Musical Director
Ben Woolley, Current Musical Director
Ben is currently a 3rd year Chemistry PhD student at Imperial College London and began playing the tuba at 11 years old when he joined secondary school. He was the principal tuba for the Birmingham Schools’ Symphony Orchestra and Brass Ensemble for 3 years, as well as performing with the Birmingham Schools’ Brass Band with regular performances at Birmingham’s Symphony Hall and tours to Germany and Belgium. He was the principal tuba for the National Youth Wind Orchestra of Great Britain for 3 years playing under world-leading wind band conductors such as Mark Heron, Glenn Price, and James Gourlay, including a tour to Switzerland. At university, Ben was the principal tuba for the Imperial College Symphony Orchestra and Wind Band for 6 years, including regular performances at Cadogan Hall and tours to Prague and Slovenia. Ben also performs regularly with semi-professional groups such as the Birmingham Philharmonic Orchestra, Kensington Philharmonic Orchestra, and Staffordshire Brass Band. He is also a regular soloist, having performed the Gregson Tuba Concerto and 'Bass in the Ballroom' with the Imperial College Wind Band, the Vaughan Williams Tuba Concerto with the Sutton Coldfield Symphony Orchestra, and the UK premiere of 'Baroque and Brass'. His love for conducting began when he became conductor of the Plantsbrook School Wind Band and Chamber Orchestra while in sixth form. He became the Musical Director of the Imperial College Wind Band in 2022 and conducted the band on their recent tour to Valencia, before becoming the Musical Director for the Hertfordshire Concert Band in 2023.
Anne Templer, previous Musical Director
Since completing her education at the Guildhall School of Music and the Institute of Education, Anne has carved out a career as a conductor, educator and percussionist.
She has based much of her work in East Anglia and has run percussion workshops, improvisation workshops and coached numerous youth ensembles. Anne is currently musical director of many of the musical groups at Kimbolton School and St John’s, as well as the St Neots Concert Band, which she founded in 2005. She also conducts the Stapleford Wind Sinfonia and the Cambridge Symphonic Winds.
Anne is passionate about conducting wind ensembles in all their forms, and in recent years has increased her conducting commitments specialising in this idiom. She is a member of the World Association of Symphonic Bands and Ensembles (WASBE) and has recently taken part in—and been inspired by—their gathering in Utrecht in 2017.
Jane Handley, previous Musical Director
Jane steeped down as Musical Director in July 2018 to take up an overseas teaching role. Jane was HCB's longest serving MD
Jane studied music at the London College of Music, learning trumpet with William Houghton. Jane is Head of Creative Arts at Queensbury Academy and has been the resident conductor of The Hertfordshire Concert Band for the past couple of years.