Ambache Patrons

OUR PRESIDENT and PATRONS

The Ambache is extremely grateful to its President and Patrons
for lending us their good names, their advice and their skills.
photo by Alastair Muir

President: Sir Jonathan Miller

The polymath Sir Jonathan Miller needs little introduction due to his work in science, the Arts, and as a communicator. Among his opera productions are many by Mozart, which is why we were so pleased to have him as President.

While he was Director at the Old Vic Theatre, he arranged for the Ambache to give Mozart's first concert there.
Patrons:
Jenny Agutter

Jenny Agutter came to the attention of the public when she played Roberta in Lionel Jeffries' 1971 film The Railway Children. She has played major roles on both sides of the Atlantic in films like Equus, American Werewolf and Logan's Run.

On TV she has played in such classics as The Snow Goose, The Cherry Orchard and The Wild Duck. She recently returned to The Railway Children to play the Mother. She is currently working on a script about E. Nesbit; when that is complete she will take on the new role of Film Producer.

Joan Bakewell

Joan Bakewell's fame as a broadcast journalist comes principally from the thirteen years of BBC1's Heart of the Matter, which won the Richard Dimbleby BAFTA Award for Television Journalism.

She has been a judge on numerous literary awards, serves on the Board of the Council of the Friends of the Tate Gallery and the Board of the Royal National Theatre, and is Chair of the BFI. She has a weekly column on the internet - @LineOne.com.

David Bell

David Bell became a Director of Pearson in March 1996. He is Chairman of the Financial Times Group, having been Chief Executive of the FT since 1993

In addition to this he is a non-executive director of the Vitec Group plc, The Windmill Partnership and Zen Research, Chairman of the Millennium Bridge Trust, Chairman of Common Purpose Europe and a Civil Service Commissioner.

Gyles Brandreth

Gyles Brandreth is a performer, writer and broadcaster. Formerly the MP for the City of Chester and a Lord Commissioner of the Treasury in John Major's government, he is editor-at-large of the Sunday Telegraph Review and a London correspondent for CBS News

His many books include an acclaimed diary of his life in politics Breaking the Code, a biography of Sir John Gielgud and three novels.

A Scholar at Oxford and President of the Oxford Union, he is a former Chairman and now Vice-President of the National Playing Fields Association, and the co-curator (with his wife, Michele Brown) of the National Portrait Gallery exhibition of 20th century children's authors.

Baroness Cohen of Pimlico

Baroness Cohen of Pimlico was created a Life Peer in March 2000, and sits on the Labour benches in the House of Lords. She was a civil servant until 1982

She was an Executive Director of Charterhouse Bank until 1993, and is now Advisory Director to HSBC. She is a Director of the London Stock Exchange, of BPP Holdings, and of the Defence Logistics Organisation, as well as Informed Sources, a Media Strategy Consultancy.

Sir Denis Forman OBE

Sir Denis Forman was Chairman of Granada Television from 1974-87, and was particularly associated with programmes such as World in Action, and The Jewel in the Crown. He was appointed Deputy Chaiman of the Granada Group from 1984 to 1990, and he has played a part in developing the company's broadcasting interests in Europe and in British Sky Broadcasting.

He was Deputy Chairman of the Royal Opera House (1981-91) and Chairman of the Booker panel of judges in 1990. He was made a Fellow of BAFTA in 1977, and of the BFI in 1993. He has written several books including Mozart's Piano Concertos - The First Movements.

Roger Graef

Emanuel Hurwitz CBE

photo by Alec Lessin

Emanual Hurwitz is internationally renowned as one of Britain's foremost chamber musicians. For over twenty years he was the Leader of the English Chamber Orchestra, where he frequently appeared as soloist and conductor. During this time he also led the Melos Ensemble, with whom he made numerous recordings.

As Leader of the Aeolian String Quartet, from 1970-81, he made many recordings, including the 22 CD set of Haydn String Quartets and the late Beethoven Quartets. He was awarded the Gold Medal of the Worshipful Company of Musicians, and in 1978 the CBE for outstanding services to chamber music.

Viscount Norwich

John Julius Norwich is a writer and broadcaster who covers a wide range of subjects. As well as histories of Norman Sicily, Venice and Byzantium, he has written about architecture, literature and music.

With his friend, the Haydn expert H.C.Robbins Landon, he has presented MAESTRO, a series of five television programmes on five centuries of music in Venice. He was for three years presenter of the Evening Concert on Classic fm.