string quartet kent
Kent London String quartet plays exquisite live music for your special day. Hire Kent London String quartet today.
string quartet kent
Kent London String quartet has played for over 400 clients since 2010. Our experience will give you the peace of mind you need on your special day.
kent string quartet
Leon String Quartet
About us
Our story began at our first rehearsal in 2010, where we immediately found that we each had strong musical ideas which blended together to create something really exciting.
Since then, we have been lucky enough to perform at many amazing events and collaborate with some truly talented artists.
Performances and recording sessions
Most recent ventures include performances at the Marlowe Theatre, Edinburgh Fringe and Smugglers Festival in Kent. We have also provided session recordings for the BBC and feature on several bands’ albums, including Coco and the Butterfields.
Education and outreach
Invested in arts education, Leon String Quartet often ventures into schools to perform, with the mission of igniting a spark in the future generation of classical musicians. We recently had the privilege of workshopping students’ compositions with Judith Weir CBE, Master of the Queen’s Music.
Weddings and functions
Leon String Quartet has provided music for hundreds of clients over the years. Be it a wedding, party or business function, we can add a touch of class to any event and play music spanning multiple genres. We feel incredibly privileged to play a part in setting an atmosphere, enhancing an occasion and creating a moment. We love what we do, and it certainly doesn’t feel like a job! Our combined wealth of experience as musicians can ensure that our performances are always to the highest standard.
About the players
Karen Jolliffe, Violin
Karen Jolliffe is a versatile and experienced violinist based in Kent, regularly engaged as a freelance solo, orchestral and chamber musician.
Karen’s performance repertoire is very diverse, with past concert programmes including works by Janáček, Ravel and Silvestrov. In recent years, Karen has also specialised in championing a large range of contemporary music.
As a session violinist, Karen has also recorded for television and radio including the BBC, and features on several bands’ albums.
For the past eight years, Karen has enjoyed her role as a violin teacher in Canterbury, and also in Kent schools, including Highworth Grammar School and Ashford School. She feels privileged to be teaching and inspiring the next generation of string players!
Karen is also a keen orchestrator and arranger, and regularly arranges music for the Leon String Quartet.
Karen plays on two violins: One from 1907 by the German luthier Henreich Heberlein Jr., kindly donated by Eric Richards in 2010, and the other a 2015 Guarneri model by Canterbury Luthier Philippe Briand.
Visit: www.karenjolliffeviolinist.com
Kammy Howe, Violin
Kammy is a versatile violinist with over 20 years of experience as a freelance performer, including work as a soloist, orchestral player, and chamber musician. She has performed at prestigious venues such as St John’s Smith Square and at Queen Elizabeth Hall, Southbank Centre. Kammy has also appeared as a concerto soloist in major works ranging from Bernstein’s Serenade and Barber’s Violin Concerto to Jascha Heifetz’s celebrated Gershwin arrangements, as well as favourites like Vaughan Williams’s The Lark Ascending and Bruch’s Scottish Fantasy.
Before joining the Leon String Quartet, Kammy performed as a freelance wedding soloist. Now, as part of the quartet, she continues to share her love of music across a broad range of styles—from classical masterpieces to bespoke pop arrangements. She has a particular affinity for early 20th-century British composers—especially Bridge, Bliss, and Vaughan Williams—and for folk-inspired works popularised by the Danish String Quartet.
Above all, Kammy is passionate about making each wedding she plays truly unique and magical, creating an unforgettable atmosphere for every couple’s special day. She performs on an exceptional copy of a 1728 Tononi violin, crafted by Belgian luthier Simon Peters, an instrument that adds warmth and character to her performances.
Matthew Brown, Viola
Matthew is a composer and violist and learned to play the violin at the age of 5 and also began composing at the age of 9.
In 2013 he completed a Master of Music in Composition at the Royal Northern College of Music, where he studied with Adam Gorb and Paul Patterson, with a scholarship kindly supported by the Richard Newitt and Radcliffe trusts.
Matthew has since gone on to study for a PhD at RNCM in composition. He frequently writes arrangements for the quartet and the quartet have also performed many of his compositions around the UK.
Website: www.matthewbrowncomposer.co.uk
Michael Bacon, Cello
Michael leads a busy and diverse performing life. His freelance work allows him to perform as a soloist, chamber musician and orchestral player. He has performed across the UK, including Edinburgh Fringe, Southbank Centre, Canterbury Cathedral, Canterbury Festival, Deal Festival, Sacconi Festival, Leicester Guildhall and Trinity Arts Centre.
Michael loves playing in the theatre and recently performed as part of Half a Strings ‘Boulder’ at the Edinburgh Festival and in a production of ‘The Frogs’ for House on a Hill Productions at Jermyn Street Theatre. Michael won the Christ Church Music Department Scholarship for two consecutive years and was also awarded the Canterbury Arts Council Scholarship and Lord Lieutenants Fund Grant.
As well as performing, Michael is has taught cello within a wide range of institutions such as King’s Rochester, Cheltenham Ladies’ College, The Centre for Young Musicians and Junior Guildhall.