Roger Webster
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| Roger Webster | |
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Roger Barry Webster |
| Born | December 16, 1960  Doncaster, England |
| Genre(s) | Brass Band, Classical |
| Occupation(s) | Composer, pedagogue, trumpeter, cornetist, psychologist |
| Instrument(s) | Cornet Trumpet Flugelhorn |
| Years active | 1988–present |
| Label(s) | Doyen, Polyphonic, World of Brass |
| Associated acts | Grimethorpe Colliery Band |
| Website | Official Website |
Roger Webster (b. 1960) is an English cornetist and psychologist. He has been acclaimed as one of the world's best ever cornetists[1]. He also teaches performance at the Royal Northern College of Music as well as a weekly lecture on psychology (specialising in Cognitive Intervention Therapy a version of CBT). Webster has played with some of the world's best brass bands and is currently the principal cornet with Grimethorpe Colliery Band. He is also the joint owner, with his wife, of Webster's Eco-Lube, a firm that manufactures musical instrument lubricants.
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[edit] Biography
Webster was born in 1960 in Doncaster, England, to Muriel and Dennis Webster. He was raised in Brierley. His first instrument was piano which he began playing at the age of 6. Four years later he began playing his current instrument the cornet. The piano was gradually pushed aside as he progressed with the cornet at Grimethorpe Colliery Junior Band. Before becoming a professional musician, he worked down the coal mines and prior to that as a Laboratory technician. [2] However, it wasn't until 1988 that he began to turn his hobby into a job. In this year he was invited to join Black Dyke, one of the world's greatest brass bands, as principal cornet. He stayed here for 5 years before deciding to pursue a solo career. He did however contest during his solo period with CWS Glasgow band, arguably the top band in Scotland. Webster continues to play on occasions with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra. In 2000 he was once again invited to join Black Dyke Band, and accepted saying it felt as though he had "seven years off for personal development".[3] It was during this time that he received a Master's Degree in Music at the University of Leeds, and completed most of his PhD in psychology[4] The stay once again lasted five years with him leaving rather suddenly in December 2005. Within days he joined Grimethorpe Colliery Band after his brother, the band manager[5], invited him to join, as the principal cornet had left only as few days previously. In his first contest for Grimethorpe they came first beating his former band by one point whilst also picking up the best soloist award [6] Webster worked for Besson whilst they were situated near London, and continues to work for them following their take-over by Buffet Crampon [7].
[edit] Queen Victoria cornet
Webster owns a very old Besson cornet, one that was originally presented to Alexander Owen in 1875 by Queen Victoria. It is specially engraved, and has the Royal crest on the bell. The reason why the Queen presented such a gift is unknown; however, it was presented during the time when Brass music was the pop music of the day. Alexander's daughter gave it to a friend who in turn presented it to Derek Garside after a charity concert in 1961. Roger received the cornet from Garside in 2002, after Garside decided it was time to pass it on to "the present day cornet king". Webster still has it to this day.[2]
[edit] Websters Eco-Lube
Websters Eco-Lube was set up in 2004 after Webster was becoming increasingly worried about the amount of lubricants with toxic labels on them. After four years of research, Webster and Dawn (the co-owner) found oil that was refined so it was good enough to be a lubricant, but also non-toxic. They are said to last longer than others, notably by Steven Mead, one of the world's finest euphonium players. The range of lubricants covers all brass instruments, as well as key oil and cork grease for woodwind instruments. [8]
[edit] Discography
Webster has appeared as soloist on well over 20 CDs, excluding his own[9].
His personal solo CDs are:
| Date of Release | Title | Label |
| 1994 | Twilight Dreams | Polyphonic |
| 1995 | Pieces | Polyphonic |
| 1997 | Bandsman's Choice | Polyphonic |
| 1999 | Webster's Choice | Polyphonic |
| 2004 | Passport - A Musical Journey | Doyen |
[edit] Bibliography
| Date of Release | Title | Publishers |
| 2005 | Preparation, Practice & Performance [10] | Fentone Music |
| 2005 | Classical Favourites for Trumpet | Fentone Music |
| 2006 | Trumpet Through the Ages | Fentone Music |
| 2006 | Preparation, Practice & Performance (German Edition) | Fentone Music |
- On Classical Favourites for Trumpet Webster arranged all the pieces[11].
- On Trumpet Through the Ages he performs on the backing CD[12]
[edit] References
- ^ Reference as one of the world's greatest
- ^ a b Brass Band World Magazine - Issue 111 - pages 5-8 (Information on previous jobs, Queen Victoria's cornet & some further biographical details)
- ^ Great deal of biographical information
- ^ It confirms here he is a Doctor
- ^ Information about Terry Webster (Webster's brother) being Grimethorpe's manager
- ^ News from Grimethorpe (bottom of the page is first contest result)
- ^ Reference for work with Buffet Crampon
- ^ [1][2]Eco-Lube information
- ^ Some of the many CDs that Webster appears on
- ^ Review of PPP
- ^ Classical Favourites for Trumpet information
- ^ Trumpet Through the Ages information
