Sophie has been playing cello since she was 7 years old and during this time, has developed a true love for orchestral music. She was section leader of the North Ayrshire Senior String Orchestra at age 15, the youngest leader in the orchestra's history. It was in this role that she widened her musical repertoire.
In 2013 Sophie became a member of the Ayrshire Fiddle Orchestra, a local group that perform traditional Scottish and Irish music across Scotland and internationally. As a member of this group, Sophie was involved in many high profile events. In 2015, Sophie was selected to embark on a tour of South Africa where the orchestra performed along side the Cape Town and Johannesburg Youth Orchestras as well as playing 3 sold out concerts at the African Festival of Culture in Grahamstown. This tour also included charity work with the Hout Bay music project mentoring children from the surrounding townships.
Before setting off to the University of Aberdeen, Sophie undertook a work experience project with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra. This project included a 2 day intensive masterclass with Aleksei Kiseliov, the principal cellist of the RSNO, culminating in a performance where she played alongside the RSNO.
Now in her third year of studying under Aline Gow of Scottish Opera at the University of Aberdeen, Sophie is a member of the universities symphony and chamber orchestras. Playing with these groups has exposed Sophie to a new and varied range of music and has also enabled her to perform with other groups such as the Univeristy of Aberdeen Opera Society, University of Aberdeen Baroque Ensemble and Scottish Opera's Connect Orchestra where she was involved in a world premier. In 2016, Sophie performed in the Universities of Scotland Symphony Orchestra and enjoyed a successful tour of Belgium with the group.
In 2017 Sophie worked at Camp Mariah at The Fresh Air Fund in New York teaching music to young people ages 12-15. Following this experience, Sophie went on to study abroad at St Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota. Here, she performed with the St Olaf Phillharmonia and worked with founder of the International Cello Institute, Anna Clift.
