Chi-chi Nwanoku

Chi-chi Nwanoku is a celebrated British double bassist and a trailblazer in the classical music world. Born in London in 1956, Nwanoku's journey began when she was spotted at the age of eight and trained as a sprinter, but her true passion lay in music. She studied at the Royal Academy of Music and with Franco Petracchi in Rome, honing her skills to become one of the finest double bassists of her generation. Nwanoku is renowned for her role as a founder member and principal bassist of the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, a position she held for three decades. Beyond her performing career, she is the founder and artistic director of Chineke!, Europe's first professional majority black and minority ethnic orchestra, showcasing her commitment to diversity and inclusion in classical music. Nwanoku's contributions to music have been recognized with an MBE in 2001 and an OBE in 2017, and she continues to inspire as a professor of Historical Double Bass Studies at the Royal Academy of Music and a respected broadcaster, presenting for the BBC Proms and serving on prestigious juries.