About Us...

A Collective with a Conscience

Hull has a rich musical tradition spanning centuries, and we are the city's professional classical outfit - a collective of like-minded souls who like to cross musical boundaries and dissolve cultural stereotypes.

We seek to make classical music relevant to a wider audience, taking it into unexpected places and challenging preconceptions. We love to explore the confluence of different genres and art-forms, experimenting with resonances, commonalities and dissonances to find new meaning.

At the core of our work is our commitment to outreach - working with local communities in schools, youth centres, hospices and prisons to bring people together, heal wounds and inspire the next generation of musicians & music lovers.

We know from personal experience how important music can be in difficult personal and socio-economic circumstances. It can elevate, inspire, bring people together in unexpected ways, transcending race, ideology & socio-economic status. It can transform our lives, expand our awareness, offer us new perspectives and deepen our humanity. This is more important now than ever before.

Our social inclusion and mental, sexual & ethnic diversity policies reflect our belief that we are all entitled to meaningful experiences and opportunities and we all deserve respect. Our players & partners come from different socio-economic backgrounds - we've all had our own paths to walk, and all of us are aware that life can be difficult and, at times, tenuous. We work with humility & dedication, and it's an honour to share our love for our craft with you.

Our CEO

Christina Waldock

Christina was born in Glasgow and her first words were in 'Weegie. She lived in Zambia and Kenya as a child, absorbing different languages and cultures before she could learn about them in books. The sounds, smells, rhythms and images of Africa are deeply ingrained in her memory, and they led to an avid interest in world cultures and a natural gift for languages which she went on to pursue at Pembroke College, Cambridge.

She lived on the North Hull Estate for a while after returning from Zambia -African jungle to Urban jungle, the social deprivations and cultural divides of Africa and her home town making a big impression. Having spent most of her formative years in Hull and returned to the area in 2003 to bring up her own family, she knows the complex social currents of the city well.

Christina's passion for music was ignited by the cello at the age of 6. She progressed quickly, giving her first public performance within a year. She gained a scholarship to the Purcell School in London at 16 and dove headlong into the wolrd of chamber music, winning an international competition (Stage '91, Barcelona) as cellist of the Juventus Quartet. Since then her freelance career has taken her all over Europe, to Russia and to Canada. She regularly plays concertos with UK orchestras and has given recitals at music clubs and festivals across the UK with Mark Knoop for 20 years. She loves to improvise and has collaborated in several multi-disciplinary projects over the years, also recording albums with Barbara Dickson and Hull-based indie folk band Pavey Ark. She also has a sound healing practice in East Yorkshire.

Hull Jam Factory is the result of many years' research & dreaming, a strong love for Hull & its people, a desire to give back to the town that gave her so much growing up and a belief that Hull deserves to be celebrated.