Rick began his professional career at 17, becoming one of the youngest musical directors of a national theatre tour with Charles Vance’s rock adaptation of ‘Alice in Wonderland’. In 2016 he joined legendary UK rock band, Magnum, reaching number 1 in the UK independent charts with their 20th studio album, Lost on the Road to Eternity and enjoying a successful near sell-out 50-date European tour with the band.

Rick was curriculum manager for Music, Acting and Dance at Walsall College, and worked on the development of the Roland Academies network in the UK, leading on the Academies Roadshow programme. He has worked with Yamaha on the design and development of electric pianos, was owner and Managing Director of Pianoman Studios and Powerhouse rehearsal rooms, and has produced and arranged for numerous artists and shows in the UK and Europe.

Alongside recording and touring with Magnum, Rick continues to be in demand as a studio session player, most recently with bands and artists including Trishula, Texmanians, Voodoo Sioux, and Rebecca Downes.

Rick holds a first-class honours degree in music, a licentiate diploma in music teaching and a certificate in education.

Alex Prince is a talented multi-instrumentalist who has a large catalogue of commercially released music, with productions and compositions featured on 60+ album releases as well as co-producing the music for various advertising campaigns (Boux Avenue, INTU Group, Park Retail, Robert Dyas…). He has been involved professionally in various bands and has extensive experience in studio recording as a session musician, song writer, sound engineer and producer. In addition to this, he has experience working on location and in post-production as sound engineer for a series of film projects.

On the technical side, Alex has had commissions for studio design, both in construction and equipment specifications, media content creation and web-design for schools, colleges and professional organisations.

In partnership with Cool Fossil Music and Roland, Alex has organized and delivered workshop programs for the renowned Hay Festival, including their offshoot festivals at Merthyr Rock and Brecon Jazz and also music workshop programs for UK Youth and other charitable organizations.

Alex graduated university with a first-class Bsc (Hons) in Sound Technology at the ATRium, University of South Wales, additionally winning the JAMES/Richersounds award for outstanding achievement.

Simon (Hank) Hastings, BA (hons), has worked as a performing musician, MD, and music educator since 1985. During the late 80s, 90s and 00s he appeared on stages throughout the UK, in Europe and North America. His experience as a performing musician is extensive, including rock, jazz, soul, funk, and musical theatre. Current gigs include guitarist for The Phoenix Big Band, bassist for renowned UK tribute artist Stacey Green, along with folk-rock artist The Shy Faced Troubadour. Simon also leads his own classic funk, soul, and disco outfit, The Groovy Funky Things and can frequently be found playing in theatre pit bands around the Midlands.

Simon graduated from Alsager college in 1985 before gaining a PGCE in Music Education from Birmingham Polytechnic in 1989. He has worked as a music educator both in schools and for The University of Central England, as well as having considerable involvement in Arts England’s Creative Partnerships programme in the 2000s.

Talulla has been teaching vocals to a wide variety of age groups for the past 6 years in and out of school settings. She has studied in multiple genres including Pop, Rock, Musical Theatre and Vaccai.

Talulla began singing professionally 10 years ago, fronting bands at different venues, weddings and functions around the uk, within theatres and live and pre-recorded radio.

James has been involved in music education for the last 25 years but has always kept his live performance work going alongside this. His first performance was at the age of 12 and he has gone on to perform all over the country and Internationally on TV and radio.

Mainly focusing on contemporary piano, keyboard and vocal teaching he also is a published songwriter.

Al began his musical journey on piano and trumpet, but discovered his passion for drums at age eleven. He studied popular music and recording at University College Salford, the first course of its kind in the UK. He has been an active gigging drummer for more than thirty years, and has taught drum kit for more than twenty five years. A versatile player, he has played all over the UK and abroad with innumerable bands and orchestras, in many different genres, and has played on several studio recordings, most notably on albums by Highway Dave and the Varmints, and Reuben Archer’s Personal Sin.

Steven Nicholls has been a gigging, writing and recording musician for over 25 years, playing both solo and with bands and ensembles across a range of genres including Rock, Blues, Jazz, Funk, Folk and Classical.

He has been teaching guitar for more than two decades in a variety of settings and, after graduating from University in 2005 with a BA Hons in music, began working full-time for Dudley Performing Arts which has given him the opportunity to work with all age groups in Schools, Colleges and Universities across the borough.

Whilst at University Steven developed his percussive acoustic guitar style and this is now one of his specialisms.

Vie Watson is a gospel singer with a classical twist, once called a lady with “A voice to take your breath away” by a leading BBC presenter. Having performed with pop legend, Lulu, celebrity plaudits followed:
”It’s just like heaven hearing her (Vie) sing” Lulu, “Vie has an outstanding voice” Edwina Curry,
”Your ‘Ave Maria’ was breath-taking” Russell Grant.

Vie has toured on solo and gospel choir projects at the Leipzig Music Festival Germany, Festive tours in Milan and Turin, Italy, Gospel concerts in NY state and Connecticut, USA and across Jamaica, as well as alongside Manchester Camerata on several occasions as part of AMC Gospel Choir who opened Glastonbury and the Isles of Wight festivals.

Having studied at Westminster College, Oxford and Orléans University, France, Vie graduated with a B.Ed. Honours and a Diploma in French.

A teacher of 30 years’ experience, Vie insists on aspiring for excellence from each of her pupils and choir members. As a student mentor and educational advisor, Vie also encourages personal self-belief. She continues her parental legacy of working alongside and ministering to the marginalised through fundraising, music, and educational projects.

My core profession is that of a mental health nurse and I have been working in mental health for over 25yrs in a variety of different settings. Since 2010 I have been delivering CBT therapy to people with a variety of problems including anxiety, PTSD, depression, eating disorders, self-harm, psychosis and many more.

For a large part of my career I have been working with adolescents, young people and adults. The best part of my job is empowering people to talk about their emotions and make changes to improve their mental well-being.

If you need any support with your studies, advice and help regarding your health and well-being, then please come and see me.

Joshua is the Technician Resonance, where they also graduated with a BA (Hons) in Popular Music Performance and Production. With a Grade 8 in Guitar and DANTE certification, they bring both expertise and passion to their role. Joshua has extensive experience as a live sound engineer and technician, working with bands and local venues such as Red By Night. Their diverse career includes freelancing for Creative Technology at major events such as the Commonwealth Games and NEC, where they managed audio systems and wireless technologies. In addition to their professional work, they have also served as a theatre technician and maintain their own collection of guitars, offering repair and maintenance services to others.

David is managing director of Vivace Training & Consultancy Ltd and part-time Education Official for the Musicians’ Union. His clients have included Roland UK, Yamaha, Casio, Notion, I Like Music, Music for All and several music education hubs. He currently chairs the Music Industries’ Association (Education) Committee and is a sought-after teacher trainer.

David holds a first-class honours degree in music, a Post Graduate Certificate in Education, a performer’s diploma from the Royal College of Music, and a Diploma in Management. He is also a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and a member of the Chartered Institute of Management.

David’s career has included a number of senior management posts in industry and education. He founded the Roland Music Academy network, and has worked as a conductor, music publisher, visiting lecturer in music education at Middlesex University, and specialist examiner for the Guildhall School of Music and Drama.

Chris can look back on over 30 years in the entertainment industry, mainly in the design, innovation and manufacture of large-scale stage touring sets for artists such as George Michael, Kylie Minogue, Take That and hundreds more.

Chris has a reputation as a market leader and is directly responsible for many of the modular rigging systems used in major venues around the world. He has won awards for his inventions, including the T2™ Truss, the only product on the market designed to protect technicians climbing or working at height.

He is CEO of the Total Solutions Group (TSG), which has offices in Birmingham and Singapore. TSG manages a suite of well-known industry brands including Total Fabrications™, the main manufacturing arm of the business, and Lightlock™, a first-generation motion damping device for moving lights, developed with the Royal Shakespeare Company. Current clients include Take That, Strictly Come Dancing, ELO, O2 Arena, Asian Games, Creamfields and many more.

John has been working in live audio all his life, starting at school where he built his first PA. By the age of 20 he had founded SSE, which over the next 45 years grew to become the UK’s largest audio hire and sales company, touring the world with many hundreds of artists ranging from Metallica to Coldplay, and providing audio services to major festivals including Reading and Glastonbury. The Sales and Installations business works all over the country, installing audio systems in restaurants, venues, theatres and arenas. Recent projects range from Tottenham Hotspurs state of the art new stadium to Ascot racecourse and York Minster.

SSE are synonymous with the development of the UK audio industry, constantly innovating and raising standards of audio excellence, whilst setting standards for training and raising professional competence. Now semi-retired John is a regular industry spokesman, sharing his knowledge and experiences to assist in its development.