Biography

Rachel Fryer (piano) has been widely praised for her depth of musical understanding, sensitive interpretations and virtuosity. She lives in Sussex and is greatly in demand both as a soloist and accompanist.

Rachel has performed throughout Britain at venues including Croydon’s Fairfield Hall and St. John Smith’s Square and for music societies including the Beethoven Piano Society as well as on luxury cruise liners. She has also performed concertos with many orchestras including the Hertfordshire Philharmonia and the South Downs Youth Orchestra. Rachel’s recordings have been broadcast on Classic FM and on European radio and television.

Originally from Hertfordshire, Rachel’s educational background is very diverse. After completing a music degree at York University she studied in Kharkov, Ukraine, The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and The Royal College of Music, where she was awarded a Masters Degree in Advanced Performance and many prizes. She has received guidance from renowned pianists including John Lill, Barry Douglas, Joanna MacGregor, Howard Shelley, Steven Kovacevich and Bernard Roberts.

Early in her playing career, Rachel was inspired by working with Live Music Now! which was founded by Sir Yehudi Menuhin to bring the joy of live music to people who cannot otherwise access it. She is still passionate about keeping music accessible and at the heart of the community, and Rachel has worked with education projects including Glyndebourne Youth Opera, Orchestra of Sound and Light and Kidenza. She is also founder and Musical Director of Music & Wine at St. Luke’s, a concert series in Queen’s Park, Brighton.

Rachel has been Visiting Lecturer in Piano Studies and Accompanist at the East Sussex Academy of Music in Lewes since moving to Sussex in 2002 and has an active teaching career.

Rachel is a strong supporter of contemporary music and has worked with and premiered pieces by many composers including Richard Causton and Barry Mills. More recently she has worked with ReSoundings on a project called  Variations Down the Line, which has commissioned five composers; Samuel Becker, Julian Broughton, Michael Finnissy, Alison Kay and Nicola LeFanu to compose sets of variations based on Bach’s Goldberg Variations, to be interspersed into Bach’s original.