Choral Scholars 2024-25
Thames Philharmonic Choir is delighted to have appointed five Choral Scholars who are singing with us this season. They are:
Ruby Skilbeck
Soprano
Ruby is currently studying classical singing with a scholarship at the Royal Academy of Music. Ruby was head girl at St Catherine’s Branley, and Head Chorister at Guildford Cathedral. In 2021 Ruby won BBC Young Chorister of the Year. Whilst at school she also studied at Junior Guildhall Conservatoire where she won the Vocal Prize in 2022.
As a soloist, Ruby has performed with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and VOCES8 at the Royal Albert Hall, with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, and has recorded for BBC1 Songs of Praise, BBC Radio 4 and BBC Radio 2. She is looking forward to representing the Royal Academy in the Junior Ferrier Competition later this year. Her ensemble work has included performances with the Rodolfus Choir, the London Philharmonic Orchestra, and she is currently a member of Genesis Sixteen directed by Harry Christophers and Eammon Dougan. She holds a choral scholarship at St John’s Notting Hill where she sings weekly with a five-voice consort.
​
Tali Nishihara Jones
Mezzo-soprano
Tali recently completed her Graduate Diploma at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance where she studied with Mary Wiegold and Helen Yorke.
Growing up in south-west London she has sung with the choir at St Paul’s church Wimbledon Park since the age of seven and continues to sing with them regularly, including many solo parts.
Having a passion for both music and science she completed an undergraduate degree in Acoustics and Music at the University of Southampton, graduating with first-class honours, and also won the Peter Evans Prize for outstanding musical performance. At Southampton she sang with the University Chamber Choir and as a soloist with local choral societies.
At Trinity Tali has sung numerous roles in opera scenes including Zweite Dame in Die Zauberflöte, La Muse in Les Contes d'Hoffmann, Zerlina in Don Giovanni and Isaura in Tancredi.
Tali is a keen amateur violinist having previously played with Southampton University Symphony Orchestra and Stoneleigh Youth Orchestra; she is also piano accompanist for a local community choir.
​
​
Jacob Clark
Tenor
A busy freelance musician, Jacob is currently studying under the tenor, Ben Johnson. He holds a regular position at St Matthew’s, Westminster, where he contributes to the professional choir that sings services weekly, having also held positions at The Grosvenor Chapel, Mayfair; Keble College, Oxford; The Queen’s College, Oxford; The Oxford Oratory; and Portsmouth Cathedral. Jacob is regularly engaged as a deputy at a range of religious institutions including St Marylebone Parish Church, West London Synagogue of British Jews, and St Columba’s Church of Scotland in Knightsbridge.
Jacob is also a member of Coro Spezzato, a premier ensemble specialising in vocal music for film scores. His recent performances with the group include a live screening of "Avatar: The Last Airbender" at the Royal Festival Hall, as well as a tribute concert to John Williams and Hans Zimmer at Birmingham Symphony Hall, Leicester’s DeMontford Hall, the Barbican, and the Royal Albert Hall.
Recent notable solo engagements include Bach’s Cantatas 62 and 140 with the John Lewis Music Foundation, DvoÅ™ák’s Stabat Mater with the Eversley Choir, Handel’s Messiah with Fareham Philharmonic Choir, Mendelssohn’s Elijah with Kendal South Choir, and Stravinsky’s Pulcinella with the Ripieno Players. Operatic roles include the First Sailor in Dido and Aeneas and Acis in Acis and Galatea, both with the Cumbria Opera Group; Megone in Haydn’s Lo Speziale with Oxford’s New Chamber Opera; and Toad in John Rutter’s The Wind in the Willows with Milton Keynes Chorale.
Outside music, Jacob's main spiritual home is The Valley, Floyd Road, home to his beloved Charlton Athletic FC. He is also a keen runner and will be running the London Marathon in April 2025 (his second).
​
Alexander Semple
Bass
Alex Semple is a British-Bulgarian baritone, currently studying for his Master of Performance at the Royal College of Music with Russell Smythe. Alex's musical training began as a violinist, learning with Ruth Palmer and Dr Felix Andrievsky. He studied at the Royal College of Music's Junior Department, co-leading their Symphony Orchestra and winning the Freda Dinn String Prize. He has since performed in some of Europe's most prestigious venues including the Royal Albert Hall, Het Concertgebouw, the Queen Elizabeth Hall, the Purcell Room, and Cadogan Hall.
Alex undertook his undergraduate degree in music at the University of Cambridge and sang as a Choral Scholar and Lay Clerk with the Choir of St John's College, Cambridge from 2019-24, recently appearing on the choir's New Millenium (***** BBC Music Magazine) and Magnificat 4 albums as both violinist and singer. As an opera singer, Alex's repertoire includes roles such as Papageno in Die Zauberflöte, Cadmus in Semele, Ferryman in Curlew River and Tarquinius in Rape of Lucretia, Count Almaviva in Le nozze di Figaro and Ronnie/Reggie/Barman in Rudland's Kestrel for a Knave. In 2023 Alex was admitted to the Cambridge University Lieder Scheme run by Joseph Middleton, and received duo coaching from Joseph and masterclasses from visiting professionals such as James Gilchrist and Thomas Allen.​
