Matthew Wilsher is a highly versatile clarinettist and creative. He works with a vast range of ensembles and organisations to engage audiences with music and reimagine how performance can connect, challenge and inspire.

Equally at home in the opera pit, on stage, or in community settings, Matthew is passionate about shaping opera in innovative and accessible ways. He is principal clarinet of Dorset Opera Festival, Devon Opera and Waterperry Opera, and works regularly with English Touring Opera, Birmingham Opera and Tête à Tête. As a founding member of the Arts Council–funded charity Hold the Drama, he performs non-verbal musical shows across the UK, and collaborates widely on education and outreach projects with English National Opera, The Mozartists and the London Sinfonietta. Whether performing Tosca with a four-player ensemble or bringing opera to classrooms through ENO’s Finish This programme, Matthew’s work is driven by a belief in the transformative power of live music.

A graduate and double fellow of the Royal Academy of Music, Matthew has performed with orchestras including the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the London Contemporary Orchestra and the Philharmonia, appearing in leading venues such as Wigmore Hall, the Royal Festival Hall and the Royal Albert Hall.