Our Team

Passionate about the arts and choral education, Suzzie’s high-energy workshops and dynamic choral programmes have gained her an international reputation, working with singers of all ages. In demand as a soprano, choral director and vocal coach, she directs and sings with the critically acclaimed female a cappella quintet Papagena, conducts the National Children’s Choir of Great Britain and is an adjudicator and guest conductor for many UK vocal ensembles and festivals. Recent collaborations have seen her working with: the London Symphony Orchestra, Vache Baroque, Sing for Pleasure, Sing Ireland, ABCD and the National Youth Choirs. 

Suzzie is Music of Life Choirs at Special Schools Programme Leader. She founded the first school choir project for Music of Life in 2014, and since then she has been leading on the growth and development of the programme, delivering the weekly sessions, introducing new choirs, managing and training the teams, developing repertoire and constantly looking to engage new talented musicians in working with special needs students. 

She has run projects in Uganda, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, China, Thailand, the USA and across Europe, with recent visits to Scotland, Ireland, France and Kenya.

Suzzie is Associate Artist at the University of Warwick, Singing Teacher at the University of Birmingham, and a vocal tutor for Ex Cathedra Education’s award winning projects: Singing Playgrounds and Singing Medicine. Her own compositions have been published in Ex Cathedra’s SingMaker series, Sing for Pleasure publications, Choral Music Publications and in OUP’s Carols for Choirs 6. 

Her career as a soprano has taken her around the world, conducting, performing and recording with some of the top UK vocal ensembles, and her multi-award winning warm up book ‘How to Make Your Choir Sound Awesome’, written with Lucy Hollins, was published by Banks Music Publications in 2022.

Gina has two roles with Music of Life: as a vocal coach and workshop leader she has been delivering Music of Life sessions for nearly 5 years. Gina studied an undergraduate in singing and is currently training to become a Music Therapist. Gina has experience working in a variety of music making settings including schools, prisons, hospitals, care homes and with community choirs. 

As a Community Engagement and Events Manager, Gina is responsible for supporting the growth and coordination of the Choirs in Special Schools programme in the West Midlands. She helps engage special schools in local music events, fosters collaborations with mainstream schools, and supports the training of young music practitioners. Gina also manages project logistics, working closely with schools, teachers, and the Music of Life team to ensure concerts, workshops, and other activities run smoothly. Her role includes coordinating event schedules, handling communications and organising CPD.

Shivani Rattan is a Choral Conductor, Mezzo-Soprano and workshop leader based in London. She sings with the all-female quintet Papagena and is a sought-after session singer. Recent projects include conducting recordings of OUP’s The Oxford Book of Choral Music by Black Composers with London Voices, conducting the St. Endellion Festival Chorus Easter 2023 and singing backing vocals for Ellie Goulding on BBC Radio 1’s Live Lounge.

Shivani has worked with Brent Music Service as their Choral Co-ordinator since 2020 as well as other organisations such as The National Children’s Choir of Great Britain (Assistant Conductor), Tenebrae (Singing Schools Workshop Leader), and Sing for Pleasure (Conducting Tutor). With The National Youth Choirs of Great Britain, Shivani was a Fellow in 2021 and has since enjoyed working on NYCGB courses as a Section Coach and with the Learning and Engagement Team. She is a graduate of Royal Holloway where she held a Choral Scholarship and directed The Founder’s Choir. With The Choir of Royal Holloway Shivani toured around the world and recorded music by Joanna Marsh, Ben Parry and Ola Gjeilo. 

Fusing choral and Bollywood sounds, Shivani’s Three Indian Celebration Songs were published by Sing for Pleasure in 2022. They are designed for educational use and hope to diversify music education through fun layering songs.

Shivani joined Music of Life regular group of practitioners in 2023 bringing a wealth of experience and skills to the team, working alongside her colleagues in several special schools across the Midlands in term-time sessions and concerts. She has a natural talent for engaging children and young people in singing and music games, which, in addition to her professional skills, makes her a perfect leader for Music of Life sessions.

Charlie Penn plays piano in Music of Life Choirs at Special Schools sessions, working alongside the teams of vocal leaders to deliver engaging and fun workshops across many special schools in the Midlands.

Charlie graduated from the University of Birmingham where he studied piano with Joseph Middleton. He maintains a busy freelance timetable as a versatile musician specialising in work with choirs of all ages and abilities. He has appeared on TV and radio multiple times, performed in some of the top concert halls around the UK, including the Royal Albert Hall and Birmingham Symphony Hall, and recently played for two concerts with the BBC Singers. Charlie is a Britten-Pears Young Artist, previously joining the music staff for Grimes on the Beach in Aldeburgh and performing on organ conducted by Semyon Bychkov. On the theatre stage he has appeared in Orpheus, an original piece devised and performed by Little Bulb Theatre, and as Keyboard 1 in an exciting new orchestration of Threepenny Opera for the renowned Salzburg festival. He has even made a brief appearance on the BBC’s The One Show, teaching Lee Mack some basic piano vamping!

Alongside his work with Music of Life, Charlie is Music Director of the Harborough Singers and the Reading A440 choir, Assistant Director of Cantate Youth Choir, and is an assistant conductor and accompanist with the National Youth Choirs. He works as a choral specialist for the David Ross Education Trust training choral leaders in schools around the country, and can regularly be found playing various keyboard instruments with the orchestra of Sinfonia Viva. He also teaches piano and directs the boys’ choirs at the Stephen Perse Foundation. Previously, Charlie was Director of Stone Choral Society, has accompanied a wide range of chamber choirs and choral societies, and was a visiting tutor at the Birmingham School of Acting.

Charlie’s abilities and willingness to tackle any style of music have led him to work with many prestigious musical organisations including the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, the Armonico Consort and the national singing programme, Sing Up! He also assists in the running of the Choral Conducting course at the international Sherborne Summer School of Music, accompanies various workshops and courses for Sing for Pleasure and the Association of British Choral Directors, and has regularly directed very popular singing courses for the Cambridge Holiday Orchestra Association.

Lucy wants to get EVERYONE singing! She is passionate about creating opportunities for people from all walks of life to get together and experience the transformative power of singing together, regardless of age, background or level of experience. She started out singing in the back of the car on long journeys, either with or in order to irritate her sisters. She is now a conductor, presenter, composer, writer and animateur, making music with thousands of people across the country each year.

Lucy is Creative Director of the National Youth Choir, a vocal leader for Music of Life, Principal Guest Conductor of the Cambridge Philharmonic, a conducting tutor for the Association of British Choral Directors, and Conductor of the CBSO’s Community Choir, SO Vocal. Previous roles have included Conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra’s Junior and Senior Choirs, Associate Chorus Director of the London Symphony Chorus, Head of Music at the University of Warwick and a Lecturer in Choral Conducting at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. 

From performing at a sewage treatment works to levitating her son live on stage at the Barbican, Lucy is always looking to engage new audiences and share the joy of making music together. 

Robin works as a teaching assistant in a special educational provision setting, where he sings most days. He holds a Masters in singing from the Royal Northern College of Music and two Postgraduate Diplomas, one (also from RNCM) in singing and one (from the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire) in composition.

For most of the last decade he has been a Lay Vicar Choral at Lichfield Cathedral, and worked for many years with award-winning Lichfield-based outreach organisation MusicShare. Originally from Sheffield, he has recently returned to his Yorkshire roots, taking up a Lay Clerk post at Bradford Cathedral. His role of the choral workshop leader for Music of Life combines his love of singing outreach work with his interest in special educational needs.

As a freelance tenor and composer Robin enjoys a varied career, having worked with vocal groups such as The Apex Singers, Kantos Chamber Choir and Ex Cathedra. He presented his song cycle Prayers from the Ark at the Sheffield Classical Music Festival in 2019.

Robin’s postgraduate studies were generously supported by the Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation, the Oglesby Charitable Foundation, the Headley Trust, the Waverley Fund and The Geoffrey Woodward Award.

Ruth is a professional Deaf Musician, Flautist, Music Educator & Artistic Director for Audiovisability.

Ruth has been involved with Music of Life since its inception in 2003, first as a student musician and then later as a trustee. Since 2017 she has been designing and delivering music teaching programmes to Deaf children in several schools for the Deaf for Music of Life, leading its vision of increasing music opportunities for Deaf children and introducing them to the social, emotional and educational benefits of music making.

Ruth’s visual music teaching and approach to learning are strongly driven by the fact that she was born profoundly Deaf; she is a fluent British sign language user. As a flautist, she earned her Bachelor of Music honours degree at the Royal Welsh College of Music in Cardiff in 2005. For more than 16 years she has taught in a wide range of educational and community settings on a professional basis, from music for babies with Deafness to flute students from beginners to diploma level. She is a proud mother of two young sons also involved in music making.

Katie is an experienced fundraising and donor management professional with a strong track record in the charity sector, and a passion for improving the lives of others through her work.

Katie spent 4 years working for the legal charity Support Through Court, who helps people facing court alone without legal representation, where she led a team responsible for individual giving income. Her role involved managing key donor relationships, securing essential donations for the charity’s vital services across the UK, and delivering fundraising events. Before joining Support Through Court, she held the role of Philanthropy Officer at Cancer Research UK and also worked for the African Foundation for Development following her graduation from her Master’s degree.

Katie holds a Master’s degree in International Relations from Plymouth University, and a BSc in Environmental Science from the same institution. She has a strong interest in social justice, politics and global affairs, and believes that through working for charitable organisation’s, she can make a real difference in society. She feels very strongly about the work of Music of Life and the incredible impact we have on the lives of children and young people, and she will be leading on growing and diversifying the charity’s income to ensure we can keep delivering our wonderful services to an increasing number of children and young people with special needs.