Signum Brass coming to the Music Festival on Friday 14 June
The Music Festival prides itself on being ahead of the curve and supporting young talent. Six years ago you may recall listening to Voces 8 in St James Church and they are now featured regularly on Classic FM and are often in the classical music charts. Signum Brass have similar potential. The ensemble was formed in September 2018 and, as well as carrying out numerous live performances, members of the group regularly record and perform in London and across the UK and have featured in various TV and radio broadcasts. This young group has already carried out work with artists including Jamie Cullum, Gregory Porter, and Grammy Award winning rap artist Stormzy. The group was also selected to represent the Guildhall School of Music at the “Brass Spectacular” concert in February at St John’s Smith Square, a showcase with the top brass ensembles from the major UK music colleges.
The quintet is made up of two trumpets, a horn, a trombone and a tuba. Harry Plant plays one of the trumpets and first started playing when he was three. You pity the neighbours at that stage of his career! He is primarily a classical trumpet player but also enjoys performing folk/ jazz on both trumpet and the flugelhorn. He has played professionally with many orchestras and has performed in major venues across Europe, including Notre Dame Cathedral, the Royal Albert Hall, the Barbican Centre, Chartres Cathedral and Glyndebourne Opera House.
Adam Meyer is the other trumpet player and he was playing in a brass band and concert band when still at primary school. His love for orchestral playing stemmed from the five years he played in Thames Youth Orchestra, of which he was principal trumpet for three years. Adam has since performed with the Brandenburg Sinfonia, London Mahler Orchestra, Young Musician’s Symphony Orchestra and Epsom Light Opera Company in their production of West Side Story in October 2018. He has also been broadcast on BBC Radio 3 with the Guildhall Jazz Ensemble as part of a BBC Total Immersion project.
Alex Grinyer plays the French Horn and took this up at the age of 7. At the age of 11 he won a place in the National Children’s Orchestra and two years later obtained a place at the Junior Royal Academy of Music in London. From there he auditioned successfully for the National Youth Orchestra. Alongside the Horn, Alex is also a keen pianist and organist. He was an organ scholar at Stowe School for two years and enjoyed performing Rachmaninoff’s second piano concerto with orchestra in 2017.
Will Morley plays the trombone and recently received a place to study on an ERASMUS placement at the world-renowned University of Music and Performing Arts, Vienna under Dietmar Küblböck, principal trombone of the Vienna Philharmonic orchestra. He has played with many well-regarded orchestras and ensembles at venues including the Musikverein, the Vienna Konzerthaus, the Royal Albert Hall, Cadogan Hall and the Royal Festival Hall. William is part of multiple chamber groups and in 2016 he became Bexley Young Musician of the Year.
Last but not least is Charlie Jones who plays the Tuba. Charlie grew up playing in various brass bands across the north of England. He was principal tuba in the National Children’s Brass Band from 2013 and was later a member of the National Youth Brass Band of Great Britain until 2017 when he gained a place to become principal tuba in the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain, playing at prestigious venues across the UK including the Royal Albert Hall at the BBC Proms.
I am sure this talented group of musicians will raise the roof on 14 June and when they are top of the classical music charts you can say that you saw them in Bramley first.
