Simon Wills, trombone

Simon Wills began his musical life as a lutenist but had to take up the trombone following a serious hand injury. He was for many years a member of the London Symphony Orchestra trombone section and spent fourteen years as principal trombonist in the Chamber Orchestra of Europe. He played also as regular guest principal at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, the Berliner Staatsoper unter den Lindon, the Teatro alla Scala, Milan and all the major British orchestras. He worked as a soloist and chamber musician on every continent, broadcasting on Sudwestdeutsche Rundfunk, the BBC and Radio WFMT Chicago, made over 600 commercial recordings and had many solo pieces written for him, including one, Judas Mercator, by the Master of the Queen's Musick, Sir Peter Maxwell Davies. His work as a conductor began when he took over direction of the Stockholm premeire of a concerto composed for Christian Lindberg. He now works all over the world, and has a particular interest in the works of Haydn and the Second Viennese School. In 2007 he conducted what is believed to have been the first complete performance in Uganda of the Mozart Requiem, at Namirembe Cathedral outside Kampala.

Exotic travels with a baton have recently included the Turan Alem Orchestra in Kazakhstan, Stockholms Landskonserter, PAC ensemble in Osaka and the Cyprus State Orchestra.

Level: Advanced Intermediate level students, High level students and Post- graduates
Days: 5th to 8th of July
Fee
Active participants: 175 €
Listeners: 85 €

He has been a professor at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London since 1986 and was elected a fellow in 2000. He has been a visiting professor at the Conservatoire Superieure in Paris, Tallinn Academy, Almaty Conservatoire, North Texas State University and Sapporo Academy.