About Decus - DECUS ENSEMBLE

Established by Artistic Director Uchenna Ngwe in 2018, Decus Ensemble first explored the music and histories of Black Caribbean and African classical composers with links to Britain as part of plainsightSOUND. This project, and many since, have helped reveal a treasure trove of under-performed or simply forgotten music for wind, piano and strings which deserves to be performed and appreciated.

Decus Ensemble now has two aims:

to continue uncovering and championing repertoire by less well-known and underrepresented composers
to create and deliver inspiring and accessible experiences of classical music which share this repertoire with new audiences

In realising these aims, Decus Ensemble has recently collaborated with artists and organisations such as Nadine Benjamin, Le Gateau Chocolat, Live Music Now, the British Library, Hackney Music, Artforms Leeds, and Birmingham Music Education Hub. Decus has received funding from Arts Council England, Universal Music UK Sound Foundation, and Britten Pears Arts among others. Find out more about our work on our projects page.

Decus Ensemble draws insight and inspiration from the varied performing and educational lives of its members, who work with the UK’s leading orchestras, accompany West End musicals, play for arena concerts, record for film / tv / radio productions, and teach in schools, music hubs and universities. Decus perform flexibly in a range of styles and groupings from duos to chamber music for 10 players or more.

Artistic Director: Uchenna Ngwe

Born in North London, Uchenna Ngwe studied oboe and cor anglais at Trinity College of Music, gaining a BMus (Hons) and later returning on a scholarship for a postgraduate diploma. Since then, her playing has taken her across Europe, Africa and Asia. Solo engagements have included recitals at Lauderdale House and St Alfege Church in Greenwich and a performance of the rarely heard Oboe Concerto No.1 by Gordon Jacob with St Paul’s Sinfonia, while orchestral performances have included Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, The Belmont Ensemble of London and the UK tours for Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Les Miserables. She spent a season as Guest Principal Oboe with KwaZulu-Natal Philharmonic Orchestra in Durban, South Africa. Uchenna is very interested in music education and has also recorded music for educational use including Abracadabra Oboe (A&C Black Publishers) and Ready, Steady, Blow (Oboe Classics).