For over thirty years, Ian Jewel was the violist of the Gabrieli Quartet with whom he toured the world from New York’s Lincoln Centre and Carnegie Hall to the Sydney Opera House, as well as London’s Royal Festival, Royal Albert and Wigmore Halls. With the quartet he made over sixty commercial recordings and numerous radio and TV broadcasts. The quartet was resident at the University of Essex and at the Guildhall School of Music, and had a special relationship with Benjamin Briteen and the Aldeburgh Festival. He continues to play string quartets with the Zivoni Quartet with whom he has given many concerts across the UK. Ian is often invited to play quintets with other quartets – joining the Vermeer, Chilingirian, Delme and English String Quartets, and has played piano quartets with the Angell Trio.

Ian has taught at The Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester, The Royal Academy of Music, and The Guildhall School of Music in London. For the last ten years he has taught at the Royal College of Music in London. His students have taken up leading positions in the music profession. He is regularly invited to give master classes and courses in the USA, Spain, France, as well as his annual course ‘Cadenza’ at the Purcell School.

After seventeen years as Head of Strings at the Purcell School – the UK’s first specialist music school – Ian is stepping down to take on new challenges in performance, conducting, adjudicating and teaching. Whilst at the Purcell School Ian taught viola and chamber music, auditioned prospective students, appointed teaching staff and gave guidance to all the string players. He was noted for his excellent chamber music coaching and conducting.