Graham Chambers started playing the trombone as a boy at school in Oxfordshire. He started lessons with Denis Wick at the age of 14 and at the same time gaining a place in the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain where he was principal trombone for three years, and later represented Great Britain in the Jeunesses Musicales World Orchestra playing under such conductors as Leonard Bernstein and Pierre Boulez.

A degree in music followed at Surrey University where he studied conducting under Brian Brockless and conducted the University Wind Band. After University Graham spent some time as a freelance trombone player and brass instrument teacher before joining the BBC music department in 1981 where he worked for Radio 3 and later BBC TV Music and Arts Department. During this time he became musical director of the Redbridge Brass Band which under his coaching became the leading brass band in the London and Southern region – a position it still holds today.

Graham ceased playing and conducting activities in the late 1980’s when he took on the role of librarian for the London Symphony Orchestra. During this time he travelled worldwide with the LSO and worked closely with some of the world’s greatest conductors e.g. Leonard Bernstein, Sir Georg Solti, Mstislav Rostropovich, Pierre Boulez, Sir Colin Davies, André Previn, Bernard Haitink, Mariss Jansons, Antonio Pappano, Sir Simon Rattle and Valery Gergiev, to name but a few.

His work with the LSO included preparing performing materials for the extremely busy recording schedule, including a vast number of film recordings including films such as Brave Heart by James Horner, and the more recent much famed Star Wars recordings composed by John Williams and Patrick Doyle and many other well known film composers such as Jerry Goldsmith. He also worked closely with a wide variety of popular recording artists such as Paul McCartney, Diana Ross, Shirley Bassey, Luciano Pavarotti and many many others.

He also programmed film music concerts and made a number of arrangements that the LSO and LSO Brass Ensemble played regularly at film music and children’s concerts.

Graham left the LSO in 2007 and currently works as a freelance music editor and has had the time to rekindle his love of conducting brass and is delighted to have been asked to direct Surrey Brass.