Merel van der Knoop
Choir Leader
Merel gained a Bachelor's degree in solo piano from the Rotterdam Conservatoire in The Netherlands and went on to study Piano Accompaniment at The Guildhall School of Music and Drama, from where she graduated with a Masters in Music and a Masters in Music Performance, Guildhall Artist degree.
Merel works as a freelance accompanist and vocal coach besides teaching singing and piano. She was Interim Head of Music at The Hall School Wimbledon from 2016 – 2017 and Interim Head of Junior Music at Wimbledon High School in Autumn 2021. Merel is also a classical artist on board P&O and Olsen cruises. Currently, she is musical director of the Long Covid Choir and the Long Covid Kids Choir.
Besides being active as a freelance musician Merel also took acting classes at Morley College and City Lit. She was part of the City Lit Rep Company that took Hamlet to the RSC Open Air Festival in Stratford upon Avon. Merel also works as a Supporting Artist for Feature films such as The Crown.
Merel fell ill with Covid in December 2021 and has been living with Long Covid ever since. She loves being able to use her musical skills to bring joyful and happy moments to children & young people living with Long Covid.
