Recital: Cassandra Mathews – classical guitar

The Programme

Cassandra Mathews – classical guitar

Madronos

Granada

Homenaje

Un Sueno de la Floresta

El Decameron Negro

The Artist

Cassandra Mathews studied classical guitar at the Royal College of Music with Gary Ryan where she obtained a 1st Class Honours Bachelor of Music. She also received coaching from Chris Stell and extra lessons with Craig Ogden and Jakob Lindberg on the lute. She began her studies with John Draper from the age of twelve. During her time at the RCM, she took part in masterclasses with John Williams, Carlos Bonell, Jason Vieaux, and Julian Byzantine as well as performing at Queen Elizabeth Hall and the Purcell Room as part of ‘The Rest Is Noise’ Festival 2013. She has also given chamber music performances at Wigmore Hall, V&A Museum and the London Film Museum.

An event in April 2016 took Cassandra to the Instituto Cervantes, where she performed a selection of pieces by celebrated guitar composer Joaquin Rodrigo to his daughter Cecilia Rodrigo. She has also commissioned and premiered a number of works for guitar, violin and shakuhachi as a member of Illuminate Women’s Music in their 2018/2019 season. Cassandra is particularly interested in collaborations with other artistic disciplines and took part in unveiling ‘Desvalidas’ as part of the RCM Great Exhibitionists 2014 working with award-winning poet Isabel White and visual artist Dylan J Fox.

She was the winner of the Lennox Berkeley Guitar Prize 2012 and was the given a Highly Commended Award for the annual Royal College of Music Guitar Competition in 2012 and 2014. Cassandra represented the RCM at the Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst in Stuttgart in an Erasmus exchange programme in 2012. She has also played in ensembles as part of the London Guitar Festival 2011 at King’s Place and as part of the RCM Symphony Orchestra under Bernard Haitink. Most recently, Cassandra has been performing worldwide on luxury cruise liners, at 5 star resorts and at recitals throughout the UK.