Caird Hall, Du ndee, September 2 Du nfermline Abbey, September 5

AS A you ng girl, Ellen Timothy’s trips to Du ndee centered rou nd visits to her grandparents Dorothy and Bu rnett Lindsay and she vividly remembers ru nning rou nd the beach at Brou ghty Ferry and eating cakes from Goodfellow and Steven!

Next weekend, however, her visit to Du ndee takes a totally different tack when she performs with the choir from The Qu een’s College, Oxford, in Du ndee Parish Chu rch (St Mary’s). It’s an occasion she is looking forward to very mu ch as both her parents and grandparents were married there.

Now, paddling and pastries have been replaced by Palestrina and Pu rcell as she continu es her mu sic stu dies at St Hilda’s College, Oxford University and althou gh she is only abou t to enter her second year, she has already bu ilt u p a pretty impressive CV and proved she is very mu ch a mu sical all-rou nder.

“I have been involved in mu sic for as long as I can remember, ever since my parents took me to ‘Mini Maestros’ at the age of three,” says Ellen, “so there have been cou ntless people who have influ enced me mu sically along the way. I’ve been fortu nate to have brilliant singing, violin and piano teachers and to have worked with fantastic professional condu ctors and mu sicians.

“However, it’s my mu sical friends who have influ enced me most over the years. With stu dying at the Ju nior Gu ildhall Conservatoire every Satu rday from the age of eight, singing with the NationalYou th Choir and taking part in Pro Corda chamber mu sic cou rses since I was 11, I’ve made a big circle of friends.

“Playing, singing and learning with them has been a major part of my mu sical training. Also, they have introdu ced me to an incredible variety of mu sic that I might otherwise never have discovered.”

Oxford University is split into 38 different colleges, bu t Ellen is lu cky enou gh to be connected to two of them, reading mu sic at St Hilda’s and as a Choral exhibitioner at The Qu een’s College, singing Choral Evensong in the Chapel three times a week.

“We practice the pieces for the service that evening as well as programmes for special concerts and recordings. I always look forward to singing Evensong, becau se the mu sic is so stu nning and becau se it helps me to u nwind and forget abou t all my work worries for a while.”

Like many of those stu dying mu sic, Ellen has many strings to her bow and also plays violin with the Oxford University Orchestra, bu t it’s singing that comes most natu - rally to her.

“Becau se singing combines words and mu sic, it lets me tell a story and commu nicate with the au dience in a very direct way. That’s why I love performing mu sicals and operas becau se I get the chance to act as well as sing.

“I’m extremely excited to be playing Anne Egerman in the Oxford Playhou se produ ction of Steven Sondheim’s A Little Night Mu sic in November. My other grandad is the actor ChristopherTimothy, so that maybe explains why I enjoy the theatrical side of mu sic so mu ch!”

Ellen has been a member of the National You th Choir of Great Britain since 2004 and it is with them that she has had two of her most thrilling mu sical experiences. In 2011, at the Proms, the choir performed in Mahler’s Second Symphony, condu cted by Gu stavo Du damel with the Simon Bolivar Symphony Orchestra of Venezu ela bu t this year’s Prom appearance topped even that!

Very few you ngsters can pu t Daniel Barenboim down on their CV and anyone who watched his cycle of Beethoven symphonies at last month’s Proms wou ld appreciate what a thrill it mu st have been to work with the great man.

“It was the most incredible experience,” says Ellen. “He has a u niqu e style of condu cting – sometimes he hardly moves at all – bu t this makes you feel very connected to him as you have to watch him closely for any facial expression or tiny flick of the baton.

“Above all he is a warm, generou s and charismatic person who challenges you to give you r best. In ou r first rehearsal in the Albert Hall he said: “If something is easy, don’t do it. If something is difficu lt, do it twice! I’m definitely going to keep his advice in mind!”

From the hu ge, exciting choru ses of Beethoven’s Ninth, Ellen changes tack completely when The Qu een’s College Choir, u nder the direction of Doctor Owen Rees, visits Du ndee as part of a mini-Scotland tou r.

The close-part polyphony of Byrd and his 16th centu ry Portu gu ese contemporary Du arte Lobo favou r delicate phrasing and intrinsic cou nterpoint which requ ire a totally different discipline, bu t the ability to chop and change like this is invalu able to any aspiring mu sician.

That and the experience gained over the years has meant that Ellen has raised the bar pretty high when it comes to ambition.

“After I have finished my degree at Oxford, I’d like to go on to do vocal stu dies at a Conservatoire. I’ll have to see how my voice develops, bu t I’d love to sing as a soloist in a Benjamin Britten opera at Glyndebou rne or Covent Garden. I’m also a complete film fanatic and wou ld love to take a directing cou rse one day. I know that whatever I do with my life, mu sic will always play a big part in it.”

The concert includes music by Byrd, Duarte Lobo and Parry. Both performances begin at 7.30pm.