Hannah Zaki (née Towndrow)
Hannah is a Cardiff-born conductor and organist based in Oxford. She is Director of Music at Wadham College, Oxford; Co-Founder and Musical Director of Antiphon Chamber Choir; and Musical Director of Wantage Choral Society and Glass Ensemble.
Hannah's musical career began at Hertford College, Oxford, where she was Organ Scholar and read for a BA in Music. There she gained experience in organ playing and choral direction, leading the chapel choir in services, concerts and international tours.
After Oxford, Hannah studied at the Royal Academy of Music, graduating in July 2022 with a distinction in her MA in choral conducting, having studied for two years with Patrick Russill. She took masterclasses with Sofi Jeannin and the BBC Singers, Paul Brough, David Hill and Eamonn Dougan, studied organ as a second instrument with Anne Marsden Thomas, and gained the LRAM teaching diploma, specialising in organ. In autumn 2021 she was awarded the Alec Robertson Memorial Prize, a conducting scholarship in association with Westminster Cathedral, where she directed professional voices each week throughout the academic year.
In September 2024, Hannah was appointed Director of Music at Wadham College, where she directs the chapel choir and plays a leading role in the musical life of the College and the Holywell Music Room. She was previously the first-ever Director of Music at Hertford College, and before that Director of Music at St Andrew's Church, Sonning and at St Mary & St John Church, Cowley.
Antiphon Chamber Choir, which Hannah co-founded, is one of Oxford's most distinguished amateur chamber choirs. Specialising in English sacred music, it performs works from William Byrd to Herbert Howells and beyond. After a concert in July 2023, composer Cecilia McDowall commented: "Beautifully shaped phrasing and sensitivity to texture and colour give distinction to this fine choir. With fearless and imaginative programming, and a rich full sound, audiences will find so much to enjoy."
Hannah also directs Wantage Choral Society, a large amateur chorus performing major choral-orchestral works, and Glass Ensemble, an upper-voice chamber choir based in Twyford exploring sacred and secular music from across the ages. Until July 2025 she was Musical Director of the Reading Lunchtime Choir, a community choir open to singers of all levels, which she led for three years.
Alongside her regular commitments, Hannah enjoys a varied freelance career as an organist and choral director. She has worked as a House Tutor with the Royal School of Church Music (RSCM) on the Bath Course and has carried out conducting examinations for the University of Oxford. She is Resident Organist of the Oxford-based upper-voice choir Laurelin Voices and has played for the professional ensemble The CONVENTional Project, Putney Choral Society and the Newbury Chamber Choir. She regularly deputises as a conductor for choral societies, operatic societies and chamber choirs across the Thames Valley, and offers private tuition in conducting and organ.
