Inknield Clarinet Ensemble

Mark Lacey
Mark Lacey studied the clarinet with Sidney Fell, and at the Royal Academy of Music with Richard Addison and Keith Puddy. He has performed regularly with many of the UK’s leading opera companies including English National Opera, Welsh National Opera, English Touring Opera, Cambridge Opera Group, Garsington Opera, Grange Park Opera, Carl Rosa Opera Company and Pimlico Opera.
Mark has also performed in many theatre productions, for Chichester Festival Theatre, (including the national tour and the West End transfer of Nicholas Nickleby) the Royal Shakespeare Company, the Royal Exchange Theatre and West Yorkshire Playhouse. An active chamber musician, Mark is a founder member of chamber group Harmoniemusik with which he has travelled widely giving more than 300 concerts in the UK, France, Belgium, Germany and beyond since it was founded in 1991.

Arwen Newband
Arwen Newband is a violinist with wide ranging experience as a chamber musician, soloist, orchestral player and teacher. Together with her regular duo partner Anna Le Hair she has performed many concerts and the two of them were for some years members of the Icknield Piano Trio. She is a founder member and leader of the Hertfordshire based Icknield Ensemble.

Originally from New Zealand, she completed a music degree at Auckland University and worked with the Auckland Philharmonia before travelling to the UK where she studied with Emanuel Hurwitz. She spent the early years of her career freelancing as an orchestral musician including the CBSO, Sadlers Wells Ballet and City of London Sinfonia. She also led and played as soloist with the Vivaldi Concertante. More recently she has devoted her energies to playing chamber music including concerts for the Piano Trio Society and Trunch Festival. She also enjoys teaching students of all ages and abilities.

Anna Le Hair
Anna Le Hair gained an honours degree in music at Edinburgh University, and her postgraduate studies were at the Royal College of Music, London. Anna has a busy and varied career as a performer, teacher, accompanist, ABRSM examiner, adjudicator and conductor. Engagements have included recitals, both solo and as chamber musician and accompanist, as well as soloist in several piano concertos, in many venues in London and around Britain and abroad. Anna currently teaches piano and accompanies at St Albans School, and she also has a thriving private teaching practice at her home in Tring. She is the founder of and runs the successful ‘Piano and more’ concert series at St Peter and St Paul church in Tring and is a founder member of the Icknield Ensemble. She completed her first international examining tour for ABRSM in summer 2019 to Malaysia. Anna has several upcoming performances, details of which can be found on her website.