The Trumpet Section

Andy Crowley

Manager of London Brass

Andy studied at the Royal Academy of Music, London, from 1980-1983. During this time, he also took lessons with John Wilbraham, John Wallace and Maurice André.

Andy was a member of the English Chamber Orchestra and London Sinfonietta between 1986 - 2009, extensively recording and performing diverse music, from the Brandenburg Concerto No.2 by J S Bach to Berio’s Sequenza X.

He has performed on hundreds of film scores: Gladiator (& the recent sequel!), Harry Potter, Shrek, Pirates of the Caribbean, Mission Impossible plus the last seven 007 movies, to name a few.

In concert or recording, he has appeared with Joni Mitchell, Quincy Jones, Hans Zimmer, Ornette Coleman, Sir Paul McCartney and Gregory Porter.

A particularly enjoyable experience for Andy, was recording and touring throughout Europe, North & South America with Peter Gabriel between 2011 & 2015. Albums credits: New Blood, Scratch My Back & recently, i/o.

He loves, walking, cycling, climbing, fresh air and dogs - and solitude!

James Davison

The newest member of London Brass

Winner of the Worshipful Company of Musicians Young Jazz Musician of the year (2018) and the Smith-Watkins Trumpet Award (Royal Academy of Music, 2016) James Davison is now pursuing a busy and varied freelance career.

He is currently Lead Trumpet with the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra and performs regularly with the BBC Big Band, Pete Long’s “Echoes of Ellington” and the Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Orchestra.

Since graduating with a MA in Jazz Performance at the Royal Academy of Music, James has become a regular trumpet deputy in the theatre shows of London’s West End. He has performed in shows including Back to the future, Mary Poppins, Aladdin, 42nd Street, The Book of Mormon, An American in Paris, Guys and Dolls and Kiss me Kate.

James’ classical and orchestral career highlights include performances as Guest Principal Trumpet with the London Symphony Orchestra, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, English National Opera and the Hallé Orchestra, as well as tours and recordings with the Sinfonia of London.

James is also a member of the Mark Nightingale / Alan Barns Sextet, the award winning Misha Mullov-Abbado Group as well as his own bands “Quintet-a-tete” co-led with Grammy nominated arranger and trombone player Callum Au, and "The Davison/Hemstock Quintet" with Australian clarinet and saxophonist Duncan Hemstock.

Philip Cobb

Delighted to have recently welcomed Philip in to the fold!

Philip joined London Brass in December, 2022. He can best be described as a formidable brass virtuoso who comes from a four generation family of Salvationist cornet soloists and indeed, applauded by Wynton Marsalis, for his recent solo recording, with the RAF Central Band, Fantasy.

Philip is Principal Trumpet of the BBC Symphony Orchestra, having previously held the same position in the London Symphony Orchestra from the age of 21. Quite a CV!

Before his professional career, he had been awarded the prestigious prize at the 2006 Maurice André Competion: Most Promising Young Player.

He brings a totally individual sound to London Brass and compliments the rest of us perfectly, bringing lyrical phrases to life uniquely and with a seemingly effortless technique.

He can be heard on many soundtracks including How To Train Your Dragon III, Star Wars & Harry Potter. He was also featured in the 2012 opening and closing ceremonies of the London Olympic Paralympic Games.

He is a committed Salvationist and has his own line of B&S trumpets, the Challenger II Philip Cobb Signature Model.

He loves his family time, golf and coming on tour with London Brass-naturally!

Gareth Small

Gareth is Principal Trumpet with the Hallé Orchestra in Manchester and has played with London Brass for many years.

He started playing the cornet aged 7 and was taught by his father Tony. When growing up in Swansea he played for Penclawdd Brass Band, West Glamorgan Youth Music ensembles, National Youth Brass Band and the National Youth Orchestra of Wales. Gareth studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London from 1989-1993.

Before finishing his studies he joined the Hallé Orchestra in Manchester as Assistant-Principal Trumpet in 1993. He became Principal Trumpet in 2007, where he can be heard on numerous CD's with the Hallé: Ti Adoro (Pavarotti) and Mike Oldfield, Music of the Spheres.

He has performed as a guest principal with most of Britain's Orchestras & has given solo recitals / masterclasses all over the world.

Gareth was soloist in association with the Black Dyke Brass Band in 2016, winning the soloist prize at the European Brass Band championship with them. He has had several works written for him including a Trumpet Concerto by Alun Hoddinott, a double concerto for Trumpet & Clarinet by Helen Grime, a Sonata by film composer Mark Thomas, a Suite by Andrew Gant and a piece for flugelhorn and piano dedicated by Karl Jenkins.

Like many of the LB members, Gareth has played on numerous TV adverts, video games & movie soundtracks, including Beauty and the Beast, Bridget Jones' Baby, Hacksaw Ridge, Into the Woods, Mocking Jay (Hunger Games), Return Of The King (Lord of the Rings) & Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

Gareth is a Fellow and Professor of Trumpet at the Royal Academy of Music in London. He also teaches at the Royal Northern College of Music and Chethams School of Music in Manchester.