Chi-chi Nwanoku MBE - Double Bass
Chi-chi Nwanoku was born in London of Nigerian and Irish parents, and is the oldest of five children. She spent two years of her early childhood living in her much loved fatherland, Imo State, Nigeria.At the age of seven she discovered music on a neighbour's piano when she was taught to play a 12-bar blues by her friend's older brother. She returned to their house every day after school on the pretence that she wished to 'play' with her friend, but as soon as she was in the house all she did was hammer out the blues until told it was time to go home. A few weeks later the piano was wheeled up the road and given to Chi-chi as a gift!
She then began her education as a classical musician.
A year later (aged eight) Chi-chi was 'spotted' by an athletics coach, and took on intensive training as a 100-metre sprinter. She began competing at 'national' level, but this certain career ended very abruptly after ten years following a knee injury.
Fortunately her other passionate hobby as a classical pianist had continued alongside her athletics, and she was able at the age of eighteen to take up the double bass and pursue a career in music.
Chi-chi studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London, where she received her LRAM teacher’s diploma, and her ARCM performer’s diploma with Honours. On graduation she was awarded the Principal’s Prize and the Eugene Cruft Double Bass Prize.
Chi-chi went on to win four scholarships including one from The Royal Society of Arts, to further her studies with Franco Petracchi in Rome.
She has become one of the UK’s most sought after Double Bassists, and has developed a worldwide reputation as one of the finest exponents on her instrument today.
Chi-chi plays an instrument made by Nicolas Amati (Cremona), dated 1631, and performs in a wide area of styles.
Her first professional position was as Principal double bass with the London Mozart Players, and since then she has worked as principal and soloist with many of Europe’s prestigious chamber orchestras and ensembles. These include the Academy of St Martin’s-in-the-Fields, English Baroque Soloists, London Classical Players and the Orchestre Revolutionnaire et Romantique.
She is currently Principal Double Bass with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment (of which she is also a founder member), and Endymion Ensemble.
She is Professor of Double Bass Historical Studies at The Royal Academy of Music, of Double Bass at Trinity College of Music in London, and of the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain.
Chi-chi was made a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Music in 1998.
She was awarded an MBE. for her Services to Music in the 2001 Queen's Birthday Honours.
Chi-chi has a wide range of musical interests, resulting in her involvement in the cutting edge of diverse styles of performance practice. This includes authentic style baroque performances, through the periods until the contemporary.
She gave the UK premiere performance of Ferneyhough’s ‘Trittico per G.S.’ for solo double bass in 1996, and is the double bass soloist on the recording of Alexander Goehr’s ‘Sing Ariel’, conducted by Oliver Knussen.
Chi-chi compiled a varied solo programme for the BBC Radio 3 series ‘Tuning Up’, which was selected for ‘Pick of the Week’. She has also been interviewed for ‘Woman’s Hour’, ‘Kaleidescope’, and ‘Comparing Notes’.
She was featured as a soloist on a BBC 2 television series ‘Strings, Bows and Bellows’, and Channel 4’s ‘Shooting Stars’ in 1994/5.
Her extensive discography includes three recordings of Schubert’s ‘Trout’ Quintet, with Domus, Hausmusik and Trio Fontennay with Nabuko Imai (viola), for Virgin, EMI and Teldec respectively. There are also recordings of the Schubert Octet, Beethoven Septet, Rossini String Sonatas (a Quattro) and Boccherini ‘cello sonatas (with Richard Lester/Hyperion).
She has made many symphonic recordings as orchestral principal.
In October 2000 Hyperion released Chi-chi’s first solo recording to critical acclaim. This includes three double bass concertos by Vanhal and Dittersdorf, with the Swedish Chamber Orchestra. Hyperion CD 67179.
She lives in London with her two lively children, Jacob and Phoebe, who through their own shared interests have led Chi-chi back to 'the track' where she has begun to compete over 100 metres again...as a veteran!