ABBA

He is a trombonist, teacher and author born in England who studied at both Oxford and London Universities. He started his career after graduation as a teacher but soon decided he wanted to concentrate on making his profession a trombonist. He joined the Halle Orchestra and stayed with them for six years until he relocated to London to become a member of the Philip Jones Brass Ensemble, playing with them until their last concert conducted by Elgar Howart in 1986. He went on to become the Director of the London Brass, which was the group they became after the retirement of Philip Jones. He became a freelance musician in 1991 and appeared on commercial recordings and with ensembles and orchestras such as The Philharmonia. In 2000 he was employed as the Co-Principal Trombone for the BBC Symphony Orchestra and for 5 years he held the position of Director of The Academy of St. Martin in the Fields. Appearing on many recordings he can be heard on Essentially Christmas with the East London Chorus, The London Trombone Sound, the soundtrack of The Bourne Ultimatum, Simply the Best Christmas Album, Greatest Hits by Philip Jones Brass Ensemble, Christmas with the London Brass and Concert for the BBC by Chris Barber. As a composer his works include Six Etudes for Alto Trombone and several works and arrangements. As an author and teacher he has written workbooks for brass musicians on the alto trombone and on a trombone section that are used regularly by music schools and universities and has been on the faculties of the Royal Northern College of Music and the Junior Guildhall School of Music. Nowadays he coaches and gives private lessons and is the Professor of Trombone at Trinity College of Music, London. He is also a trustee of the John Fletcher Trust Fund, which is a charity set up after the death of the tubist and his co-band member John Fletcher.

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