Born and bred in Chorlton, Manchester, I spend much of my time blowing columns of air of varying speeds down a bent piece of metal held securely to my face, a pursuit I find really quite natural to do these days. Most of my daytimes are spent trying to teach others to do the same!
In addition to the freelance trumpet-playing, I've also found myself - or lost myself occaisonally - conducting over the last 3 years, a pastime which has proved to be a more than suitable and relevant vehicle for expressing my musical thoughts and opinions in a more universal way.
I've met many unforgettable and awe-inspiring people through my musical excursions over the years, and that's how it's gonna stay for the foreseeable future, unless, of course, I return to my original idea of trying to become a neurosurgeon. Think my hands are too shaky for that though these days.............
One of the greatest joys of playing music and conducting ensembles has been having the chance to get involved with so many different genres and styles, realising how versatile the trumpet really is, and being able to share my musical intentions through conducting. More importantly for me, being driven by music and regarding the purpose of doing what I do, I've realised that the point at which I've seldom arrived at - that rare enlightenment - has felt exactly the same every time, regardless of the style, content or context of the moment. Good music will ALWAYS be good music...
Some tracks with me playing trumpet on:
....for your comments. Thank you : )....
I used to be a keen artist too and especially warmed to Leonardo Da Vinci's anatomical drawings when I was younger. I've scanned some of my own attempts in below. They were all drawn between the ages of 8 and 14:-
Get Your Own! | View Slideshow
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