Lavender Rodriguez

Lavender Rodriguez, also known as just ‘Lavender’, was born in Hackney, London, raised in Hampshire. She prides herself in being a “creative” – using any output to explore and express a plethora of ideas, through composition, performance (through the likes of violin and bass guitar primarily) and arranging.

Lavender is currently enrolled on the Undergraduate programme as a composer at the Royal Northern College of Music, studying under Gary Carpenter. Lavender began composing in 2016, after composing in the Sound and Music Summer School, of which she participated in for 2 years. Since this engagement, her love for composition and creating music blossomed, composing for the Martin Read Festival and winning the Hampshire Jane Austen Composition Prize in 2017. Following these successes, Lavender went on to become a resident composer in the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain in 2017-2018, having had works performed at the Tate Modern and the ICC, Birmingham. Whilst there, she wrote a one breath piece for the established Kathryn Williams, which is now featured on her album Coming Up for Air.

As well as increasingly becoming more and more established as a composer, Lavender enjoys delving outside of contemporary classical composition – in 2019, Lavender established ‘Rakossa’, an 8-piece contemporary jazz/neo-soul band, in which Lavender writes music, plays bass guitar and also provides vocals for. Alongside her band, she also is a prominent player in many ensembles. She has played violin (studied under Anca Campanie) in the Hampshire County Youth Orchestra, lead the Hampshire County Youth String Quartet. As well as this, she has played in various chamber ensembles in the Winchester Music Festival, performing Schumann’s Piano Quintet in E-flat and Arensky’s Piano Trio as part of her instrumental training on the Specialist Music Course at Peter Symonds College.

She currently plays bass guitar in The Menna Band and Hotspur Press.

Lavender’s third strand of creativity is arranging for other ensembles – in May 2019, Lavender arranged two tracks for the RNCM Session Orchestra gig. She continues to arrange in her daily practice.

Lavender enjoys initiating projects as well as participating in them – in 2018, herself and Ewan Saunders founded Caester Orchestra, a student-led ensemble playing a range of classical repertoire to jazz in their resident big band. She has also begun a concert series in Manchester, 'Tales from another World', working alongside students of the RNCM to celebrate music from other cultures.

Although she keeps herself preoccupied, Lavender has taught violin and piano to students ranging from ages 4 to late 30s between 2016-2018.

Biography

Lavender Rodriguez, also known as just ‘Lavender’, was born in Hackney, London, raised in Hampshire. She prides herself in being a “creative” – using any output to explore and express a plethora of ideas, through composition, performance (through the likes of violin and bass guitar primarily) and arranging.

Lavender is currently enrolled on the Undergraduate programme as a composer at the Royal Northern College of Music, studying under Gary Carpenter. Lavender began composing in 2016, after composing in the Sound and Music Summer School, of which she participated in for 2 years. Since this engagement, her love for composition and creating music blossomed, composing for the Martin Read Festival and winning the Hampshire Jane Austen Composition Prize in 2017. Following these successes, Lavender went on to become a resident composer in the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain in 2017-2018, having had works performed at the Tate Modern and the ICC, Birmingham. Whilst there, she wrote a one breath piece for the established Kathryn Williams, which is now featured on her album Coming Up for Air.

As well as increasingly becoming more and more established as a composer, Lavender enjoys delving outside of contemporary classical composition – in 2019, Lavender established ‘Rakossa’, an 8-piece contemporary jazz/neo-soul band, in which Lavender writes music, plays bass guitar and also provides vocals for. Alongside her band, she also is a prominent player in many ensembles. She has played violin (studied under Anca Campanie) in the Hampshire County Youth Orchestra, lead the Hampshire County Youth String Quartet. As well as this, she has played in various chamber ensembles in the Winchester Music Festival, performing Schumann’s Piano Quintet in E-flat and Arensky’s Piano Trio as part of her instrumental training on the Specialist Music Course at Peter Symonds College.

She currently plays bass guitar in The Menna Band and Hotspur Press.

Lavender’s third strand of creativity is arranging for other ensembles – in May 2019, Lavender arranged two tracks for the RNCM Session Orchestra gig. She continues to arrange in her daily practice.

Lavender enjoys initiating projects as well as participating in them – in 2018, herself and Ewan Saunders founded Caester Orchestra, a student-led ensemble playing a range of classical repertoire to jazz in their resident big band. She has also begun a concert series in Manchester, 'Tales from another World', working alongside students of the RNCM to celebrate music from other cultures.

Although she keeps herself preoccupied, Lavender has taught violin and piano to students ranging from ages 4 to late 30s between 2016-2018.

Compilations with this composer

Compilations
Coming Up For Air cover

Coming Up For Air

Huddersfield Contemporary Records

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External Links

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