Born in the Vale of Evesham, Worcestershire, Dan took a keen interest in music from an early age playing tuba and trombone with his local brass band. After leaving school he embarked on a 10 year career as a hotelier integrating it with a developing career as a freelance musician playing double bass, sousaphone and bass saxophone with big bands including the internationally Pasadena Roof Orchestra.
In 2003, he enrolled in the Band Musicianship course at Salford University where he studied composition and arranging with Prof. Peter Graham. Dan’s first test-piece An Elgar Portrait was selected as the 4th Section set work at the Swiss National Brass Band Championships in 2007 and again at the Pontins Championships the following year. He then went on to write the test-piece New World Sketches which was set as the 2nd Section test-piece for the British Regional Contests in 2009.
In 2009, Dan became Composer in Association with the Cory Band, helping them with their winning programmes at several Brass in Concert Championships. In 2012 he became the Arranger in Association with Black Dyke Band and has been involved with many of the band’s exciting projects including his arrangement of Recycled for the ground breaking multimedia campaign – Danger Global Warming Project and the band’s collaboration with British composer Tolga Kashif in 2012 for his Olympic Anthem Let Your Light Shine.
In 2015, Dan had a number of major works performed at International contests which included Realms of Asgard: Yggdrassil – a new test-work commissioned by Jaren Hornmusikkforening to be used as their choice work at the Norwegian Brass Band Championships, Ocean of Storms – an exciting new work for Grimethorpe Colliery Band’s Brass in Concert programme and his test-piece Visions which was used as a 4th Section National Finals test-piece.
Dan is currently working full time at the University of Salford, lecturing in Composition and Arranging. He continues to work as a freelance composer working with a number of leading soloists, brass and wind bands around the world.
