Wind, Brass & Percussion at Trinity Laban
Introduction
Studying a wind, brass or percussion instrument at Trinity Laban blends exceptional technical training with the freedom to innovate and cultivate your individual creative voice. Our world-class teachers will inspire and support you as you develop as a musician and as a person, deepening your technical and artistic understanding on your journey towards professional musicianship. Alongside intensive training, you will be encouraged to broaden your experience by collaborating with performers across the conservatoire.
“We offer inspirational teachers, magnificent surroundings, unique performance opportunities and a supportive atmosphere helping you become a high-class, versatile musician.”
Andrew Dunn, Head of Wind, Brass, and Percussion
Courses
Undergraduate Courses
Join our community of global arts collaborators and creators for your undergraduate study. From classical to jazz and popular music, our wide selection of courses seek to redefine musical and performing excellence.
Postgraduate Courses
Lead the arts beyond convention with our postgraduate music courses, with pioneering master’s and diplomas allowing you to challenge musical convention and direct the spotlight.
Wind
Instruments and facilities
- Flute
- Oboe
- Clarinet
- Saxophone
- Bassoon
We hold a large collection of woodwind instruments that you can borrow, often on long-term loan. The collection includes:
piccolos; alto flutes; bass flute; cor anglais; oboe d’amore; E-flat clarinets; C clarinets; A clarinets; basset horns; bass clarinets; contrabass clarinets in E-flat and B-flat; contrabassoons; and sopranino, soprano, alto, tenor, baritone and bass saxophones.
We have a dedicated reed-making facility for Woodwind players.
Teaching
Individual Principal Study lessons will allow you to study with some of the best musicians in the world. Additional small group tuition and instrument-specific classes will enable you to further develop your skills. You may also study a related instrument, or another discipline to complement your specific interests.
Weekly Departmental classes support your Principal Study and equip you for the diverse world of professional music-making. Classes cover a host of topics, including repertoire, technique, style, genre, performance, transposition, sight- reading, recording studio techniques, doubling, period instruments, and combating performance anxiety.
You will benefit from regular chamber music coaching led by our renowned teachers, which encompass both standard groups as well as more unusual combinations, cross-discipline groups, mixed media and improvisation. You will also be encouraged to utilise the diverse collaborative opportunities at your doorstep, whether that is developing key ensemble skills through weekly chamber music classes, or working with students from other departments and Dance through our annual CoLab festival.
All Woodwind students, both postgraduate and undergraduate, will receive Individual Tuition in their principal study instruments. All Principal Study Professors also offer group tuition sessions, in which all their students study together in groups of no more than seven.
Every undergraduate student is entitled to eight hours of Principal Study Enhancement time throughout the year, which include lessons on a doubling instrument, related period instrument, complementary / previously learnt instrument.
Every week, players of one instrument meet and work with a leading professional of their instrument on specific and wide-ranging topics. These weekly departmental classes include regular reed-making classes for oboes and bassoons. There are also regular classes on specific doubling instruments: piccolo, cor anglais, bass clarinet, E flat clarinet, contra bassoon, SATB saxophones, and doubling on flute and clarinet
You will have weekly chamber music sessions in Woodwind ensembles, or mixed ensembles. Saxophone Choir rehearses every week, and there are regular Saxophone Choir concerts each term, involving all saxophone students. Sometimes international soloists join the ensemble. There are saxophone chamber music concerts each term.
Masterclasses
Learning directly from renowned professionals through our extensive series of masterclasses will vastly enhance your development as a musician. You will benefit from the expertise and experience of some of today’s eminent woodwind players from around the world, including musicians from the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic, and the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra.
Recent visitors include Arno Bornkamp, Mary-Karen Clardy, Adam Walker, Emily Beynon, Celia Craig, Rainer Gibbons, Barnaby Robson, Harri Mäki, Emily Hultmark, Jérôme Laran, Tong Yang, Jean-Denis Michat, and soloists from the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic.
Brass
Instruments and facilities
- French Horn
- Trumpet
- Trombone
- Tuba
We hold a large collection of modern and period brass instruments that you can borrow, often on long-term loan. This includes:
piccolo trumpets; E-flat trumpets; cornets; flugel horns; alto trombones; tenor trombones; bass trombone; contrabass trombone; bass trumpet; euphonium; tubas in B flat and C; alphorns; natural trumpets; cornetts; hand horns; and alto, tenor and bass sackbuts. Many of our brass students choose to take a period instrument as a second study.
We have dedicated practice suits for Brass.
Teaching
Individual Principal Study lessons will allow you to study with some of the best musicians in the world. Additional small group tuition and instrument-specific classes will enable you to further develop your skills. You may also study a related instrument, or another discipline to complement your specific interests.
Weekly Departmental classes support your Principal Study and equip you for the diverse world of professional music-making. Classes cover a host of topics, including repertoire, technique, style, genre, performance, transposition, sight- reading, recording studio techniques, doubling, period instruments, and combating performance anxiety.
You will benefit from regular chamber music coaching led by our renowned teachers, which encompass both standard groups as well as more unusual combinations, cross-discipline groups, mixed media and improvisation. You will also be encouraged to utilise the diverse collaborative opportunities at your doorstep, whether that is developing key ensemble skills through weekly chamber music classes, or working with students from other departments and Dance through our annual CoLab festival.
All Brass students, both postgraduate and undergraduate, will receive Individual Tuition in their principal study instruments. All Principal Study Professors also offer group tuition sessions, in which all their students study together in groups of no more than seven.
Every undergraduate student is entitled to eight hours of Principal Study Enhancement time throughout the year, which include lessons on a doubling instrument, related period instrument, complementary / previously learnt instrument.
Every week, players of one instrument meet and work with a leading professional of their instrument on specific and wide-ranging topics.
You will have weekly chamber music sessions in Brass ensembles, or mixed ensembles.
Masterclasses
Learning directly from renowned professionals through our extensive series of masterclasses will vastly enhance your development as a musician. You will benefit from the expertise and experience of some of today’s eminent brass players from around the world, including musicians from the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic, and the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra.
Recent visitors include Nikolaj Viltoft, Byron Fulcher, Andrew Bain, Frank Lloyd, Szabolcs Zempléni, Philip Cobb, Thomas Hooten, John Wallace, Brandt Attema, Dudley Bright, Zoltan Kiss, Paul Milner, Sérgio Carolino and Patrick Harrild.
Percussion
Teaching and Facilities
All undergraduate percussion students follow one of two specialist pathways: Percussion and Timpani with Drum Kit or Percussion and Drum Kit with Timpani. At Trinity Laban, percussion is approached in its broadest and most dynamic sense. You will develop the versatility essential for today’s professional percussionist, mastering a wide range of instruments and techniques – from mallet percussion and drum kit to auxiliary and world percussion. This prepares you for work across solo, orchestral, chamber, contemporary, commercial, theatre, and cross-genre settings.
Collaboration is central to our approach. You will have opportunities to work across all Trinity faculties, combining music with dance, theatre, and composition to create innovative interdisciplinary performances. Many of these projects feature in Trinity Laban’s annual CoLab festival, providing a platform to showcase new work and expand your creative practice in cross-arts projects.
Your learning is supported by recently refurbished, dedicated percussion practice suites, offering an inspiring and professional environment for both practice and creative exploration.
Tuition and Learning Structure
In Year 1, students receive 32 hours of individual one-to-one tuition, structured across percussion, timpani, drum kit and four-mallet technique. This core provision is complemented by weekly departmental classes and performance opportunities led by the percussion faculty and visiting guest artists.
From Year 2 onwards, students enjoy greater flexibility in how lesson hours are allocated, allowing training to evolve alongside developing interests and professional ambitions. In Years 3 and 4, annual one-to-one tuition increases to 34 hours, with bespoke options that may include advanced four-mallet study, jazz vibraphone, hand percussion, and other specialist areas alongside core instrumental training.
Chamber and Collaboration
Chamber music forms a major part of your studies, with weekly percussion ensemble rehearsals and five hours of coaching per registered ensemble through Trinity Laban’s chamber music module. You will also engage in cross-faculty projects that combine music with dance, theatre, and composition, developing both artistic excellence and the collaborative skills essential for a successful professional career.
Departmental Classes and Masterclasses
Learning directly from renowned professionals through our extensive series of departmental classes and masterclasses is a vital part of your development as a percussionist. These sessions provide the opportunity to benefit from the expertise and experience of some of today’s most eminent percussionists from around the world, while also building connections and sharing experiences that support your growth as a collaborative, adaptable musician.
Recent departmental masterclasses have been led by a diverse range of specialists, including:
• Alun McNeil-Watson – Box9 Drumline
• Beth Higham-Edwards – Theatrical Percussion
• Chris Wood – Bastille
• Emma Arden – Box9 Drumline
• Elsa Bradley – Dulcimer/Cimbalom
• Guy Shalom – Darabuka
• Lekan Babalola – Afrobeat and Jazz
• Lewis Kentaro Issacs – Vibraphone
• Louise Goodwin – Scottish Chamber Orchestra
• Lucy Landymore – Hans Zimmer
• Molly Lopresti – Jonas Brothers
• Omari Carter – Stomp
• Ruairi Glasheen – Bodhrán
• Teena Lyle – Van Morrison
These sessions give students first-hand insight into a wide range of genres, techniques, and professional approaches, enriching both your practical skills and creative perspective.
Performance Opportunities
Performance is the beating heart of the department. We encourage you to take every opportunity to refine your skills as a soloist, chamber and orchestral performer, from playing in large ensembles, to exploring chamber repertoire and improvisation-based work. Our ensembles include symphony, chamber and opera orchestras, contemporary music group, musical theatre band, wind orchestra, saxophone choir, brass ensemble, symphonic winds, wind ensemble, and percussion ensemble.
Our lunchtime concert series in the beautiful Old Royal Naval College Chapel and St Alfege Church provides regular opportunities to give public recitals, alongside opportunities to play at top London venues such as Kings Place, Southbank Centre, Blackheath Halls and Cadogan Hall.
Our regular Side by Side projects with top orchestras give you the opportunity to perform together with world-leading professionals. Recent Side by Side projects have been given by the BBC Symphony Orchestra, BBC Concert Orchestra, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Welsh National Opera Orchestra, and the Philharmonia Orchestra.
Open Days
All our courses, all on one day, across our two campuses. Join us at our Open Day on Saturday 1 November.
Staff
Key Faculty
Andrew Dunn
Head of Wind, Brass & Percussion (Sabbatical 2024-25)
Fiona Kelly
Interim Head of Woodwind
Richard Henry
Interim Head of Brass
Calum Huggan
Percussion Lead
Wind
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Anna Pope
Anna Pope
Flute
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Julian Coward
Julian Coward
Flute
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Margaret Campbell
Margaret Campbell
Flute
-
Siobhan Grealy
Siobhan Grealy
Flute
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Susan Milan
Susan Milan
Flute
-
Christopher Green
Christopher Green
Piccolo
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Sameeta Gahir
Sameeta Gahir
Piccolo
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Chris O'Neal
Chris O'Neal
Oboe
-
James Turnbull
James Turnbull
Oboe
-
John Roberts
John Roberts
Oboe (Visiting Artist)
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Maxwell Spiers
Maxwell Spiers
Cor Anglais
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Joan Enric Lluna
Joan Enric Lluna
Clarinet
-
Hale Hambleton
Hale Hambleton
Clarinet
-
Fiona Cross
Fiona Cross
Clarinet
-
Paolo De Gaspari
Paolo De Gaspari
Bass Clarinet
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Julie Andrews
Julie Andrews
Bassoon
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Graham Hobbs
Graham Hobbs
Bassoon
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Paul Boyes
Paul Boyes
Bassoon
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Gerard McChrystal
Gerard McChrystal
Classical Saxophone & Saxophone Choir Coordinator
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Melanie Henry
Melanie Henry
Saxophone & Associated Doubling Skills
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Ian Wilson
Ian Wilson
Recorder (Visiting Artist)
Brass
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Tony Cross
Tony Cross
Trumpet
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Andrew Hendrie
Andrew Hendrie
Trumpet
-
Philip White
Philip White
Trombone
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Matthew Lewis
Matthew Lewis
Trombone
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Graham Lee
Graham Lee
Trombone, Bass Trombone & Bass Trumpet
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Joe Arnold
Joe Arnold
Bass Trombone
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Les Neish
Les Neish
Tuba
-
Stephen Stirling
Stephen Stirling
Horn
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Szabolcs Zempléni
Szabolcs Zempléni
Visiting International Professor of Horn
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Anneke Scott
Anneke Scott
Natural Horn
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Sue Addison
Sue Addison
Sackbut
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Matilda Lloyd
Matilda Lloyd
Trumpet
-
Adrian Miotti
Adrian Miotti
Tuba
Percussion
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Mick Doran
Mick Doran
Percussion
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Daniel Gonzalez Estevez
Daniel Gonzalez Estevez
Timpani
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Matt French
Matt French
Drum kit
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Kate Hext-Eyre
Kate Hext-Eyre
Timpani
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Calum Huggan
Calum Huggan
Solo and Chamber Percussion
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Gary Kettel
Gary Kettel
Percussion
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Jonny Mansfield
Jonny Mansfield
Vibraphone
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Matt Skelton
Matt Skelton
Drum kit
Student
Life
At Trinity Laban, traditions are formed, boundaries are moved, connections are forged, and futures are made. Join our artistic community today.
Learn more.