Lester Handley is a retired Civil Engineer and Business Process Improvement specialist who, since the loss of his son in 2014, has established and run the Pete Handley Percussion Award in the memory of Peter.

The Charity was initially established under the umbrella charity Prism the Gift Fund. In 2019 the Pete Handley Percussion Award was established as its own independent charity in which Lester fulfils the role as Chair of the Trustees.

Charlotte Harding is an award-winning composer who has written works for an eclectic mix of leading contemporary musicians, cross-art collaborations and media. She studied at the Royal College of Music, London with Mark-Anthony Turnage (composition) and Martin Robertson (saxophone) and upon graduating was awarded the Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother Rose Bowl.

Works include Them (nominated for a 2019 Ivors Composer Award) for dance company BalletBoyz, which made its London debut at Sadler’s Wells Theatre; Convo (winner of a 2019 Ivors Composer Award) for massed ensemble, which premiered at the Royal Albert Hall; and Kraftwerk Re:werk for the electo-acoustic Paraorchestra, which was premiered at Simple Things Festival, Bristol. Other projects for the Paraorchestra include orchestrating the music of Barry White for the Love Unlimited Synth Orchestra’s Park Stage set at Glastonbury Festival 2019 and creating realisations of works by electronic pioneer Pauline Oliveros as part of the Minimalism Changed My Life concert, which premiered at the Southbank Centre’s Queen Elizabeth Hall. Concert hall works have received performances at venues including Cadogan Hall, St Martin-in-the-Fields, The National Gallery, St John’s Smith Square and Kings Place.

Charlotte is passionate about the role of music in education and health and has been involved, in this capacity, with a wide range of organisations including English National Ballet, RCM Sparks, and the Balletboyz’s Parkinson’s CAN Dance programme. She co-founded the project Over 100 Years of Women and the Saxophone with saxophonist Amy Green, which premiered at the World Saxophone Congress SaxOpen in Strasbourg, and made its American debut in January 2020 in association with Pennsylvania State University.

Charlotte collaborated with Pete as composer-in-residence for Box 9 Drumline and as a saxophonist with The Borealis Ensemble and Cantaloupe Jazz Trio.

photography: eric oliveira // @_ceharding_

Charlotte became Trustee for the Pete Handley Percussion Award in 2019

Jackie Kendle is a graduate of the Royal College of Music and has over 30 years experience of teaching timpani and percussion from beginners to diploma level. She has also had a long and varied performing career.

Educational Work

Jackie discovered a love of teaching when she started a percussion group in her childrens’ primary school. She also taught in local schools and worked for Sutton Music Service where she established a junior and senior percussion ensemble.

She spent 12 very happy and rewarding years teaching at the Royal College of Music Junior Department. Her pupils were successful in auditioning for the National Youth Orchestra and the BBC Young Musician competition. Many have gone on to have successful performing careers in London and around the UK.

From 2005 – 2016 Jackie was Percussion Team Leader for Surrey Arts.

Her brief was to promote percussion throughout the county. She supported a team of over 25 percussion and drum kit teachers. She devised a scheme for KS1 class teachers (1st Access Percussion) and for percussion teachers leading class instrumental lessons (Wider Opportunities Scheme).

She established the Surrey County Percussion Ensemble which gave its first public performance in 2006 at the Royal Albert Hall.

Jackie relocated to Nottingham in early 2017. She taught at Loughborough Music Foundation for two years but now focuses on her private teaching practice, and tutoring the percussion section at Nottingham Youth Training Orchestra.

She has tutored the percussion for Bandwise, an annual weekend course for young wind band players of all levels of ability.

In 2019 she set up Slick Sticks, a youth percussion ensemble which made its debut with the Radcliffe Ladies' Choir for its Christmas concert in December 2019.

Performing

Early in her career Jackie held positions as principal timpanist of the Royal Ballet Touring Orchestra (now the Birmingham Royal Ballet) and with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales.

She has performed with many of the UK’s leading orchestras and has had a long association with the Philharmonia Orchestra.

Jackie became Trustee for the Pete Handley Percussion Award in 2019.