Danielle Saxon Reeves
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Danielle Saxon Reeves is an active member of the British banjo circuit, having played the Classical Banjo since the age of 9. She is one of only a handful of professional classical banjoists worldwide and is often to be found promoting this unusual instrument at rallies and festivals throughout the UK. She is also a committee member and adjudicator for the British Banjo, Mandolin and Guitar Federation. She is currently developing the Classical Banjo syllabus for Victoria College and has commissioned a number of new works for the instrument by contemporary British composers.
Reeves has performed at The Royal Festival Hall at The South Bank; The Bolivar Hall, London; the CBSO centre in Birmingham and the Royal Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool.
She directs the Midlands Fretted Orchestra, which she founded in September 2001, to promote the playing of fretted instruments in an ensemble setting. The orchestra is based of the principles of the original fretted orchestras which were popular in the 19th Century, and is one of only a dozen similar ensembles in the UK. The ensemble recently won a place on the “Adopt a Composer” Scheme run by SPNM and Making Music. This has led to some ten new works being commissioned by the orchestra from composers across Europe and America, which were premiered in Autumn 2007.
During the summer of 2005, Reeves formed a transatlantic partnership with fellow classical banjoist Douglas Back, who is based in Alabama, USA. They played a series of highly successful concerts which included a performance at Bath Banjo Festival. Future plans include recording of banjo music by English composers and another tour in 2008.
