RPO welcomes Josh Cirtina as new Principal Bass Trombone
At the age of the 24, Josh has been appointed as Principal Bass Trombone of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and is thoroughly looking forward to the future. James Fountain, Principal Trumpet of the RPO stated on social media, “We’ll always miss the big man, Roger Argente, but I’m delighted we can welcome Josh Cirtina to the Royal Philharmonic OrchestraBrass Section! I first met Josh at The National Youth Brass Band of Great Britain almost 10 years ago, who knew back then we’d end up in the RPO together?! Congratulations Josh, looking forward to a very exciting future ahead!”
Josh began playing the trombone in Cheltenham Silver Band at the age of 10 and soon joined the National Youth Brass Band of Great Britain. From 2013-2016 he was a member of the Fairey Band and during this time he performed with most of the UK’s top brass bands including Cory, Black Dyke and Grimethorpe. Josh studied at the Royal Northern College of Music and the Royal Academy of Music where he was taught by James Garlic, Adrian Morris, Christian Jones, Bob Hughes and Keith McNicoll.
As a soloist, in 2014 Josh won both the British Trombone Society ‘Bob Hughes’ and International Trombone Association ‘George Roberts’ Bass Trombone competitions. He was also awarded the ‘Don Lusher’ award for best trombone at the 2014 Brass in Concert championships.
He has performed with most UK orchestras; including the Royal Opera House Covent Garden, Academy of St Martin in the Fields, Aurora Orchestra, BBC Philharmonic, Halle Orchestra, Opera North, Ulster Orchestra and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic. Further afield, Josh has also worked with orchestras across Europe such as the Orquesta Sinfonica De Galicia (Spain) and was a member of the Gustav Mahler Jugendorchester from 2017-2019.
Photograph by Benny Vernon
.gif)
