Alexandra Whittingham
After studying classical guitar, piano, jazz guitar and composition at the renowned Chetham’s School of Music for seven years, Alexandra Whittingham gained a scholarship to continue her studies at the Royal Academy of Music in London. She graduated with first class honours and received the Timothy Gilson Guitar Prize in 2019. She has since returned to the Royal Academy for her master's degree, supported by the Hattori Foundation, Help Musicians UK and the Drake Calleja Trust.
During her time at Chetham’s, she performed with various ensembles including string quartets, guitar duos and jazz groups, which led to her becoming a member of the Wigan Youth Jazz Orchestra. With the orchestra she toured Germany and the Czech Republic, performing in sold-out venues.
In her final year at the school she obtained her LRSM diploma (Licentiate of the Royal Schools of Music) in guitar performance.
In 2013 she won the inaugural Edinburgh Guitar Competition. Following this, she travelled to Budapest for the Carpathian International Youth Guitar Competition, where she was awarded second place.
In 2015 at the Gregynog Young Musicians’ Competition, Alexandra became Gregynog Young Guitarist of the Year, and she was later a finalist at the Aalborg International Guitar Competition in Denmark.
She was invited to perform at Abbey Road Studios alongside singer-songwriter Imelda May for EMI Music and Sound Foundation. She has also given recitals across Europe, including appearances at Festival Le Temps des Guitares in South-West France, Vilnius Town Hall in Lithuania and several festivals in Italy.
Alexandra has performed in venues such as London’s County Hall, Milton Court Concert Hall, The Bridgewater Hall in Manchester and the British Embassy in Paris, where she played for an invited audience of diplomats. Her concerto engagements include performances with the Gorton Philharmonic Orchestra and the Dorset Chamber Orchestra.
Having recently signed with Delphian Records, one of the UK’s leading independent classical labels, Alexandra will release her debut album in 2021. Conceived during the lockdown period, the programme explores 19th-century guitar repertoire in a pan-European context, pairing lesser-known works from Denmark and Switzerland with the instrument’s established Spanish repertoire.
