With a wide range of musical tastes, Dawn enjoys playing all types of music, from quartets to folk and jazz. Trained in violin and percussion, she has performed with many orchestras and smaller ensembles for concerts and functions.

Dawn has played violin for musicals and shows alongside her teaching commitments tutoring violin privately and in several local schools. As well as performing with Arco she is a member of a ceilidh band, covers band and jazz ensemble.

Jenny is a violinist and pianist based in Newcastle upon Tyne. She studied composition (with Philip Wilby) and performance (with Rene Waterman and Raimondo Koco) at the University of Leeds.

Jenny is also a specialist classroom teacher and is passionate about music education, having completed her postgraduate teacher training at the University of Durham. She plays violin with various ensembles in the North East and is an experienced piano accompanist.

Laura studied viola at the Royal College of Music, London, gaining both her Performance and Teacher’s diplomas. She continued her studies with Roger Best whilst building up a freelance career in the London area.

Returning to the North East, Laura has been in increasing demand as an orchestral and chamber musician, playing with the Northern Sinfonia, Newcastle Baroque and many other ensembles, as well as being a regular player at the St Endellion Festival. She has more recently begun a fruitful partnership with pianist David Murray to perform the rarely-heard viola repertoire in the North East.

Kirsty took up the cello at the age of 7, and has been an active musician ever since. Her determination to get a ‘proper’ job, however, led her to spend four years balancing academic studies with musical commitments in Exeter and Germany.

Following a brief stint as a translator, Kirsty finally embraced the inevitable and turned to music professionally in 2006. As well as playing with Arco String Quartet she now performs with various orchestras and ensembles across the North East of England including Orchestra North East.