Recent graduate Guylaine Eckersley, who completed both her undergraduate and Master's degrees at the Academy, has been appointed Principal Bassoon of the Ulster Orchestra in Belfast. Guylaine takes up the position in October this year, and her first concert with the orchestra in her new role will be a performance of Tchaikovsky's Fourth Symphony with conductor Andrew Gourlay.
Fellow 2023 graduate Ieva Kuprevičiūtė has recently been appointed Co-Principal Flute of the Lithuanian National Symphony Orchestra. On her time at the Academy, Ieva said: 'The four years I spent at the Academy were challenging, inspiring and truly wonderful. I’ve now achieved my lifelong dream: becoming a part of the Lithuanian National Symphony Orchestra. Thanks to the Academy, I knew the audition repertoire inside out and was ready to perform under pressure.'
Earlier in the year, alum Sinéad Frost was appointed Associate Principal Bassoon in the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland. She began her new role in March, performing in a concert of Brahms’ First Piano Concerto and Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique at the National Concert Hall in Dublin. On her time as a postgraduate student at the Academy, Sinéad said: 'I enjoyed two fantastic years as a Master's student. The orchestral projects and repertoire classes offered at the Academy were crucial to my development as an orchestral player.'
The Academy would like to congratulate Guylaine, Ieva and Sinéad on their exciting new roles.