Colin Reed

Colin was born in Leeds into a musical family. From an early age he was playing recorder and singing at school, and soon started lessons playing on his Grandfather's violin. He taught himself piano – his Granfather's piano was a full semi-tone flat! Later he added saxophone to his instrument list and considers himself very lucky to have had so many musical opportunities whilst at school, able to play in orchestras at Leeds College of Music, jazz bands, wind bands and pop groups – appearing with schoolmates in the 1989 final of the TSB Rockschool competition. Their band, Razberry Holiday, with Royston Langdon (Spacehog, Arkid) on vocals came second. Colin studied chemistry at the University of Birmingham whilst taking a choral scholarship at St Alban and St Patrick Church. When he wasn't in the music library, playing in the university symphony orchestra, conducting the university wind band, singing in the chamber choir, he was often to be found playing sax with the big band Lazy Beat, or with many other jazz and funk groups that popped up around Birmingham. He spent very little time in the chemistry department, but did manage to graduate and wangled his way into a research group to study for a PhD, which gave him a further three years of spending more time on musical pursuits than scientific. At this time he started to give more thought to his voice, and started his serious vocal study with Howard Milner at the Birmingham Conservatoire. He also conducted the university chamber choir and sang with Ex Cathedra, Birmingham Baroque and the Chamberlain Consort in this period. After leaving Birmingham and moving to the East Midlands, Colin continued his study with Howard Milner in London. Howard passed away in 2011 and Colin has had further study with internationally renowned teachers Jeffrey Talbot and Neil Howlett. In 2009 Colin started his own private teaching practice, and also worked for soundLINCS as the Lincolnshire Area Leader for Sing Up. Since the ending of the Area Leader project in 2011 Colin has been a full-time singing teacher, now teaching in four East Midlands schools, Melody Music Rooms (formerly Simmonds Music) and from his own home in Newark. He continues to perform in opera, oratorio, recital and can also occasionally be seen adding multiple instruments to young composers projects and throwing in the odd reel on violin or mandolin with Ruff n Ready.