Bruce Nockles

Biography

After studying music at York University and whilst still at the Royal Academy of Music, Bruce Nockles began playing trumpet with Sir Peter Maxwell Davies group The Fires of London, rapidly developing a reputation as an expert in the performance of contemporary music. Soon after, he also became principal trumpet of the Chamber Orchestra of Europe. He performs regularly with The London Sinfonietta and many other British ensembles, has worked in Europe with Ensemble Intercontemporain, KlangforumWien and was for many years a close associate and a member of Ensemble Modern of Frankfurt. He has appeared as soloist with many of the above groups, as well as with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, the BBC Symphony Orchestra and in the Birmingham Opera Company’s acclaimed production of Stockhausen’s Mittwoch aus Licht.

Bruce Nockles has worked as a conductor assisting Franck Ollu with the Orchestra del Teatro di Bologna and with Ensemble Remix, Porto. In Britain he has conducted at The Proms, at The Southbank Centre with Endymion, for SPNM, The Manson Ensemble and at The National Portrait Gallery. He assisted on the new opera “Thanks to my eyes” by Oscar Bianchi at the Aix-en Provence festival and assisted George Benjamin in the preparation of his orchestral piece Jubilation.

He is also a composer, recent commissions including “Blast” for Bella Tromba, at the Church Stretton Festival. His ensemble piece Bass contra Bass was performed by the International Ensemble Modern Academy in the Klangspuren Schwaz Tirol Festival of Contemporary Music.