Eric Crees
Eric Crees was born in London & studied at Wandsworth School, where in the famous boy's choir, he worked with many distinguished professional orchestras & conductors. Of particular importance was the school's long association with Benjamin Britten, who wrote a solo part for Eric in the Children's Crusade.
While at school he was awarded a scholarship to study at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, & as a student undertook an extensive period of work with the Philip Jones Brass Ensemble. Upon graduating from the University of Surrey, where he won the Mechanical Copyright Protection Society's 'Joyce Dixey Award' for composition, he joined the London Symphony Orchestra, where he spent twenty-seven years, twenty as Co-Principal Trombone. In September 2000, he was appointed Principal Trombone at The Royal Opera House, Covent Garden.
As conductor and arranger, Eric has directed the London Symphony Orchestra Brass for many years, & has worked with the world's most distinguished ensembles and brass bands in concerts, recordings and television and radio broadcasts. Eric's brass arrangements have received great acclaim and have been played worldwide. Many of these are present on the two albums recorded for Collins Classics, Amerloan Brass & Cathedral Brass with the LSO Brass, and the Cala Records albums The London Trombone Sound & The London Horn Sound. He has also made a new performing edition of the complete instrumental ensemble sonatas & canzonas of Giovani Gabrieli for a world premiere recording with the LSO Brass, for Naxos and Marco Polo Records.
Eric Crees is also an internationally renowned teacher & is Professor of Trombone and Conductor of Wind, Brass & Percussion at the Guildhall of Music & Drama. He is a frequent coach at music colleges & specialist schools both in the UK & abroad, including the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain, the Ulster Youth Orchestra and the Pacific Youth Orchestra in Japan. Many of his students now hold important orchestral & teaching positions throughout the world. In 1991, he was made a Fellow of the School.
Eric Crees is in great demand as a juror for international competitions, such as the Donatella Flick Conducting competition, the Leonard Berstein Conducting Competition, in Jerusalem, the Narbonne International Quintet Competition, the National Brass Championships, the European Brass Band Championships and the All England Masters Brass Band Championship.