25 Notable alumni of Royal Northern College of Music
Updated: June 03, 2026 EliteDegrees
Royal Northern College of Music is ranked #3,969 in the world and #141 in United Kingdom by aggregated alumni prominence. Below is the list of 25 notable alumni from Royal Northern College of Music sorted by their wiki pages popularity. The directory includes famous graduates and former students along with research and academic staff. Many individuals affiliated with Royal Northern College of Music won Nobel Prizes for Peace, in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, and Economics.
1. Anthony Goldstone
1944-2017 (aged 73)
classical pianist
Anthony Goldstone was an English pianist, known for his eclectic repertoire. He also played a prominent part in promoting works for piano duo with his wife Caroline Clemmow.
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2. Jean Hindmarsh
1932-. (aged 94)
opera singer
Jean Hindmarsh is a retired English singer and actress. She is best known as a principal soprano with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company in the 1950s and 1960s.
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3. Andy Scott
1966-. (aged 60)
musicologist
saxophonist
composer
Andy Scott is a British tenor saxophonist, "equally at home in jazz and classical contexts", and award-winning composer who has made "important and sometimes mould-breaking contributions to the repertoire". He is currently Composer in Residence for Foden's Band. He has played with the Halle Orchestra, has formed and played with several ensembles whose musical style is rooted in big band...
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4. Rosalind Plowright
1949-. (aged 77)
opera singer
Rosalind Anne Plowright OBE is an English opera singer who spent much of her career as a soprano but in 1999 changed to the mezzo-soprano range.
5. Richard Lewis
1947-2024 (aged 77)
television actor
actor
film producer
conductor
stand-up comedian
Richard Lewis CBE was an English tenor of Welsh parentage.
6. Emily Howard
1979-. (aged 47)
composer
chess player
Emily Howard is a British classical composer based in Manchester. The winner of two British Composer Ivor Novello Awards, her work is best known for its innovative connection with mathematical shapes and processes, and more broadly for the fusion between music, mathematics and multimedia. Howard is Professor in Composition and Head of Artistic Research at the Royal Northern College of...
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7. Naoum Blinder
1889-1965 (aged 76)
music educator
Naoum Blinder was a Russian-American virtuoso violinist and teacher, born in Yevpatoria (then Russian Empire, now Ukraine).
8. Norman Kay
1929-2001 (aged 72)
composer
music critic
Norman Forber Kay was a British composer and writer.
9. Jon Christos
1976-. (aged 50)
opera singer
conductor
Jon Christos is an English singer, local radio presenter. and a member of the Professorial Staff – Vocal Studies at the Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance.
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10. Annette Bryn Parri
1962-2025 (aged 63)
pianist
accompanist
composer
Annette Bryn Parri was a Welsh pianist, best known as an accompanist to opera stars such as Bryn Terfel and Rebecca Evans. Parri appeared regularly on the National Eisteddfod stage, and also at the International Eisteddfod at Llangollen.
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11. Leo Smith
1881-1952 (aged 71)
music critic
music educator
composer
Joseph Leopold Smith was an English composer, writer, music critic, music educator, and cellist who was primarily active in Canada. His compositional output consists of works for cello, piano, choir and orchestra (most notably An Ancient Song and A Summer Idyll) and a considerable amount of chamber music (most notably String Quartet in D, Sonata in E Minor and A...
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12. Alexander Goehr
1932-2024 (aged 92)
composer
music educator
university teacher
musician
Peter Alexander Goehr was a German-born English composer of contemporary classical music and academic teacher. A long-time professor of music at the University of Cambridge, Goehr influenced many notable contemporary composers, including Thomas Adès, Julian Anderson, George Benjamin and Robin Holloway.
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13. Alice Coote
1968-. (aged 58)
opera singer
Alice Mary Coote CBE is a British mezzo-soprano. Known internationally for her performances in opera playing both female and male roles, and her recitals with piano and concerts with orchestra, Coote has performed extensively across Europe, North America and Asia. Her repertoire ranges from early and baroque music to contemporary works, and includes works which have been especially written for...
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14. Elgar Howarth
1935-2025 (aged 90)
conductor
composer
trumpeter
Elgar Howarth was an English conductor, composer and trumpeter. Grove noted that "his performances are marked by powerful concentration and a clear communication of sometimes complex scores". He conducted many world premieres, including Ligeti's Le Grand Macabre and four operas by Harrison Birtwistle. He composed mainly music for brass instruments and brass bands, some under the pseudonym W. Hogarth Lear....
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15. Graham Vick
1953-2021 (aged 68)
opera director
theatrical director
director
Sir Graham Vick was an English opera director known for his experimental and revisionist stagings of traditional and modern operas. He worked in many of the world's leading opera houses and was artistic director of the Birmingham Opera Company.
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16. Catherine Foster
1975-. (aged 51)
opera singer
Catherine Foster is an English operatic soprano, who has appeared internationally, mostly in European opera houses. Her repertoire has focused on dramatic soprano roles in stage works by Richard Strauss and Richard Wagner, such as the title role of Elektra, and Brünnhilde in Der Ring des Nibelungen, a role which she performed at the Bayreuth Festival in 2013 for Wagner's...
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17. Carly Paoli
1989-. (aged 37)
singer-songwriter
songwriter
Carly Alison Hopkinson, known professionally as Carly Paoli, is a British classically trained singer, born in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, England.
18. Stjepan Hauser
1986-. (aged 40)
cellist
Stjepan Hauser, known professionally as HAUSER, is a Croatian cellist, and he also sings in concert. He was a member of 2CELLOS, along with his friend Luka Šulić, and continues to perform solo.
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19. Ali McGregor
opera singer
Ali McGregor is an Australian soprano opera singer, actress and cabaret performer. She has performed in operas in the United Kingdom, in Australia and in New Zealand. Her cabaret performances have been seen at festivals in the United Kingdom, Ireland and Australia.
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20. Stephen Hough
1961-. (aged 65)
composer
singer-songwriter
pianist
music educator
Sir Stephen Andrew Gill Hough CBE is a British-Australian classical pianist, composer and writer.
21. Don Airey
1948-. (aged 78)
conductor
pianist
session musician
composer
keyboardist
Donald Smith Airey is an English musician. He came to prominence as the keyboardist of the rock band Rainbow during 1979–1982. He has been the keyboardist of Deep Purple since 2002, after the retirement of Jon Lord. As well as Rainbow and Deep Purple, he has had a long and productive career playing with many other rock and metal acts,...
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22. Peter Jonas
1946-2020 (aged 74)
theatre manager
intendant
talent manager
Sir John Peter Jonas CBE FRCM FRSA was a British arts administrator and opera company director.
23. Jason Alder
music educator
audio engineer
musician
Jason Alder is an American-born clarinetist, bass clarinetist, and saxophonist. He is best known for his work in contemporary music, free improvisation, and electro-acoustic music.
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24. Harish Shankar
1979-. (aged 47)
film director
screenwriter
Harish Shankar is a Malaysian-German conductor.
25. Olga Jegunova
1984-. (aged 42)
musician
pianist
Olga Jegunova is a Latvian classical pianist, born in Šiauliai, Lithuania (then Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic). She is now married, mother of two children and lives in Paris.
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