Ben Ward was born in Stevenage and studied Maths at Queens’ College, Cambridge, where he played in several concerts and had his introduction to choral accompaniment, leading to a more musical than mathematical life. He has worked as a pianist and teacher for ten years, accompanying (and occasionally conducting) for choirs and choral societies, ballet classes, theatre groups, school choirs, opera singers and instrumentalists. While living in Wimbledon he became the accompanist to the Merton Singers and the Weald Choir of Crawley, as well as one of the regular pianists for the Wimbledon Village School of Ballet. Ben returned to Stevenage in the early 2000s and began serious work on his solo playing under the tutelage of Kate Elmitt, performing several concertos in her pupils’ concerts with the Letchworth Sinfonia under various conductors, including Kerry Camden. He holds the LRSM (Licentiate of the Royal Schools of Music) diploma in piano performance with distinction. Ben teaches piano privately and at the Barclay School in Stevenage. He became the accompanist to Stevenage Male Voice Choir in 2009, and more recently has been regularly accompanying the Stevenage Ladies Choir as well. Ben previously appeared as a soloist with HSO in 2012, playing Beethoven’s Third Piano Concerto. (May 2016)