hospices of Hope (the leading palliative care charity in South Eastern Europe) since 2008 and have also joined their volunteering team in the hospice Casa Sperantei in Brasov. Their fundraising efforts have included numerous chamber music concerts , private recitals and various other performances in many venues as well as London's Globe Theatre, and these events have raised over £32.218  for the charity. 

www.ancutanite.co.uk

“Lorraine is a committed musician who has an acute sense to colours of sound. Her communicative personality comes through on every phrase at the piano.”
Noriko Ogawa, International Concert Pianist

Guildhall School alumni Lorraine is the granddaughter of a Professional Pianist and grew up surrounded by music, beginning formal piano lessons at a young age and knowing from the very first lesson that playing the piano was the only thing she really wanted to do.

Lorraine went on to achieve Diplomas in Performance and Teaching and to study with Pianists such as Graham Fitch, Noriko Ogawa, Artur Pizarro and Leslie Howard and has a Post Graduate Certificate in Performance Teaching from Guildhall School and a Coaching and Mentoring qualification from Guildhall School and the European Mentoring and Coaching Council. Lorraine is a regular Adjudicator for Piano Festivals and competitions including the annual Junior Clementi Competition.

As a solo performer Lorraine has performed extensively across the UK including a World Premier of S. G Pott’s Raymond Variations in London in 2015, and has appeared on television, radio and International Piano Magazine. Lorraine continues to perform regularly with upcoming recitals at venues and music societies across the UK.

Lorraine has been teaching piano at GSMD since 2014, initially a regular dep, joining the permanent staff in 2017, she also runs a busy private teaching practice in her studio in Bedford where she lives.

www.lorraine-augustinepiano.com

Richard Michael occupies a unique place in the musical life of his native Scotland, as he has the versatility to improvise on any theme, in any key and in any given style.

He has a virtuosic piano technique enabling him to give recitals on “The History of Jazz Piano”, encompassing every major jazz pianist from Fats Waller to Keith Jarrett, and is a master of stride piano playing. 

Years spent as Head of Music in Beath High School, Cowdenbeath have led to an easy rapport with audiences explaining how music works. A popular broadcaster on Radio Scotland since 2007, he has revealed to thousands of listeners the secrets of the jazz masters in his role as “Jazz Jargonbuster”.

He is Honorary Professor of Jazz Piano at the University of St Andrews, and played a major role in the development of the ABRSM Jazz Piano Syllabus.

Richard, through his pioneering work with Fife Youth Jazz Orchestra, has been influential in the development of many of our finest musicians such as Calum Gourlay, Helena Kay, Fergus McCreadie and Kim Macari. Richard currently runs a ”Virtual” FYJO with members from all over the UK.

He has had a regular feature on BBC Radio Scotland’s “Jazz Nights” for the past 14 years, opening up and explaining how jazz works to thousands of listeners, and is one of the country’s most experienced educators.

He is currently working on a book and DVD for Hal Leonard Inc. entitled “Jazz Piano for Kids”, is teaching improvisation on Nicola Benedetti’s Foundation, and plays the organ in Abbotshall Church, Kirkcaldy. 

Rose McLachlan comes from a family of musicians and began piano lessons with her father aged 7. Shortly after she joined Chetham’s School of Music where she studied with Helen Krizos. In 2020, she entered the Royal Northern College of Music, and now is at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama under the tutelage of Charles Owen, Martin Roscoe and Ronan O’Hora. 

She appears frequently with orchestra, making her debut aged 13 in the Edinburgh Fringe Festival with Beethoven’s 2nd concerto. She has performed with the BBC Concert Orchestra, conducted by Barry Wordsworth and was broadcasted twice on Radio 3. As a result of winning the PianoTexas Festival concerto competition, she performed with the Fort Worth Symphony. In 2023, she performed Saint Saens ‘Carnival of the Animals’ in the Bridgewater Hall with the Hallé orchestra. Future performances include Mozart triple piano concerto with Jean-Efflam Bavouzet and the Manchester Camerata which will be recorded on the Chandos label. 

Rose performs frequently around the UK and has performed in festivals such as Harrogate, Ribble Valley International Piano Week and the Malcom Arnold Festival. A keen chamber musician, she performs with violinist Esther Abrami in Germany, Switzerland and the UK. With her piano trio, they were awarded the ‘Nossek Prize’ at the RNCM for their performance of Arensky’s first trio. 

Rose has already had considerable successes in national and international competitions; she was the overall winner of the 2016 Scottish International Youth Prize at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and as a result of winning the Yamaha Prize in the 2017 EPTA UK competition, Rose performed at St Martins in the Fields. As an overall winner of the Chetham’s concerto competition in February 2018, Rose was selected to perform the Ravel G major concerto with the Chetham’s symphony orchestra during the 2018-19 season. In 2018 Rose also won the Chopin and Beethoven prizes at Chetham’s and in 2019 she was overall winner of the junior intercollegiate Beethoven Piano Society of Europe competition. Also, in 2019 Rose was the overall winner of the 11th "Dora Pejacevich“ competition organised by EPTA Croatia. In 2022, Rose was awarded the Chopin Prize at the RNCM and was named Kirklees Young Musician of the Year. In 2022, Rose was awarded the Silver Medal award by the Musicians Company. 

2018 saw her first commercial recording being issued by Divine Art, performing ‘Five Hebridean Dances’ by John McLeod and in January 2020, Rose recorded piano duets by the distinguished British composer, Edward Gregson, with her father for a new commercial recording on the Naxos label.

Rose is extremely grateful to receive support from The Caird Trust, The Sir James Gibb award, Michael McLean and she is a Talent Unlimited artist.

Toni James has attracted wide critical acclaim as “an outstanding musician” (New York Times) and “chamber music pianist of the highest calibre” (MusicWeb International).  Her recordings have won acclaim from Gramophone, MusicWeb International and Fanfare Magazine.  She has toured extensively throughout the US, Canada, UK and Europe, including appearances at Weill Recital Hall, Jordan Hall, Rolston Recital Hall, Shalin Liu Performance Center, Bing Concert Hall and Copley Symphony Hall.  Toni’s major international festival appearances include Rockport, Banff, Heifetz, Mainly Mozart and La Jolla.  Her collaborators include Rachel Barton Pine, Jeremy Denk, Conn-Selmer Roster Artists, and principals of the major American orchestras.  Toni’s performances of newly commissioned works and premieres include music by former Chicago Symphony Orchestra composer-in-residence Augusta Read Thomas, Grammy-Award winner Billy Childs and Daniel Dorff.  She is currently pianist with one of Scotland's foremost new and chamber music collectives Scottish Voices.

Toni is Doctor of Musical Arts, which she earned from the world-famous Eastman School of Music where she also received the Postgraduate Certificate in College and Community Teaching.  She was the youngest-ever recipient of the Bachelor of Music Performance Degree with First Class Honours from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, aged just twenty.  In addition to earning top honours in the Conservatoire’s Mozart Memorial Concerto Prize, Governor’s Recital Prize and Bach Prize, Toni is an international prize-winner in the Moray, Scottish International Piano Academy and International Emmanuel Durlet competitions.  She was also a keyboard finalist in the BBC’s Young Musician of the Year Competition.

Appointed Professor of Piano, Performance and Pedagogy at San Diego State University School of Music and Dance in 2015, Toni was awarded the University’s Exceptional Service Award.  She was later appointed Head of Academic Quality & Standards for the Faculty of Humanities & Social Sciences at the University of Liverpool, where she taught classical music performance and pedagogy as well as launching the inaugural Women in Music conference.  She has been Visiting Professor at the Music Departments of Furman University and Point Loma Nazarene University, as well as a guest teaching artist at Bravo! International Music Academy, Hausmann Chamber Music Program and Asheville Area Piano Forum.  Toni has delivered access, development and progression in music for children, young people and adults of all ages and backgrounds as Director of the Piano Academy at San Diego State University Community Music School and San Diego Summer Music Institute.