Educated in Taunton, Stuart is a graduate of The Royal Birmingham Conservatoire. He holds teaching positions at King’s College, Queen’s College, Taunton School, Blundell’s and Richard Huish College. Several of his former pupils have had success at diploma level and have gone on to study music at college and university.

As a performer Stuart works throughout the South West with leading orchestras, choral societies, opera companies and brass bands including Orchestra West, Bath Philharmonia, Southern Sinfonia, Orchestra De Cymru, Dorset Chamber Orchestra, Bridport Chamber Orchestra, Taunton Sinfonietta and Somerset Opera.

Stuart is also a member of Bristol Brass Consort. He is a member of the function band Doctor Chocolate and the James Bond tribute band ‘The Name is Band’ and has also worked with other leading bands including The Man From Funkle, Area 52, DT8, Agent Funk and Session One. He works regularly with leading theatre companies throughout the south west.

Stuart has given many solo recitals and has performed several concertos in recent years.

Instruments: Selmer Concept Bb Trumpet, Yamaha Flugelhorn, Schilke Piccolo

Mouthpieces: Vincent Bach 1 1/4c (Trumpet and Flugelhorn) Schilke 14b (Piccolo)

#Selmer
#Vincentbachmouthpieces
#Schilke

Kevin has enjoyed an illustrious career as a soloist and principal cornetist over the last half century. He has worked with some of the best in the industry namely Prof Walter Hargreaves, Geoffrey Brand, James Watson, Paul Cosh, Richard Evans, Rob Wiffin OBE to name but a few!

Kevin was principal of Sun Life, Flowers, Aldbourne and Brodsworth Colliery bands.

Instruments: Selmer Omega Bb Trumpet, Yamaha Neo Cornet, Couesnon Monopole Flugelhorn

Mouthpieces: Dan Robinson Custom (Trumpet) Denis Wick 3 (Flugelhorn) Denis Wick RW 3 (Cornet)

#Danrobinsonmouthpieces
#Yamahaneocornet
#couesnonmonopole

Emily began playing the Cornet at the age of three before switching to the Tenor Horn at the age of seven. She played in her family band in Cornwall, the Lanner and District Silver Band, before moving to Cardiff to study at the Royal Welsh College of Music to be taught by Owen Farr. Emily was a member of both the National Children’s Brass Band and the National Youth Brass Band of Great Britain, becoming Principal Tenor Horn in both of the bands. Whilst at RWCMD, Emily won the Harry Mortimer Award at the British Open Championships and also the Philip Jones Brass Ensemble competition and the McGrenery Chamber Prize as a part of a quartet.

Since graduating from college, Emily has travelled with the Orchestra Revolutionnaire to London, New York and Paris to play a saxhorn as a part of their Berlioz tour. Emily joined the Flowers Band in 2017, after being with the Tongwynlais Temperance Band in Cardiff for three years. With the Flowers Band Emily has performed at all of the Major U.K. Contests and won several awards during this time. These include the Best Horn at BiC 2018, Best Instrumentalist at Butlin’s 2020, and Best Soloist at BiC 2023, becoming only the second tenor horn player to achieve this in the history of the contest.

Emily is an experienced Horn Tutor, having tutored on the North American Brass Band Summer School for several years, and tutoring on the National Youth Bands of Wales and Switzerland in 2024.

Instrument: Besson Prestige
Mouthpiece: Alliance 2

#Besson
#Alliance

Nick started playing at the age of eight and following initial tuition from his father and a brief spell in The Salvation Army, Nick was appointed principal trombone of the world famous Foden Motor Works Brass Band at the age of only fifteen. During his fourteen years in that position he established an international reputation as one of Europe's finest trombone players and teachers. He has presented masterclasses and performed in concert halls as far afield as Australia, Israel, Canada, the USA, Japan and throughout Europe. In addition he was the featured soloist at the National Brass Band Championships Gala Concert at the Royal Albert Hall in London on four occasions.

Nick premiered the Wilfred Heaton Trombone Concerto live on BBC Radio 3 and gave the first public performance of Philip Wilby's concertino White Knuckle Ride - both composed especially for him.

He released his first solo recording ‘Anthology’ with the Britannia Building Society Band in 1996 followed by the highly successful ‘New Horizons’ in 2002 featuring a diverse range of styles from jazz, avante garde and brass band repertoire. Another recording features a range of specially commissioned works for tenor and bass trombone where Nick plays alongside Douglas Yeo, Bass Trombone with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. His most recent addition to his discography is collaboration with Andrew Justice and the Enfield Citadel Band of The Salvation Army. The recording features original solo and duet repertoire and has already received critical acclaim.

Nick also gave the premiere recording of Elizabeth Raum’s Fantasy for Trombone and Brass Band. In addition to these recordings Nick has been featured soloist on twenty other cd releases with ensembles throughout the UK and overseas.

Nick has been guest soloist with many ensembles including the New York Staff Band of the Salvation Army, Grimethorpe Colliery Band, the National Youth Brass Band of Great Britain, National Youth Brass Band of Switzerland, NJBB Graubunden, National Youth Brass Band of New Zealand, Enfield Citadel Band, Kortrijk Brass Band, Brass Band De Bazuin Oenkerk, Tokyo City Concert Brass, Dubai Concert Band, Taunton Concert Band, Maple Leaf Brass Band, Brass Band Willebroek, Brass Band Limburg, Lyngby-Taarbaek Brass Band, and Imperial Brass from New Jersey.


He has also given recitals and lectures at the Royal Northern College of Music, Royal Academy of Music (Stockholm), Melbourne School of Performing Arts, Newcastle School of Music (Australia), Goteborgs Universitet Artisten, RAF Cranwell, the Norwegian National Wind Band Championships in Trondheim, the British Trombone Society Festival at the Guildhall School of Music and London’s famous 100 Club.

Nick now resides in Devon but still commutes to Sheffield to continue his position as trombonist with The Brigantes Orchestra.

Instrument: 1970 Conn 8h (Elkhart)
Mouthpiece: Denis Wick 5ABL

#conninstruments
#deniswickproducts

Steve Sykes is without doubt one of the finest soloists to emerge from the british brass scene.

Steves musical roots are firmly based in Yorkshire brass bands, beginning with Carlton Main Frickley Colliery Band. In 1978 he accepted an invitation by Elgar Howarth to join the famous Grimethorpe Colliery Band as Principal Tuba and Soloist. With Grimethorpe he performed as soloist throughout Europe and Australia. During this period Steve was awarded the prestigious title of 'Granada Television Soloist of the Year'.

Because of an ever-increasing demand for Steve's talent both as soloist, conductor and clinician, he now works as a freelance musician appearing in the USA, Canada, Europe and Scandinavia and is a firm favourite with players and audiences alike.

Many compositions for solo tuba and orchestra/band have been inspired by, dedicated to and premiered by him, including major works by Ellerby, Golland and Brand. One of the busiest soloists in the U.K, forthcoming engagements will see him performing in Australia, New Zealand, America, Canada and, of course, Europe.

Steve has presented British regional conducting workshops on behalf of the National Association of Brass Band Conductors and conducting seminars on behalf of the North American Brass Band Association in Washington DC.

He regularly appears as an adjudicator at leading music festivals throughout Britain, North America, Norway and Switzerland. As a measure of his standing in the brass band movement he was recently invited to adjudicate at the British Open. Steve is included in the British Federation of Bands' list of approved adjudicators.

Steve's latest CD is now in production and features accompaniments by The Royal Norwegian Navy Band, Brass Band De Bazuin (Oenkerk) – Holland and pianist Richard Phillips.

He is tuba tutor at the celebrated 'Brass Band Summer School' (Oxford) and the 'International Brass Band Summer School' (Sedbergh/Swansea) where he is now also responsible for the Brass Band Conducting Course. Steve is lecturer in low brass studies at Bath Spa University College and is tutor and Professor of Brass to HM Royal Marines Band in Portsmouth, Plymouth, Lympstone and Dartmouth.

Steve has been engaged as clinician (and responsible for instrument development) by the Yamaha Corporation, Besson Musical Instruments, London Musical Instruments and Sterling Instruments.

Instrument: Sterling Virtuoso Tuba
Mouthpiece: Denis Wick 2L

#sterlingmusicalinstruments
#deniswickproducts