RSNO appoints Kirstin Drew and Colin McKee to Violin section Posted Thu 6 June 2024
This June, the Royal Scottish National Orchestra (RSNO) welcomes Kirstin Drew and Colin McKee as Tutti Second Violins following successful auditions.
In their time performing with the RSNO as freelance musicians and trialists, Kirstin and Colin have performed with the RSNO on a range of activity including with renowned soloists such as Midori, Nicola Benedetti and Sheku Kanneh-Mason and on popular non-classical performances of the music of John Williams, Video Games and Jurassic Park in Concert. Notably, both took part in the RSNO’s prestigious Salzburg Residency as part of the Salzburger Festspiele in October 2023 with Music Director Thomas Søndergård and pianist Lise de la Salle. Kirstin and Colin officially start in their new positions later this June.
Whilst she was born in Scotland, Kirstin Drew grew up in Australia and studied in Melbourne at the Victorian College of the Arts and The University of Melbourne before returning to Scotland in 2016, where she spent a period working as a freelance violinist and as a member of the Scottish Ballet Orchestra. On her appointment to the RSNO, Kirstin said: ‘I’m thrilled to become a permanent member of the RSNO as part of the Second Violin section. It is such a friendly and welcoming orchestra, full of great people and fabulous musicians.’
Scottish Violinist Colin McKee studied at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester before returning to Glasgow to complete a Master’s degree at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. Since graduating, he has regularly played with Scottish orchestras and became a full-time member of the Orchestra of Scottish Ballet in 2022. Discussing his appointment, Colin said: ‘I am delighted to be joining the RSNO. As a violinist who grew up and began my studies in Glasgow, joining the orchestra that I was taken to watch perform as a youngster is a very special feeling. I am looking forward to getting to know everyone better, create many more memories and perform fantastic music all around the country and abroad.’
RSNO audiences will see Kirstin on the Orchestra’s largest stage of the year among more than 150 musicians for the 2023:24 Season Finale: Berlioz Grande Messe on 14 June (Usher Hall, Edinburgh) and 15 June (Glasgow Royal Concert Hall). Colin will join the Orchestra onstage when the RSNO returns to the Edinburgh International Festival in August. Tickets are available for Berlioz’s Grande Messe here.
