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Our next concert is on Saturday 7th November 2026 at 3pm at St. John the Baptist Church, Hagley

DY9 9LG.

The English Trombone Consort was formed in January 2014 by four highly experienced professional trombone players from the Midlands. Between them they have well over 100 years of professional performing experience, both in the UK and abroad, as soloists, orchestral players and with various chamber ensembles. The vast and diverse performing experiences of each of the four players brings together a mature and stylistic approach to the ensemble's equally diverse repertoire.

Ken Shifrin

Prior to being appointed Principal Trombonist of England’s City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra by Sir Simon Rattle 1982 Ken Shifrin was Principal Trombone in the Stuttgart Radio Orchestra and the Jerusalem Symphony. Since 1994 he has been the artistic director of the baroque ensemble Posaune Voce Trio. Much in demand as a guest soloist, he has appeared with the U.S. Army’s Orchestra and Band, the Florida Sinfonia, at the Smetana Music Festival, the Edinburgh Festival, and the London Barbican, as well as presenting recitals in Vienna, Prague, Budapest,Bratislava, Kiev, Oxford and Washington, D.C. With a PhD in musicology from Oxford University, Shifrin was the recipient of the Oxford University Press Music & Letters Award, as well as being named the Halstead Scholar. In 2005 Dr Shifrin was appointed a Magistrate Judge for England & Wales.

Adrian Taylor

Adrian divides his time between playing the trombone, teaching, conducting and composing/ arranging music. He teaches music at Twycross House School and at Repton School, conducting ensembles in both schools as well as the City of Lichfield Concert Band. He has many arrangements and compositions published by Warwick music, including several for trombone quartet, four trombone study books and a Sonata for Bass Trombone. Adrian studied music at the University of Birmingham before embarking on a freelance career as a musician in the midlands. He spent two years playing trombone with the Natal Philharmonic Orchestra in Durban, South Africa before returning to the U.K. and has played with a number of professional orchestras and ensembles including the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, English Symphony Orchestra and for the Royal Shakespeare Company.

Philip Cowley

Philip is originally from Neath in South Wales and was educated at Neath Boys' Grammar School, where he began playing the trombone at the age of thirteen. By sixteen, he had become a member of the National Youth Orchestra of Wales. He went on to study on the Performers' Course at the Royal College of Music and later Middlesex University. Philip subsequently enjoyed a long career in music education as a teacher, conductor and performer, appearing with a wide range of ensembles across South Wales and the South West of England in both amateur and professional settings. Following his retirement as Head of Brass for Gloucestershire, Philip remains actively involved in music, maintaining a busy schedule of rehearsals and performances.

Bob Green

Bob studied Bass trombone at Birmingham Conservatoire where he won the brass prize in his final year. A Post graduate year was spent at Goldsmiths College London where he gained a distinction in Orchestral studies. His professional career has involved working with many of the UK's major orchestral, opera and ballet companies .He has made numerous recordings for both the BBC and commercial studios. Extensive work in London’s west end has also been complimented by periods touring abroad in North America, Europe and Africa.