A headmaster's purchase of violins set Elizabeth Wyly on the road to a career in music. ‘When I was eight our headmaster bought some violins, called a few pupils to his office and offered us violin lessons. I just thought, “Oh, ok!” I enjoyed it straight away, despite one brilliant but volatile teacher who reduced at least one of us to tears every week.'

Elizabeth switched to viola at 15, after falling in love with the sound of the instrument.

‘When Chethams School of Music in Manchester offered me a sixth form place, it was the one time I made a real decision about my career. There I made viola my first study, and had two years of really excellent musical training. After Chets I spent four years at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, with Nannie Jamieson and then Csaba Erdelyi, who were very different but very inspiring. In 1990 I also took a sabbatical semester in Bloomington, America.'

Elizabeth, who was born in Kent, joined Opera North in December 1985, shortly after finishing college. Her parents spotted the job advertisement and dispatched Elizabeth to her first professional audition. ‘I very nearly cancelled when I learnt what the train fare from London was! Before my trial I hadn't been too keen on recorded opera, but I found the orchestra very friendly and welcoming, and I quickly got hooked on the thrill of being part of such a total theatrical experience.'

That friendliness continues to be one of the many highlights of being a part of a professional orchestra. 'There's a strong sense of community here, and some really wonderful friends who have become like a second family. Basically I just feel incredibly lucky to have a job doing something I love.'

Being a part of a small section in the orchestra also has distinct advantages, says Elizabeth . 'When it works as a team it's so exciting and because it's not very big everybody can really contribute. I love our variety of opera and concert work.

‘I feel the main challenge for rank and file players is balancing conviction with antennae waggling, because we need to do a lot of stuff without having it spelt out by the conductor or section principal, and often without being able to hear ourselves. Weirdly, the more closely you match your neighbour, the harder it is to tell what you're doing. If you're doing it really well you can end up apologising for each other's mistakes. Which are rare of course!'

Elizabeth 's favourite operas are Wagner's Die Walkure, Tristan und Isolde, Die Meistersinger, all of the Janacek tackled by Opera North; Britten's Billy Budd and Peter Grimes and Debussy's Pelleas et Melisande. Echoing those choices, her musical idols include composers Wagner, Debussy, Britten, Janacek while pianist Vladimir Ashkenazy's Rachmaninov Preludes ‘have been life savers'. More inspiration is drawn from viola ‘god' Thomas Riebl; viol expert Jordi Savall; old bluegrass sung by Bill Monroe; “newgrass” musicians Chris Thile and Bela Fleck; Piazzolla's tangos; Stephane Grapelli and Django Reinhardt while, Elizabeth adds, ‘this summer Edith Piaf has been moving me to tears.'

Elizabeth admits to being a part-time patchwork and quilting fiend when the viola is not in her hands, although her hobbies understandably revolve around music. She formed the Café Band (pictured right), for whom she also plays and arranges music, in 1996. The formation of the band occurred after a trip to Italy. ‘I'd been to Venice and loved the little groups playing outside the cafes in St Mark's Square,' she says. 'It struck me that some of my friends neatly played the same instruments, and amazingly they were all up for the experiment. We're especially lucky to have David Greed on board and he's a terrific “pillar” of the group. We dip into all sorts of light music; we're very keen on tangos. But we can be more serious and we do a version of the Liebestod. We play whatever takes our general fancy really and it's great fun.'

Posted 28th August, 2007.

These pages are regularly updated. Please come back soon to meet another orchestra player.

You can also read past profiles from 2004 onwards in our Player Profiles Archive .