Our Teachers

Ingrid Sellschop

A graduate of the Royal Academy of Music, Ingrid Sellschop is the Principal of Cranbrook Colourstrings. She began her music studies in America at the age of eight and was fortunate enough to learn the violin with Irwin Eisenberg, of the Philadelphia String Quartet.  Later, back in the UK she continued her studies with Vera Kantrovitch, Frederic Grinke, Clarence Myerscough, Jack Rosenberg, Nicholas Roth and Diana Cummings. The experience of learning with these respected pedagogues inspired Ingrid to specialise in teaching. Indeed, it has always felt like a vocation for her. She has successfully combined playing in many chamber orchestras with teaching in such schools as Kings Canterbury, Haberdashers Askes School for Girls, Dulwich Prep School, Benenden Girls School and the Kent Music Academy.

When Ingrid discovered Colourstrings in 1995 she was immediately drawn to it and began training with Deborah Harris at the North London Colourstrings Centre. She was soon asked to join the staff there and taught Music Kindergarten and Violin for several years before moving to Kent. Not surprisingly, Ingrid missed her Colourstrings teaching and so in April 2005 Cranbrook Colourstrings evolved as a satellite school to the North London Colourstrings Centre. It now operates independently of the North London school and approximately 50 children currently enjoy the Music Kindergarten and instrumental programmes and Ingrid derives enormous pleasure from watching very young babies and children develop into such well-rounded musicians and confident, happy individuals.

As well as attending two Colourstrings summer schools, Ingrid went to Finland last year to observe Colourstrings teaching at the school where it originated. She was able to sit in on lessons conducted by Géza Szilvay, who developed the Colourstrings method, and discuss teaching matters with him and his colleagues. To hear such wonderful teaching and music-making was truly inspirational!

Felix Buser

Felix Buser was born in Basle in Switzerland. He studied the cello at the Basle Konservatorium with Reine Flachot and Thomas Demenga and was awarded a specialist performer’s diploma. Whilst a student he took part in masterclasses in France and Switzerland, and in 1981 was invited to participate in special workshops at the Montepulciano Festival organised by Hans Werner Henze. Felix’s professional career has included work with the Basle Sinfonietta, the Schweizer Streichorchester and the Aargauer Symphonieorchester in Switzerland, as well as the chamber orchestra ‘La Follia’ in France. He was a member of both a string quartet and a piano trio in Basle which gave regular recitals throughout Switzerland. In 1990 he married a British violinist and is now resident in the UK where he follows a freelance career divided between teaching and performing with the emphasis on chamber music.

Felix started his first teaching appointment while he was studying . In spite of his experience of having taught the cello in various countries for over 30 years he was instantly won over by colourstrings when he was introduced to it. As a result it has transformed his approach to teaching.

Ali Rycroft

Ali Rycroft has been teaching music to young children since 2010 through Colourstrings, a form of music education created in Finland by Geza Szilvay which follows the principles of the Hungarian composer and music educator Zoltán Kodály. Wonderful piano lessons as a teenager with Joyce Rathbone turned her musical world inside out and inspired her passion for music and teaching. Ali discovered Colourstrings when she took her children to classes in London and found in it a musical enchantment she would have loved as a young child. Ali holds degrees from the University of Oxford and the University of East London and is currently training in Dalcroze Eurythmics.