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RCM musicians' success on London Philharmonic Orchestra’s Future Firsts scheme

Friday 2 October 2026

Nine students and recent graduates from the Royal College of Music (RCM) have secured places on the London Philharmonic Orchestra’s (LPO) prestigious Future Firsts scheme. 

In the Woodwind Faculty, Enya Bowe (flute), Lizzy Russell (oboe), Hannah Shimwell (clarinet) and Jamie King (bassoon) have obtained all the available woodwind positions on the programme. Additionally, Karen Matoba (violin), Kelvin Ng (violin), Flora Valila (cello), Derry Sowinski (horn) and Charles Roberts (piano) all have places on the scheme, bringing the total number of RCM musicians to nine of the 16 positions, representing four RCM faculties. 

Future Firsts offers bespoke professional support for early-career orchestral musicians. The programme includes opportunities to play alongside the LPO in rehearsals and chamber concerts, mentoring from LPO principal players, and insights into creative leadership, auditions and the wider skills required to be a freelance musician. 

Derry Sowinski, a current horn student at the Royal College of Music, commented: ‘I am absolutely delighted and honoured to have been selected for the LPO Future Firsts programme this year. The programme offers an invaluable range of opportunities that will greatly support my development as an orchestral musician. I am particularly excited to receive one-to-one lessons from the members of the horn section and to gain insight into their work by sitting in on rehearsals. I am incredibly grateful to all the professors I have studied with at the RCM for their continued guidance and encouragement throughout my development.’ 

These successes are testament to the ethos of teaching and performance opportunities at the RCM, which prepares students to enter professional environments and work with leading orchestras. Find out more about studying at the Royal College of Music. 

Main image: Enya Bowe, Jamie King, Karen Matoba, Charles Roberts, Lizzy Russell, Hannah Shimwell, Derry Sowinski, Flora Valila