AN EVENING WITH BRASS FOR AFRICA
AT THE REFORM CLUB
Join us for an evening of impact and hope at the prestigious Reform Club. The event will feature a preview of a short documentary, followed by an engaging discussion with a panel of special guests, hosted by our founder Jim Trott MBE, and perhaps a little music…
MONDAY 19TH MAY 2025
6PM – 8PM
THE STRANGER’S ROOM, REFORM CLUB, 104 PALL MALL, LONDON SW1Y 5EW
Dress code: The Reform Club operates a smart dress code. Gentlemen are required to wear a jacket and shirt with full collar.
Your host
Jim Trott MBE
Founder/Trustee Brass for Africa
Jim founded the charity over 15 years ago when he shipped 30 unwanted brass instruments from his son’s brass band in the UK to Uganda.
Until January this year Jim served as Brass for Africa’s Executive Director, before handing over to another of the evening’s special guests, Andrew Agassi.
Jim is a commercial pilot by profession and his relationship with Africa started over 30 years ago when he went to live and work as a helicopter pilot in Nigeria. Currently Jim is a Captain with British Airways flying the Boeing Dreamliner (…please no questions about lost baggage or flight cancellations!).
Jim’s real passion is for music and the power it has to transform individuals and communities, and in 2021 he was Honoured by Her Majesty Queen Elizbeth II, being made an MBE for services to disadvantaged youth in Uganda, Rwanda and Liberia.
our special guests
Nalumansi Faridah
Founder and Executive Director Muwala Asobola Community Initiative (MACI), Uganda
Born and raised in Bwaise, a slum in Uganda’s Kawempe Division, Faridah grew up in a community where gender inequality, child marriage, and violence against girls were the norm. Defiled at 14 and denied justice, she was forced out of school and left to fend for herself and her unborn child. Instead of succumbing to these challenges, she turned her pain into purpose.
Faridah first became involved with Brass for Africa in 2017 as a beneficiary, using music as a tool for empowerment and advocacy. In 2019, after leading an anti-street harassment campaign and participating in the Women Deliver Conference in Canada, she founded MACI to amplify girls’ voices and fight for their rights.
Her activism has taken her to global platforms, including the UN General Assembly and Denmark’s Sister exhibition. Through her work, she has driven policy changes, ensuring safer cities and education access for child mothers.
matilda lloyd
International Trumpet Soloist and Brass for Africa Ambassador.
Matilda is a true champion of her instrument: the trumpet. Not only does she impress audiences with her virtuosic skill and panache, but she also “produces a seamless legato, a wide range of colour and shapes the music like a fine singer.” (Fanfare Magazine).
These lyrical capabilities are showcased to their full extent in Casta Diva, her debut album of opera aria transcriptions for Chandos Records. The disc was BBC Music Magazine’s Recording of the Month in June 2023 with a five-star review describing it as an “album full of delights… Lloyd plays with intense expression and immense warmth.”
In the 2024/25 season, Matilda is a European Concert Halls Organisation (ECHO) Rising Star with 18 recitals on Europe’s most prestigious stages, including Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Musikverien Wien, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg and Philharmonie de Paris.
Matilda was appointed As a Brass for Africa Ambassador in 2023 and in 2024 she visited Uganda, teaching, playing and inspiring the next generation of Brass players in the country.
andrew agassi
CEO Brass for Africa
As CEO, Andrew oversees global operations at Brass for Africa, having previously served as the charity’s COO.
Andrew joined Brass for Africa in 2017 and he holds an IT degree from Jomo Kenyatta University in Nairobi and formerly served as Regional Director for Hope 4 Kids International in Africa, managing projects across Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, and Namibia.
Andrew currently sits on the steering committee for the Uganda Humanitarian INGO Forum and was instrumental in establishing Brass for Africa’s programme in Northern Uganda, supporting South Sudanese civil war refugees.