About Andy Whitfield

• Andy Whitfield is the director of the Lancaster Millennium Choir. The choir sings original pieces by him as well as arrangements.

• Andy Whitfield was trained in theatre at LAMDA in the seventies and went on to enjoy a successful career as musical director in the theatre. While at the Dukes Playhouse in Lancaster in the eighties he helped establish their reputation for theatre underpinned by music, and wrote several scores for Shakespeare plays, as well as an original musical - It's A Girl!

• Ten years ago he became involved in music education, writing a thesis for his MPhil at Lancaster University on Musical Projects in Schools. This led to working as a full time music teacher for a while. He established the Milnthorpe Steel Band (the only jobbing Steel band in Cumbria), and took it around South Cumbria doing workshops in schools.

• In 2003 he had a British Council award to go to Madagascar to help establish a link between his school and the Akany Avoko Orphanage. Whilst there, he became aware of how important Children's Rights issues are in the developing world, and wrote For Every Child - an album of songs on the subject. The CD of the subsequent concerts has raised money and awareness for these issues.

• He still trains the Milnthorpe Steel Band, plays tuba in Baksheesh, the gypsy ensemble, is Laura Andrews' (the Lancaster-based jazz singer) piano accompanist, and occasionally can be heard on his Jeffries duet concertina in folk clubs. When not involved in these activities, or training the Choir, he teaches music at Lancaster Girls Grammar and is on the management committee of Global Link.

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