YMM Team & Trustees
YMM Lead & Musical Director
John K Miles
‘Sophisticated Composer'
'Powerful Saxophonist' - John Fordham, The Guardian
John K Miles is a composer, instrumentalist and educator who passionately believes in the power of music to transform lives and communities, to bring people together, as well as the benefits for personal well-being. He has written numerous scores for film and television (BBC1, BBC2, Channel 4, Channel 5 and independent film production companies) and released two solo CDs ('The Enchanter' and 'Trane Ride'). He has myriad commissions from UK orchestras, most recently Share The Dream for CBSO and an open access choir of Birmingham school children for the Cultural Commonwealth Games celebrations in 2022.
As an instrumentalist, he’s worked with a range of artists including Reggae star Maxi Priest, Soulman Geno Washington and acclaimed jazz musicians Alan Skidmore, Tim Garland and Gerard Prescencer. He was an instrumental and ensemble coach for many years and is a passionate believer in the benefits of personal and community well-being through music making.
John has been a theory consultant at ABRSM, and visiting professor at Guildhall School Music of Drama and Trinity Laban. He’s led education projects for a stellar range of arts organisations including London Philharmonic Orchestra, City of London Sinfonia, English National Opera, National Youth Jazz Orchestra, and Barbican in collaboration with Jazz at Lincoln Centre in New York. He’s worked with ages 4-99 with a strong emphasis on collaboration, aiming to create an educational context where participants can find a role in which they can be challenged but also succeed, empowering students to exceed their own expectations.
School Business Manager
Richard Peel
Richard worked for several years for a leading disability charity, supporting adults with profound physical and cognitive disabilities to overcome some of their challenges, and has seen how gathering communities in joint endeavours like making music together has substantial benefits in bolstering people’s self-esteem and wellbeing. He has enjoyed singing in choirs most of his life and is an active member of the New Tottenham Singers where he serves as treasurer and committee member. His other business experience includes nine years working in finance, and more than fifteen years running his own companies in the printing industry.
Trustees
The Trustees form the governing body or ‘board’ of Young Music Makers, holding ultimate responsibility for directing the business of the charity. They are all volunteers and have all enjoyed seeing their own children benefit from YMM and share a passion for the school and its activities.
The YMM committee meets termly, working together to make decisions about the charity’s finances, activities and plans for the future.
For all matters regarding the day-to-day running of YMM, please email Richard Peel, our Business Manager. However, if you would like to get in touch with the trustees for any other reason, please email Mark McDonald, our Chair of Trustees.
More details on the financial running of Young Music Makers London Limited. can be found on the charity commission website, charity number: 264274.
Trustees
Anne Greenwood
Anne Greenwood
Anne plays clarinet and has been coming to YMM's adult instrumental group for several years. She is a great admirer of YMM and its exceptional achievements.
Anne retired from a career in biomedical publishing and now is actively involved in the North London amateur music scene. The inspirational YMM music school is a very important part of this mix.
Lorenzo Picinali
Lorenzo Picinali
I am an academic in the field of acoustics (www.axdesign.co.uk), and I’ve played with the piano for as long as I can remember. I also like to (try to) make music with various other instruments, from brass to percussions...my endeavours are not always successful from the listener’s perspective, but extremely rewarding for me!! I’ve taught piano to kids when I was still living in Italy, and I am very passionate about music education. In Italy this is such an underdeveloped side of the public education system, and I’m very glad to see that here in the UK it’s not the case. This is thanks also to associations such as YMM, of which I’m now a proud trustee!
Matthew O’Connor
Matthew O’Connor
Matthew left his management consultancy career to found a chain of schools in East Africa. There are currently 11 schools educating over 5000 students within the Scholé group.
Previously, he worked for the DfE, ESFA, and other government agencies on national education programmes within the Every Child Matters policy, and remains a Senior Adviser to the Baker Dearing Trust. Last year, Matthew stepped down from the World Class Schools network after four years as Chair of Trustees. In his youth, he was paid to play the piano, and as a member of some of London’s worst indie bands, paid to stop playing the guitar. He lives in Tufnell Park with his wife and two teenage children (previously pupils at Eleanor Palmer and Acland Burghley).
Mark McDonald
Mark McDonald
Mark grew up in a musical household and has a clear understanding of the lifelong learning and cultural opportunities that music tuition and performance can bring. He lives locally to YMM’s hub at William Ellis School and is married with three children.
All of the family have attended YMM and play and perform a variety of instruments - from drums, clarinet and piano to singing and guitar.
Outside of YMM and family life, Mark has had an international career in venture capital & private equity, supporting mid-size companies to invest in new ideas, projects and people.
Xavier Nicolas
Xavier Nicolas
Music is core to Xavier’s family. His three children and wife are or have been YMM students for many years. They fully enjoyed the YMM breadth of musical experiences learning the ukulele, piano, saxophone, rock and pop, drums, jazz singing and others. They all developed a creative mind and embraced the YMM community spirit.
Xavier is keen to offer this unique experience to many more music students from all backgrounds.
He lives locally and works in the finance industry during the week.
Virginia Kerridge
Virginia Kerridge
Virginia is one of YMM’s adult students having been a member of the adult recorder ensemble for more than 15 years and has seen the school grow and flourish. She knows first hand the stimulation of learning and the joy of playing music on a Saturday morning and is keen to enable more students from diverse backgrounds to join the YMM family. In her main career she was a solicitor.
Dan Carrier
Dan Carrier
Biography coming soon!