Momentum Ensemble: Beautiful Equations

Recognised for his “virtuosity and engaging musicianship” (Gramophone Magazine),
Jonathan Radford is regarded as one of the leading classical saxophonists of his
generation. Passionate about showcasing the saxophone’s versatility across the classical
and contemporary repertoire, Jonathan delights his audiences with characteristically
energetic and expressive performances.

In demand internationally as a concerto soloist, recitalist and chamber musician,
Jonathan has performed in prestigious concert halls and festivals across the world
including the Grieg Hall (Bergen), Philharmonie de Paris, Seoul Arts Center (South
Korea), Bridgewater Hall (Manchester), Southbank Centre – Purcell Room, Queen
Elizabeth Hall and Wigmore Hall (London). Recent appearances include concertos with
the Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra, National Symphony Orchestra and the
Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra.

Jonathan is an international prize-winner, including the award of Commonwealth
Musician of the Year and Gold Medallist in the Royal Overseas League Music
Competition (UK), Saxopen International Competition (France), and Concordo
Internazionale de Musica Marco (Italy). He was a Young Concert Artist for the Countess
of Munster Musical Trust, Hattori Foundation, Making Music Philip and Dorothy Green
Award, Park Lane Group, Tunnell Trust and the Worshipful Company of Musicians.

Jonathan’s debut album recorded with pianist Ashley Fripp, ‘The Saxophone Craze – Homage to Rudy Wiedoeft’ (2022) was released on Champs Hill Records to critical acclaim, receiving a 5* review from BBC Music Magazine, and featured as ‘One to Watch’ in Gramophone Magazine. As a guest on broadcasting networks, Jonathan has featured on BBC Radio 3, Fine Music Radio, France Musique and Scala Radio.
Alongside championing existing repertoire for saxophone by composers such as Debussy, Glazunov, Milhaud, Caplet, Schulhoff and Villa-Lobos, Jonathan is devoted to the creation of new works for the saxophone. He has commissioned and premiered works by Cheryl Frances-Hoad, Dani Howard, Betsy Jolas, Christian Lauba, Luis Naón and Raymond Yiu.

Jonathan studied at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris (CNSMDP) with Claude Delangle, then in London at the Royal College of Music as the 2018 Mills Williams Junior Fellow, studying with Kyle Horch.

A dedicated pedagogue, Jonathan is regularly invited to give classes at the Royal College of Music and has given masterclasses at the Royal Academy of Music, Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, Royal Welsh College of Music, Trinity Laban Conservatoire, Chetham’s School of Music and Melbourne Conservatorium. Jonathan is passionate about bringing music to a wider community, regularly collaborating with the Wigmore Hall’s learning programme.

Jonathan is a Vandoren Paris and Henri Selmer Paris saxophone artist.

Professor Yang-Hui He is a mathematical physicist working on the interface between geometry, number theory and string theory. He has been among the first to explore applications of machine learning in pure mathematical and theoretical physics in 2017, developing algorithms to identify structures in Calabi–Yau manifolds and gauge theories. He is a pioneer of the emergent field of “AI mathematics” (interview by Science [Vol 365, July, 2019] and by New Scientist [Dec 9 Issue, 2019]).

Born in China (Anhui) and schooled in Australia (Melbourne and Sydney), Yang did his undergraduate at Princeton University (Highest Honours, Phi-Beta-Kappa, Shenstone Prize and Kusaka Prize) and then obtained a Masters in Mathematics (Tripos) at the University of Cambridge, with Distinction. He went on to receive his PhD in mathematical physics from MIT (MIT President’s award for outstanding thesis). Yang continued with postdoctoral work in the University of Pennsylvania before joining University of Oxford as the FitzJames Fellow in Mathematics and then the UK STFC Advanced Fellow in theoretical physics.

He is currently Fellow at the London Institute, Royal Institution. He concurrently holds a Professorship of Mathematics at City St George’s, University of London, the Chang-Jiang Chair Professorship at NanKai University, China and remains a Tutor and Lecturer at Merton College, Oxford. Authoring more than 200 journal papers and several books,

A keen science communicator, Yang’s public talks have included a Friday Evening Discourse at the Royal Institution (established by Michael Faraday in 1825) and the DIAS Statutory Public Lecture (established by Erwin Schroedinger and Eamon de Valera in 1940). He also gives regular podcasts and conducts frequent interviews, to share his passion for mathematics with a general audience. Outside mathematics, Yang is passionate amateur musician, having played for the Princeton University Orchestra and sung tenor for the choirs of St. Katherine’s College, Cambridge and Merton College, Oxford. He considers himself a groupie to friends who are professional musicians and composers.

Eliza Scott is an in demand Australian violinist, educator, and presenter, and serves as a first violinist with the Queensland Symphony Orchestra.

Raised in a musical family in Armidale, Eliza began her violin studies under the watchful eye of her Aunty at the age of three. Many hours of practice later, she pursued her undergraduate studies in Violin Performance with Michele Walsh at the Queensland Conservatorium, Griffith University, graduating with First Class Honours and the University Medal.

In 2020, Eliza was awarded a Masters of Performance from the Royal College of Music in London, supported by the Australian Government through the Australia Council for the Arts.

A passionate orchestral musician, Eliza has appeared with the Sydney, Melbourne, and Tasmanian Symphony Orchestras and was Principal Second Violin of the Australian Youth Orchestra in 2018 and 2019. Alongside her performance career, she is a dedicated educator, having taught at the New England Conservatorium of Music and for the Griffith University Young Conservatorium program.

Eliza’s long-standing relationship with the Australian Youth Orchestra began in 2009, and she is delighted to now be leading the AYO Momentum ensemble for this project.