About the Allestri String Quartet

A versatile group of classically trained musicians

Allestri improvise a suitable playing area at a church in the Borders
(Photograph by Team Thomson Photography  www.teamthomson.com)

The Allestri Ensemble are a versatile and stylish group available for all kinds of occasion and specialising in providing music for wedding ceremonies and receptions. Our repertoire encompasses Baroque, Classical, Romantic, Light Classical, Ragtime, American Songbook, Film & Musical, Folksongs, Pop,  nearly thirty Bollywood songs, and many of our arrangements are unique to  Allestri.  

At the core of the ensemble are Edinburgh based husband and wife team, Caroline and Julian Marshall, playing violin and viola.  We are augmented by our two daughters, Zoe and Leila, playing flute and cello, Nina Kopparhed (soprano and viola), Mark Wilson (violin) and a small pool of other professional players.  

We can offer our services as as a String Quartet, String Trio, Flute Quartet, Flute Trio or String Duo with Scottish Harp, and given Nina's versatility, we can also offer a winning combination of string or flute quartet for your drinks reception, and string or flute trio accompanying soprano for highlight items during pre-ceremony and/or ceremony.  (Please see our Available Ensembles and Repertoire pages for further details.)


Caroline Marshall (Violin and Harp) 

graduated from the Royal Academy of Music in London, and has played violin with Scottish Ballet for more than 25 years. She has also played with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, the Esterhazy Chamber Orchestra, and was a member of the Esterhazy Quartet in London for 6 years. Highlights with the Esterhazy Quartet included playing aboard the QE2, at the Cannes Film Festival and at the Chelsea Arts Ball. While living in London, Caroline was also principal 2nd Violin with the D’Oyly Carte Opera Company for several years during which time she played all of the Gilbert & Sullivan operettas, and she also played regularly in many West End shows including Sweeney Todd, Phantom of the Opera, Annie, Oklahoma and Carousel.


Fiona Chisholm (Flute)

trained at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in Glasgow where she won both the Flute prize and the Governors' Recital prize, and is currently principal piccolo with Scottish Ballet. She maintains a successful freelance career in Scotland, and has played with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Scottish Chamber Orchestra and Scottish Opera, and is also a founder member of the Flaxton Ensemble (Wind Quintet).


Nina Kopparhed (Soprano and Viola)

has many years experience playing viola as a session musician, chamber musician and freelance orchestral player.  After graduating from the Birmingham Conservatoire in 2001 she worked in London for 5 years before taking up the position of principal viola with the Orquestra do Estado de Mato Grosso, Brazil, for nearly two years.  In 2008 Nina moved back to Glasgow, where she now lives.  Since then Nina has worked with several orchestras, including the RSNO and Scottish Ballet, and performed in Sweden , Denmark, France, Spain, Brazil and Bolivia as well as all over the UK and Ireland.

Having been a choral scholar until her teens, Nina returned to singing while based in Brazil,  building up a strong reputation as a coloratura soprano and also founding the duo Arcantora with her partner Mark Wilson.  After retruning to the UK, Nina has furthered her studies with Judith Howarth and Gordon Wilson and is now working as a wedding singer, recitalist and oratorio soloist.



Julian Marshall (Viola and Arranger)

read music at Cambridge University, and following this studied viola at the National Centre for Orchestral Studies in London. He then held full-time playing positions with the Opera and Symphony Orchestras in Palermo, Sicily and with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. He has written several original compositions for the Allestri Quartet and also many commissioned arrangements ranging from Guns'n'Roses and Bollywood to string quartet accompaniments for Mozart and Puccini arias.  (Our Testimonials page contains thanks for literally dozens of Julian's arrangements including :- 'Sweet Child 'o' Mine', 'Time to Say Goodbye', 'God Only Knows', 'Sunshine on Leith' and 'Gabriel's Oboe'.)  


Mark Wilson (Violin)

comes from a musical family and both his grandmother and mother were professional violinists.  Mark studied at London University, RSAMD and the RAM, and on graduating from the RAM, co-founded and led the Solaris Quartet for 8 years, giving recitals in many concert halls including the Purcell Room and Royal Festival Hall.  He then accepted an invitation to become  concertmaster of the Orquestra de Camara do Estado de Mato Grosso in Brazil, and toured extensively throughout Brazil and Bolivia during his time with the orchestra. Since Mark’s return to the UK in January 2008, he has been in demand as a freelance violinist, chamber musician (including with Arcantora) and soloist - notably performances of the Tchaikovsky, Elgar and Brahms Concertos.  


Zoe Marshall (Cello)

has just graduated from the Royal Academy of Music RAM) in London having won a scholarship to study there in 2007.  Zoe continues to be based in London for most of the year, but also often comes back to Scotland to play with us, particularly during the summer. Before going to RAM she played with both the National Youth Orchestra of Scotland and the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain.


Leila Marshall (Flute)

has been studying flute with Sheena Gordon for five years at the Junior Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in Glasgow, and will audition later this year for a place at one of the UK Music Colleges.  You can hear Leila playing with Allestri, at a wedding held earlier this summer in Rosewell, by following the YouTube link :- YouTube


All of our other players are drawn from the Scottish professional free-lance scene, playing regularly for a number of the professional orchestras in Scotland, including Scottish Ballet, the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and the Scottish Chamber Orchestra.



Photograph by Team Thomson Photography