Suzi Digby

Susan Elizabeth "Suzi" Digby, Lady Eatwell OBE (née Watts; born 1 July 1958) is a British conductor, musician and teacher.

Early life

St Paul's Girls' School

Born in Japan as Susan Elizabeth Watts, she attended St Paul's Girls' School before reading music at King's College London where she studied piano and singing. She lived in Mexico and the Philippines, and then spent 12 years in Hong Kong where she had a television series as well as radio broadcasting, teaching and performing.^[1][2]

Career

In 1990 she was awarded a Winston Churchill Fellowship, which she used to travel and study in Finland, Hungary, Canada and the USA, focusing on methods of choral training and music education.^[2] She also trained with Péter Erdei, Head of Choral Studies at the Franz Liszt Academy in Budapest.

In 1993 she founded a national music education charity The Voices Foundation whose methodology is based on that of Hungarian music educator Zoltán Kodály.^[2] The same year, Yehudi Menuhin appointed her to spearhead the UK branch of his MUS-E project. The Voices Foundation Children's Choir, a multi-ethnic choir comprising children from throughout the UK, has performed at State occasions including the VE Day Head of State ceremony and the first National Holocaust Memorial Day and has toured in Europe.

Ms Digby currently serves as one of the Foundation's 20 advisory teachers and is in charge of its education project in primary schools.

From 1996 to 1998, Ms Digby was musical director of Rosslyn Hill Chapel Choir, and from 1998-2000 director of the Middlesex Bach Choir. In 1998 she launched 'Singing Schools', a 5-year programme in South Africa involving 70 schools in Soweto and Johannesburg. More than two hundred African children's songs have been collected and integrated into the UK programme.

In 2000 Ms. Digby was invited to become a council member of the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust where she serves as Chairman of the Arts category.^[2] That same year she was shortlisted for a Creative Britain Award. She also founded and directed the award-winning London-based adult chamber choir, Coro.

In 2003 she founded Voce. She was founding musical director of the infant programme of the Finchley Children's Music Group and co-founded Music Box, the Bristol based children's opera group.

She is also a conductor and has performed in the Royal Albert Hall, St John's, Smith Square, St James's Church, Piccadilly and the Royal College of Music. Abroad, she is guest conductor of St. Stephen's Oratorio Choir, Budapest. She has been a judge for the Coleraine Music Festival in Northern Ireland and Sainsbury's Choir of the Year.

Last Choir Standing

Ms. Digby is CEO of arts.works (www.artsworks.uk.com), a company that delivers corporate workshops for clients ranging from Sainsbury's to HSBC, with an emphasis on team building, active listening, and confident communication. She has also worked regularly with radio and television in the UK and has presented for BBC Wales TV including BBC Cardiff Singer of the World competition.

In 2008 she acted as a judge on the BBC show Last Choir Standing.^[2]

In 2010 she founded Vocal Futures, a foundation with the mission to identify, involve and inspire young people to engage with classical music and in particular large scale choral music, performed in unusual spaces. In November 2011, Vocal Futures staged a performance of the St Matthew Passion at Ambika P3, conducted by Ms. Digby.

Personal life

Susan Watts married in 1980 The Hon. Henry Noel Kenelm Digby, eldest son of Edward Henry Kenelm Digby, 12th Baron Digby.^[3] She has two children from her first marriage: Edward and Alexandra.^[4] They divorced in 2001.

In July 2006 she married John Leonard Eatwell, Baron Eatwell, President of Queens' College, Cambridge University.

In 2007 Suzi was appointed OBE by the Queen for services to music education.^[5]

References

External links

• Suzi Digby
• Voce Chamber Choir
• BBC Radio 3 Choir of the Year
• Last Choir Standing
• Vocal Futures