Fiona Bassett

Brass teacher

Fiona is a Manchester-based freelance professional French horn player and brass tutor from Northamptonshire. 

She achieved a first-class honours Bachelor of Music degree at the Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester and furthered her studies with a Master of Music in Orchestral Performance at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, Cardiff.

Fiona enjoys a varied career teaching brass lessons and playing professionally with orchestras, opera companies and musical theatre productions. She has performed with orchestras including the Hallé Orchestra, Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Manchester Camerata, Welsh National Opera and BBC National Orchestra of Wales. 

As a touring musician, Fiona works with Opra Cymru, London Symphonic Rock Orchestra (LSRO) and Symphonica ‘Mr Switch’. Recent tours include the premiere of ‘Peth Bach ‘di Cawr’, composed by Gareth Glyn and Mozart’s Cosi Fan Tutte with Opra Cymru and tours of Germany, Monaco and Mexico with LSRO, with their tribute orchestra, ABBA “The show”.

Growing up with a Mum as a drama teacher, Fiona has a love of musical theatre. Since 2018, Fiona has been a part of the Thursford Christmas Spectacular and was the principal horn for the Lambeth Jackson production of ‘The Secret Garden’ at the London Palladium in 2022.

With a passion for youth music, Fiona worked for many years as ‘social staff’ and French horn mentor with the National Children’s Orchestras of Great Britain on their residential courses and in 2017, she was a graduate music assistant at Wells Cathedral School, where shecoached brass ensembles and assisted practice sessions. From 2020-2022, Fiona was the Administrator, Head of Pastoral staff and later, Assistant to the Directors for the Benedetti Foundation. 

Fiona is delighted to work with such an amazing team at Olympias Music Foundation as their brass tutor for ‘Learn to Play’ and she’s excited to see the progression of the organisation in the coming months and years.