Elspeth Hanson is the violist of the all female string quartet

String quartet

A string quartet is a musical ensemble of four string players – usually two violin players, a violist and a cellist – or a piece written to be performed by such a group...

, Bond

Bond (band)

Bond is an Australian/British string quartet that specialises in classical crossover music...

.

Biography

Elspeth started learning the violin aged 12 and at 16 won a place as first violin with the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain with whom she has toured the UK and played live at the BBC Proms.

Previously she had recorded solos with the London Symphony Orchestra

London Symphony Orchestra

The London Symphony Orchestra is a major orchestra of the United Kingdom, as well as one of the best-known orchestras in the world. Since 1982, the LSO has been based in London's Barbican Centre.-History:...

, The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic and the City of Prague Philharmonia. Elspeth is studying towards a Masters at the Royal Academy of Music with Richard Deakin.

She played and sang at The Southbank for Oxfam

Oxfam

Oxfam is an international confederation of 15 organizations working in 98 countries worldwide to find lasting solutions to poverty and related injustice around the world. In all Oxfam’s actions, the ultimate goal is to enable people to exercise their rights and manage their own lives...

 Aid. She gave a solo performance of Vivaldi's "Four Seasons" at the Birmingham Symphony Hall in July 2005 in the National Festival of Music for Youth and has performed solo fiddle live on radio at Celtic Connections in Glasgow and at the Millennium Dome

Millennium Dome

The Millennium Dome, colloquially referred to simply as The Dome or even The O2 Arena, is the original name of a large dome-shaped building, originally used to house the Millennium Experience, a major exhibition celebrating the beginning of the third millennium...

. She is an ambassador for Wooden Spoon

Wooden Spoon Society

Wooden Spoon is a children's charity founded in 1983, when the England rugby team received the Wooden Spoon in the 5 Nations. Spoon is dedicated to helping children and young people who are disadvantaged physically, mentally or socially by using sport as a method of improving lives while...

, a volunteer for South African foundation 'GGA' God's Golden Acre based in Kwazulu-Natal. Elspeth played solo in BBC's live Christmas broadcast The Liverpool Nativity, and works alongside Philip Sheppard.

2008 – present

Hanson replaced original band member Haylie Ecker

Haylie Ecker

Haylie Ecker is a founding member and the former first violinist of the multi-platinum selling classical crossover string quartet Bond. She left Bond in 2008 to become a mother. She plays a 1751 J.B. Guadagnini.- Biography :...

 in 2008, when she left to have a child. Hanson had previously appeared at the 2008 Summer Olympics Closing Ceremony

2008 Summer Olympics closing ceremony

The 2008 Summer Olympics closing ceremony was held at the Beijing National Stadium, also known as the Bird's Nest. It was directed by Chinese filmmaker Zhang Yimou and began at 8:00 pm China Standard Time on August 24, 2008...

 alongside Jimmy Page

Jimmy Page

James Patrick "Jimmy" Page, OBE is an English multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and record producer. He began his career as a studio session guitarist in London and was subsequently a member of The Yardbirds from 1966 to 1968, after which he founded the English rock band Led Zeppelin.Jimmy Page...

, Leona Lewis

Leona Lewis

Leona Louise Lewis is a British singer and songwriter. Lewis first came to prominence in 2006 when she won the third series of the British television series The X Factor....

 and David Beckham

David Beckham

David Robert Joseph Beckham, OBE is an English footballer who plays midfield for Los Angeles Galaxy in Major League Soccer, having previously played for Manchester United, Preston North End, Real Madrid, and A.C...

 during the London 2012 handover. Around that time she also played at the Paralympics

2008 Summer Paralympics

The 2008 Summer Paralympic Games, the thirteenth Paralympics, took place in Beijing, China from September 6 to September 17, 2008. As with the 2008 Summer Olympics, equestrian events were held in Hong Kong and sailing events in Qingdao....

 Closing Ceremony. She is managed by Terri Robson.

In 2009 Peugeot

Peugeot

Peugeot is a major French car brand, part of PSA Peugeot Citroën, the second largest carmaker based in Europe.The family business that precedes the current Peugeot company was founded in 1810, and manufactured coffee mills and bicycles. On 20 November 1858, Emile Peugeot applied for the lion...

 commissioned Bond to record Vivaldi's "Four Seasons

The Four Seasons (Vivaldi)

The Four Seasons is a set of four violin concertos by Antonio Vivaldi. Composed in 1723, The Four Seasons is Vivaldi's best-known work, and is among the most popular pieces of Baroque music. The texture of each concerto is varied, each resembling its respective season...

" to advertise the 308CC

Peugeot 308

The Peugeot 308 is a small family car produced by the French car manufacturer Peugeot. It was unveiled on June 5, 2007 and sales started from September 2007. Its development code was "Project T7", and is the first car of the X08 generation of Peugeot models. The 308 features a range of petrol and...

. The tracks are available to download from Peugeot's website free of charge. These were among Hanson's first appearances with the band. Hanson is a former model for The Body Shop

The Body Shop

The Body Shop International plc, known as The Body Shop, has 2,400 stores in 61 countries, and is the second largest cosmetic franchise in the world, following O Boticario, a Brazilian company...

.

External links

• Bond Official Website