Lunchtime Concert – Thursday 30th April 2026 at 1 pm

Sophie Baylis (Flute) and Joshua Simões (Piano)

Sophie began learning the flute at the age of 9. After graduating with a First-Class Degree in Music from Royal Holloway in 2017, she held the position of Chapel Administrator at the Tower of London and, for the past 8 years, has worked full-time as Music & Choir Co-ordinator for the Choir of His Majesty’s Chapel Royal, Hampton Court Palace. Having held the position of Principal Flautist with the Royal Holloway Symphony and Chamber Orchestras, Sophie has enjoyed collaborative performances with ensembles such as the London Mozart Players, as well as opportunities to perform in UK venues including St John’s Smith Square, St Martin-in-the Fields and the Royal Albert Hall, and throughout Europe. Sophie is now a member of the Basingstoke Symphony Orchestra, with whom she plays regularly at The Anvil Concert Hall, and also performs her own solo recitals. Musical Theatre projects have included playing in touring productions of ‘South Pacific’, ‘Les Misérables’, and ‘The Phantom of the Opera’. As a keen singer, Sophie has a passion for church music and enjoys both regular choral singing and occasional deputising in church choirs around London and the south-east.

Joshua is a prize-winning organist based in London. In the midst of a portfolio freelance career as soloist, accompanist, continuo player, repetiteur and teacher, Joshua has held positions as Organist & Assistant Director of Music at His Majesty’s Chapel Royal, Hampton Court Palace, Chapel Organist of Harrow School, and organ scholar at the London Oratory. Generously supported by the Eric Thompson Trust and the Countess of Munster Trust, Joshua won all the major awards, including the coveted Dip RAM, at the Royal Academy of Music as a student of David Titterington and Bine Bryndorf, and was a prize winner at the Northern Ireland International Organ Competition. He currently holds the Musicians’ Company Award for Organists. As a soloist, Joshua enjoys a busy performing schedule, recently giving recitals at St Paul’s Cathedral, Westminster Abbey, Liverpool Cathedrals, Southwark Cathedral, and has appeared as a soloist at several music festivals in the UK, including Presteigne, Chiltern Arts Festival, and the Charles Wood Festival of Music. His concerts have taken him to notable performance spaces in Europe, including Germany, Gran Canaria, Sweden and Finland. Joshua made a critically acclaimed CD with the Chapel Choir of King’s College London, for Delphian, of music by Edward Nesbit. Receiving five stars in ‘Choir & Organ’ magazine and a Gramophone ‘Editor’s Choice’, the latter stated that “Joshua played superbly with virtuoso use of the organ”. Other composers Joshua has since collaborated with include Morgan Hayes, Isabella Gellis, Robin Haigh, and Carmen Ho, appearing with a range of notable groups and featuring on BBC Radio 3 and Radio Ulster.

Programme – The recital programme will include:

* Concerto in G major – Christoph Willibald Gluck
* ‘Ständchen’ from Schwanengesang – Franz Schubert
* Sicilienne – Phillipe Gaubert
* Romance – Camille Saint-Saëns
* Entr’acte – Jacques Ibert

Booking not required – there will be a retiring collection at the end of the concert.