Music lessons for Woodwind and Theory

Mick Donnelly is an internationally acclaimed musician and educator who has performed and taught at every level imaginable.

Mick was born in the North East of England and grew up in Hartlepool. His first instrument was /the recorder before progressing to the saxophone at the tender age of 11. His early influences were wide and varied and ranged jazz legend Charile Parker to the pop master David Sanborn. At the age of 18 he landed his first professional job with Fred Olsen Line and spent nine months on one of their cruise liners learning his trade. 

After another nine months in the Caribbean with the Cunard Line, he moved to London. After stints at the Cafe De Paris and the Hippodrome in the West End of London, Mick started recording and touring with the likes of;

Barry White, Britney Spears, Sting, The Bee Gees, Ronan Keating, Kool and the Gang, Lisa Stansfield, Sammy Davis Jr, Whitney Houston, Lulu, Shirley Bassey, Jr Walker, Princess, Tony Bennet, Desmond Decker, Gene Pitney, Steps, The Four Tops, Ben E King, Boy Meets Girl, Madness, Bob Mintzer, Spear of Destiny, Ian Dury, Imagination, Bobby Shew, The Temptations, Kiki Dee, Stuart Copeland, Robbie Willaims, Dexy's Midnight Runners, Swing Out Sister and many more.

After spending a very successful 12 years in London, he returned to his native North East to start a family. In 1996, he decided to begin a new challenge and took over the position of fulltime Band Master/Head of Woodwind at Barnard Castle School, County Durham. Since then he has toured with various youth ensembles and has helped organise trips to; South Africa, Holland, Paris, Barcelona, Cyprus and Belgium. Mick also teaches a varied curriculum in the classrom and is a house tutor.

He is highly qualifed on saxophone, clarinet and flute, holding a certificate in education from Sunderland University and being a Fellow of the London College of Music. He spent three years as the head of quality control at the Boosey and Hawkes musical instrument manufacturing factory in London and has taken many workshops for numerous Universities around the country. He is also an established musical director and was the founder of the award winning Musicians Unlimited Big Band who celebrated their 25th anniversary in 2014.