Addition for orchestra.

The CBSO has announced the appointment of Richard Blake as Principal Second Trumpet.

Richard was first introduced to music by his parents. His father was Principal Horn in the Ulster Orchestra and his mother started teaching him the piano when he was five. He was also a chorister in the choir of St George’s Parish Church, Belfast. After studying at Methodist College Belfast and the City of Belfast School of Music, Richard completed a BA in Music at the University of York in 2011, where he was awarded the Ed Burrell Prize for Performance, and the Blake Prize for orchestral studies.

While studying for his MA at the Royal Academy of Music, Richard performed regularly with academy ensembles under the baton of conductors Sir Colin Davis, Yan Pascal Tortelier and Sir Mark Elder. He studied with Paul Beniston, Rod Franks, Mark David, Robert Farley and John Hutchins and was supported in his studies by the Countess of Munster Musical Trust.

After graduating, Richard played frequently as a guest with the Ulster Orchestra and was co-principal trumpet with Southbank Sinfonia for their 2014 season. He has also performed with the Yorkshire Baroque Soloists and, for a month’s residency in Paris, the Orchestre Revolutionnaire et Romantique under the baton of Sir John Eliot Gardiner.

CBSO Chief Executive Stephen Maddock said “We are delighted to be welcoming another brilliant young musician to the CBSO. Richard replaces Wes Warren, who retired last year after many years’ service, and I am confident he will add great quality to our already superb brass section.”

Richard’s first concert with the orchestra will be on 28th January 2015.