A British composer and an acclaimed saxophonist have died with their baby daughter in a plane crash in the Swiss Alps.

Jonathan and Hannah Goldstein, from London, were believed to be on their way to Italy with their seven-month-old daughter Saskia when the plane they were travelling in went down.

Image: The family were believed to have been travelling from Switzerland to Italy

Police said a Piper plane set off on Sunday morning from an airfield in western Switzerland and crashed less than 90 minutes later.

The plane went down above the Simplon Pass area near the Italian border and burst into flames.

Police said the bodies of the pilot, a passenger and a small child were recovered from the wreckage.


In a statement, a family spokesman said: "We are all devastated by the news of Jonathan, Hannah and Saskia's deaths.

"We loved them all so very much. They were so happy together and we will miss them terribly.

"We would ask the media to respect the family's privacy at this extremely difficult time."

Mr Goldstein was a prolific composer of music for television and cinema commercials and had worked on films including Cape Fear.

Image: The plane crashed near the Simplon Pass in Switzerland. Pic: Police Cantonale du Valais

Image: The couple were successful in the world of music

He won an Ivor Novello Award in 2007 for his score to the BBC/HBO film Primo and was the founder and creative director of Goldstein Music Group, a music production agency in London whose clients include HBO and the Royal Shakespeare Company.

Mrs Goldstein - who performed under the name Hannah Marcinowicz - was an acclaimed saxophonist who played at venues including the Royal Albert Hall and Royal Festival Hall, and was a regular at the BBC Proms.

A Foreign and Commonwealth Office spokesman said: "Our staff are assisting the relatives of a British family who died in a plane accident in western Switzerland and are also in contact with the local authorities."