Vulva Voce is an all-female genre-defying string quartet that brings exciting, dynamic performances of music composed by women and underrepresented voices to spaces beyond the concert hall. Our mission is to break away from long held conventions of classical music and the string quartet, presenting audiences with radical and refreshing musical experiences. All classically trained, but with interests in folk, jazz, improvisation, contemporary classical, and experimental music making, our performances are a unique delve into music by female composers from across centuries, including pieces that we have composed ourselves.
Established in 2021 at the Royal Northern College of Music, Vulva Voce are the winners of Nonclassical’s Battle of the Bands 2023, the RNCM StART Creative Innovator Award 2022 and the Elias Chamber Music Prize. We have recently performed in the Manchester International Festival 2023, Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2022, and were the quartet-in-residence at the South Downs Summer Music Festival 2022. We regularly play in nightlife and performance venues across Manchester, London, and Edinburgh, and embarked on our first international tour in Summer 2023, with concerts in Stockholm, Copenhagen and Berlin. In August 2023, we released our first single "Smeórach Chlann Dòmhnaill", arranged by Georgina MacDonell Finlayson.
Education and community work is a key part of our mission. We believe that exposure to a diverse range of composers and music is crucial to changing the narrative about classical music to be more inclusive. We have worked with the Benedetti Foundation, the Galaxy House Unit at the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital, and the Untold Orchestra to create memorable and uplifting experiences through music. For the 2023/24 season, we look forward to working with students from Music in Secondary Schools Trust in London and RNCM Pathfinders in Manchester.
JULIA SANDROS-ALPER
Hi, I’m Julia! I’m a Swedish-American violinist. I grew up in Portugal and moved to the UK in 2016 when I started university. I started playing the violin when I was four years old, and haven’t looked back since. Alongside music, I’ve always enjoyed dance and theatre, and I love the way I can incorporate movement into my performances with Vulva Voce. I listen to music all the time, gathering inspiration from all sorts of genres, including Renaissance madrigals, Bollywood songs, and industrial techno. In my spare time, I love hiking in nature, clubbing, and watching formula 1.
GEORGINA MACDONELL FINLAYSON
Hello, I’m Georgina! I am a Scottish violinist, fiddle player, teacher, and composer with a particular interest in collaborative, cross-genre and multidisciplinary performances. I make and create music in many guises, whether that is creating and playing original folk music for storytellers, creating sound design for theatre, writing chamber ensemble commissions, messing about on Logic Pro, or playing and jamming with Vulva Voce. From the ages of 7 to 15 I had lessons in West African m’bira, which may one day make it into a Vulva Voce set... If I hadn’t decided to pursue music, I probably would have become a contemporary dancer. Maybe I still will!
NADIA ESKANDARI
Hi, I’m Nadia! I’m a London-born, Manchester-based violist with Russian-Iranian heritage. I was classically trained on the piano and the viola but decided to pursue the viola professionally because of my love for playing in a string group. Through this, I’ve been lucky enough to perform with amazing musicians such as Snarky Puppy’s Bill Laurance, Arlo Parks, Sam Fender, as well as Vulva Voce! I listen to all sorts of music such as jazz, hip-hop, R&B and am keen to produce my own stringy blend around these genres. I’m currently discovering the world of electronics and love messing around with my loop pedal and multitracking recordings as well as experimenting and improvising. When I’m not playing viola, I am probably teaching, playing on my Nintendo Switch, walking around aimlessly, swimming or planning a potential dream holiday!
LUCY MCLUCKIE
Hi, I’m Lucy! I’m a Manchester-based cellist from Edinburgh. My musical interests range from folk, contemporary and pop all the way through to musical theatre. Having grown up in Scotland, I have a passion for folk tune learning and enjoy the opportunity to perform this genre with the quartet! I also regularly collaborate with singer-songwriters and bands to develop string lines for their tracks. I love musicals and the atmosphere that comes with live theatre performance, having recently performed in theatre productions such as The Last 5 Years and Kinky Boots. I’m interested in pairing these genres alongside a more classical style to find new approaches to learning and performing string quartet music by amazing female and non-binary composers.