The Queen’s Closet is comprised of instrumentalists and singers specialising in performance practices of 17th century Baroque music and using equipment appropriate to the 16th, 17th and very early 18th centuries.
Gordon Lehany – ARTISTIC & MUSICAL DIRECTOR – performer on Natural brass, strings and woodwinds
Gordon is co-founder, and Artistic and Musical Director of The Queen’s Closet, and is responsible for the ensemble’s ethos, identity, colourful and vibrant character. With his background as a multi-instrumentalist scholar-performer, Gordon also drives the scholarship-led training, development and practices of the ensemble across many aspects of historical equipment and performance practices.
A scholar of early music, Gordon completed an MA in Musicology in 2022 with Distinction—his dissertation focussing on performance of the music of Purcell—and he is now a PhD candidate at Te Kōkī – New Zealand School of Music, with research again focussed on performance of Restoration music supervised by the internationally known Professor Rebecca Herissone of the University of Manchester.
Gordon has wide professional experience playing with New Zealand ensembles including Orchestra Wellington, NZ Opera, NZ Barok, Hawke’s Bay Orchestra and of course The Queen’s Closet. He specialises in brass and string playing of the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries, working on baroque violin with Oliver Webber in London; and on natural trumpet, Mike Diprose and, previously, Julian Zimermann in Basel. He plays on a violin by Barak Norman and Nathaniel Cross from 1724, with seventeenth century replica bows by Antonio Airenti and Janos Kotales; and he plays historic trumpets and horns by David Staff and Graham Nicholson, and sackbut by Tony Esparis.
Antonia Grant – Violin
Antonia is a student at NZSM, studying a Graduate Diploma in Music.
She grew up in Auckland, where she completed her bachelor’s degrees in
Global Studies and Sociology. While focussing on her academics,
Antonia continued with self-directed music study, also participating
in the APO Young Achievers Programme and playing in multiple
ensembles. In this time, she was president of the Auckland University
Student Chamber Orchestra, where she managed the group’s players and
organised several charity concerts. She also taught violin at Saint
Mary’s College alongside her studies. After graduating, her interests
brought her to Wellington, where she moved to study music full-time.
Her curiosity for baroque music was inspired by various teachers throughout her musical education. Over the years, she has built a repertoire of baroque music, however on the modern violin. Since joining The Queen’s Closet, Antonia has enjoyed discovering new forms of expression and learning historical approaches to playing on this new instrument. She particularly enjoys the thoughtfulness and integrity that baroque violin playing requires.
henry nicholson – violin
THOMAS BEDGGOOD – VIOLIN
Based in Christchurch, Thomas Bedggood is a violinist, violist, and composer who has a passion for historically informed interpretation and creative work. In his studies at the University of Canterbury, Victoria University of Wellington, and in masterclass opportunities in America and Europe, he has pursued international specialist training in both Early and New Music as well as ensemble work. Thomas performs regularly and collaborates in ensembles around the country, including with the CSO, Orchestra Wellington, NZ Opera, RNZB, and the Baroque Trust of New Zealand. Thomas has a particular interest in post-colonial, exoticist, and the impact of minority communities on the musical canon, which has led him to research deeply into the baroque music of Latin America and the Neuvohispanic territories.
sára kadas – violin – viola
miru shimaoka – viola
Jane Young – Cello
Jane Young is a New Zealand cellist who grew up in Auckland, has studied and worked in England, Australia, Mexico and the United States and currently lives in Lower Hutt. She holds performance degrees from the University of Auckland and the University of Arizona and enjoys chamber music, teaching, and playing with Orchestra Wellington. Inspired by Canadian group Tafelmusik’s performance in Wellington in 2012, Jane has also begun exploring historically informed performance on the baroque cello and plays a beautiful old cello which has been ‘converted’ to baroque specifications by Auckland luthier Annette Voll. The cello is named Walter!
Tomos christie – cello
Tom is a cellist currently studying at the New Zealand School of Music, where he will complete his Bachelor of Music in 2025. He has performed with orchestras including the Wellington Youth Orchestra, New Zealand School of Music Orchestra, Nelson Symphony Orchestra and National Youth Orchestra, and has been playing with The Queen’s Closet since 2024. He particularly enjoys chamber music, having studied with the NZSQ in 2024, and is often found making music with friends and colleagues around Wellington and beyond. As a composer as well as a cellist, Tom has enjoyed encountering and being inspired by unfamiliar repertoire from early composers. In his free time, he enjoys reading, learning new languages, and sketching.
Peter reid – natural Trumpet – natural horn – cornetti
Peter Reid plays trumpet for Bach Musica and freelances with other Auckland orchestras and ensembles. He studied music at Auckland University then the Trinity College of Music in London and subsequently performed in the UK and Europe.
He specialises in the period instruments – the cornetto and the baroque trumpet, which have enabled him to travel beyond his base in Auckland to perform with La Compania and Academia Arcadia in Melbourne and Australian Baroque Brass in Sydney. He particularly enjoys the interaction and intimacy of small ensemble music and has toured twice with Chamber Music New Zealand. He is a founding member of the ensemble Affetto, formed in 2010, their debut CD ‘Affetto’released Sept 2017.
In 2019 Peter played with Renaissance dance troupe Capriol in Auckland in May, with The Queen’s Closet in Wellington in June, touring with NZ Barok with their ground-breaking Baby Baroque productions, Monteverdi’s Vespers in September with Ludovico’s Band in Melbourne, and a new Affetto programme ‘The Other Four Seasons’ in September with baritone Will King.
Chris Woolley – Natural trumpet
Chris studied classical trumpet at the University of Canterbury and the New Zealand School of Music, and during this time was introduced to historically informed performance and the natural trumpet. Over the years, he has performed with a number of orchestras and ensembles around New Zealand. Chris joined The Queen’s Closet after taking a break from playing to complete further study. He is enjoying the challenges of ventless natural trumpet and exploring the Restoration repertoire.
Sharon Lehany – general manager – producer – performer on hoboy, shawm, POMMER, recorders and cornetto
Sharon is co-founder and General Manager of The Queen’s Closet. She is a versatile musician with a background in brass and woodwind playing, with her musical background in the United States encompassing playing oboe, cor anglais, saxophone and mellophone in wind ensembles, jazz bands and marching bands. While studying as a Fulbright scholar in the UK, Sharon took up brass banding, before moving to New Zealand. On moving to Wellington in 2002, Sharon played primarily brass, including winning NZ championships with Wellington Brass on three occasions, and played freelance trumpet in Wellington.
Sharon has returned to her roots as a double-reed player, specialising in Hoboy (‘Baroque Oboe’) and Shawms, as well as early double reedmaking techniques. She is one of very few hoboy players around the world with an interest in historically plausible 17th century hoboys and reeds, playing on a faithful replica of a c. 1690 instrument using early baroque ‘short’ fingerings and handmade, historically plausible 17th century reeds consistent with her own research. Sharon works with Lucas van Helsdingen in Amsterdam on these techniques and is currently undertaking a PhD at Te Kōkī – New Zealand School of Music doing experimental research into 17th century hoboy reeds. She also studies other aspects of early and later baroque and hoboy performance practice with Oliver Webber and Marianne Pfau.
REBECCA GRIMWOOD – HOBOY
Rebecca completed her undergraduate studies in flute and oboe at the University of Auckland, under the tutelage of Luca Manghi and Alison Jepson. Following this, Rebecca performed with a variety of musical groups and ensembles around Auckland, while teaching flute and oboe both in schools and privately.
After completing a Masters degree in Sociology in 2019, Rebecca moved to Wellington in 2020 to work in the public sector. Keen to remain active in the music community, she was introduced to the hoboy and is greatly enjoying playing baroque music and learning the intricacies of the instrument.
In her spare time, Rebecca enjoys watching and reading sci-fi, spoiling her two cats, and felting small animals.
luka reardon – Hoboy – Tenor hoboy – POMMER – recorders – composer
Luka Reardon is an Ōtautahi Christchurch-based artist, composer, oboist and recorder player originally from Te Waipapa Diamond Harbour in Banks Peninsula. Her creative output includes notated compositions, graphic scores, performance art, graphic designs, guided improvisations and audio-visual works.
She performs a wide variety of chamber and solo repertoire for recorder and oboe, and graduated from the University of Canterbury School of Music with a Bachelor of Music in performance and composition in 2022. She is a founding member of the Sælvage Collective, a contemporary ensemble of composer-performers hailing from Ōtautahi Christchurch and Ōtepoti Dunedin. She is a current Master of Arts student at the University of Canterbury, specialising in developing contemporary repertoire for the hoboy.
Craig Bradfield – bassoon
Craig began his performance study on modern bassoon at the Victorian College of the Arts in Melbourne with Genardy Bergaslavsky and Harold Evans. In the seventeen years spent in Melbourne, he performed with many orchestras including the State Orchestra of Victoria, Tasmanian Symphony, Australian Philharmonic and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra.
Forever the student, Craig’s further studies have included lessons with the late William Waterhouse (BBC Symphony), Zoltan Harzanyi (Budapest Symphony) and Ole-Kristian Dahl (Oslo Philharmonic). He has recently completed a DMA at Waikato University, majoring in baroque bassoon under the tutelage of Lyndon Watts in Melbourne and has had lessons from the great Italian bassoonist Alberto Grazzi.
Before returning to New Zealand Craig lived in Malaysia and Israel performing and teaching and on his return home has been busy freelancing with many orchestras and chamber groups around New Zealand. On baroque bassoon he performs with Vox Baroque and NZ Barok.
Craig plays on a wonderful replica of a Johann Poerschman (c. 1680-1757) designed instrument, made by the New Zealand born, London based instrument maker, Mathew Dart.
Jonathan Harker – Sackbuts
Jonathan Harker trained in trombone and bass trombone at Victoria University of Wellington, now the New Zealand School of Music. He has nearly thirty years of experience playing professionally in orchestras throughout New Zealand as well as in the pits for NZ Opera, Festival Opera, Wellington Opera, the Royal New Zealand Ballet, and productions of many shows and musicals. He owns a contrabass trombone, and a Červený cimbasso which he uses for Italian opera gigs. For historical performance he owns a bass sackbut by Ewald Meinl and for fun he 3D-printed a serpent in 2024, both of which are now sources of frankly irresponsible amounts of delight and merriment.
Jonathan Le Cocq – Theorbo – guitar – lutes
Jonathan Le Cocq studied music at the Guildhall School and Goldsmiths’ College inLondon, and at Lincoln College Oxford. Born in the Channel Island of Jersey, he worked in the UK, including a spell as editor of the early music journal The Consort, before moving to New Zealand where he is Professor of Music history at the University of Canterbury. He performs on various historical plucked instruments, including lute and theorbo, as well as contemporary guitar in celtic/traditional music. He is in demand nationally as a continuo player, and has played with, amongst others, Musica Sacra, Baroque Voices, NZBarok and the NZSO.
jonathan berkahn – harpsichord
duncan haynes – harpsichord
mark menzies – harpsichord – violin
Thomas nikora – harpsichord
Masterton-born, Wellington based pianist, musical director and conductor Thomas Nikora’s journey began at the Te Kōkī New Zealand School of Music (NZSM) under the guidance of pianist Jian Lu.
In 2016 Thomas became the Music Director of Cantoris Choir whilst holding positions as accompanist of Festival Singers, Orpheus Choir and director of Wainuiomata Singers. During this time he was singing with Nota Bene, the principal keyboard player for Orchestra Wellington and later took on the role of répétiteur for the Royal New Zealand Ballet. Thomas has kept an extensive roster of positions and is now currently working as accompanist at NZSM, director of music at St. Peter’s on Willis and more recently the founder and artistic director of the St. Peter’s Orchestra.
Thomas has always enjoyed early music as well as later romantic composers and especially the music of Rachmaninoff. Thomas Joined the Queen’s Closet in 2022 for their performance of Decodance and has since played continuo keyboard with the group enjoying the variety of music that the group performs.
Laurence reeSe – timpani – percussion
American-born timpanist and percussionist Laurence Reese is a graduate of The Juilliard School in New York and The Royal College of Music in London. He has been the Section Principal Timpanist of the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra since 1998. His interest in early music was sparked by a live performance in the early ’80s of Michael Praetorius’ Terpsichore, leading to a haphazard and never-ending pursuit of the performance traditions of percussion and timpani in the Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque periods. Larry has a small but ever-growing collection of original and period-correct kettledrums and hand percussion instruments.
Ben whitton – Timpani – Percussion
While Ben’s often seated upon a timpani stool, he’s no stranger to a percussion section and also performs upon Japanese taiko drums with one of NZ’s oldest taiko groups: Taikoza Wellington.
While completing his bachelor of music at the University of Auckland, Ben played with many of the local orchestras including the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra, Auckland Chamber Orchestra and St Matthew’s.
Ben is now firmly settled in Wellington and performs with groups such as the NZSO, Orchestra Wellington, The Queen’s Closet and Camerata. He also regularly travels to Napier to play with the Hawke’s Bay Orchestra and leads Taikoza Wellington in their rehearsals and performances.
ANNA SEDCOLE – SOPRANO
Anna grew up in Christchurch, where she spent her formative years learning piano and violin, playing in competitions and orchestras and later singing in choirs, including the New Zealand Youth Choir, and Voices New Zealand. Recent musical highlights have included diverse projects such as singing as a soloist in a Bach Cantata in a service to celebrate the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, to performing on the soundtrack for Hunt for the Wilderpeople, with members of Baroque Voices. Anna has a particular interest in early music; currently she sings regularly with Wellington-based early music ensembles The Tudor Consort and Baroque Voices. Anna is a Registered Music Therapist, running a busy private practice as well as leading several community singing groups.
geneviève Gates-panneton – soprano
Barbara Paterson – Soprano
Barbara Paterson has sung as a soloist for Stroma, Java Dance, the NZ Festival of the Arts, the CANZ annual Nelson workshops, Wanderlust Theatre, NZ Opera, the Audio Foundation, the Auckland Chamber Orchestra, Unstuck Opera, Eternity Opera, NIMBY Opera, CubaDupa, Avenue Opera, the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra, Orchestra Wellington, The Queen’s Closet and as a soloist for choral societies around NZ. Barbara conducts the Capital Choir and she maintains a full teaching and performing schedule. Find her online at www.barbarapatersonmusic.com.
Andrea cochrane – Alto
Andrea’s main singing interests lie in ensemble work and early music. She holds a Bachelor of Music and a Diploma of Arts (focussing on early music performance) from Victoria University of Wellington.
Resident in Wellington, Andrea enjoys solo performances with local groups, mostly of Baroque repertoire. She is a member of flagship vocal ensembles Baroque Voices and The Tudor Consort, both of which perform a wide variety of music from different periods.
Andrea can also be seen and heard around New Zealand and the world singing with Voices New Zealand. When she is not singing, she works as an early childhood educator.
helene page – alto
Helene has always enjoyed singing and playing the piano. While she lived in London she trained at Morley College’s Opera School, and since moving to Wellington in 2018 she has sung in the Wellington and New Zealand Opera choruses. She also sings regularly for Evensong with the Wellington Cathedral of St. Paul choir. Otherwise, Helene enjoys swimming in Oriental Bay with the Washing Machine group of ocean swimmers.
TOBY GEE – COUNTERTENOR
After a choral scholarship at Queens’ College, Cambridge, Toby sang as a lay clerk in Southwark Cathedral in London, and with many choirs, specialising in Renaissance and Baroque music, performing at latitudes ranging from Norway to New Zealand. He is the alto in the Wellington-based four-man a cappella vocal group Aurora IV.
Solo roles include Handel Messiah, Giulio Cesare, Solomon, Dardano in Amadigi, Didymus in Theodora, David in Saul; Bach’s B Minor Mass, St John Passion, Magnificat, Christmas Oratorio, Vivaldi Stabat Mater, Pergolesi Stabat Mater, some 50 Bach cantatas.
He has extensive experience of 20th century and contemporary music, including works by Arvo Pärt, John Tavener, Andrew Smith and Antonia Barnett-McIntosh. He was a soloist and conductor for Julian Allwood’s Charades at the Battersea Arts Centre Opera Festival in London.
Open-air impromptu performance locations include the South Patagonian Ice Cap, the highest summit of the Pyrenees, and diverse parts of the European Alps and Himalayas.
john beaglehole – tenor
Herbert zielinski – Tenor
Herbert Zielinski started singing aged 8 as a founding member of Wellington Young Voices, before joining Onslow College choirs. He was accepted into the 2021-2022 NZSSC as the tenor section leader while under Linden Loader’s tuition. Herbert is an amateur pianist, and holds a certificate in choral conducting from NZCF’s Young Conductor Training Programme. During Herbert’s gap year, he joined the Tudor Consort, Wellington Youth Choir as the tenor section leader, and the WYC committee as a fundraiser. Currently, he is studying his second year of a BSc in Biotechnology at Victoria University of Wellington, alongside a Classical Performance minor in voice under Jenny Wollerman. Herbert’s soloist programme is focused on early music, which is advanced by him singing with The Queen’s Closet.
Mark Bobb – Bass
Mark trained at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London obtaining a performance diploma, AGSM and teaching diploma. Prior to that he obtained a degree in Performance Arts at Middlesex University, UK. He has sung with Opera North in the UK as well as numerous smaller companies and has toured extensively in the UK, Europe and the far East. In NZ Mark sings regularly with NZ Opera, Voices NZ and The Queen’s Closet as well as 9 Live.
Mark teaches classical singing, jazz, musical theatre and performance techniques and has a lot of experience teaching voice for theatre to teenagers and young adults. He also loves singing jazz and playing jazz violin.
Playing music with others is an important part of music education and enjoyment and Mark is always keen to encourage chamber music. He conducts two choirs and the Wellington Late Starters Orchestra.
joshua jamieson – bass
keith small – bass
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