Kevin Holbrough

"A highly experienced, respected and passionate educator, Kevin has over twenty years experience as a brass teacher and trombone specialist. He has held the position of Principle Lecturer at Leeds Conservatoire for over ten years where he teaches Jazz Trombone and Specialist Group Studies on the BA Jazz Degree. He also lectures on the faculties of Huddersfield, Hull Universities and has also taught Jazz Trombone externally at The Royal Northern College of Music. Many of his students have gone on to become successful professional musicians, teachers and he has helped many students to secure places at prestigious conservatoires such as The Guildhall School of Music, The Royal Academy of Music,  The Royal Welsh Conservatoire, Leeds College of Music and Trinity Guildhall".

Alongside his role at Leeds Conservatoire Kevin is a respected brass teacher. He currently holds positions at The Grammar School At Leeds, Pocklington and Queen Margarets School where he covers tuition on all brass instruments along with directing jazz and brass ensembles.

He continues to deliver many performance, improvisation workshops and has directed ensembles for numerous schools, colleges throughout the UK. He has also been a tutor on the Greater Manchester Jazz Orchestra Hub and delivered numerous workshops for organisations such as The British Trombone Society, Marsden Jazz Festival, Hull Jazz festival, NYJO Collective, The Sage, Musicale Summer School and Sandbach School.

Specialist tuition is available on Trombone, all brass instruments from beginner to professional level, jazz improvisation, developing techniques further such as range, tone, flexibility, reading skills, section playing skills and articulation.

Tuition is available online or within his own studio.

Please contact for further enquires.

Testimonials:

 "Kevin is friendly and motivational, ultimately giving the confidence required to advance. Taking me through a wide range of repertoire from jazz to classical, he has inspired me through his own great playing and demonstrating. I've learnt a lot about disciplined practice, and improvising on the trombone. I strongly recommend studying with Kevin, as he will reveal the potential of the student and guide him/her towards making serious progress."

Rory Ingham - Jazz Trombonist, rising star in 2017 British Jazz Awards, Chethams, Royal Academy, NYJO

"Six years ago, my progress on the trumpet had become stagnant and I was close to giving up on the instrument. I changed teachers to Kev and he turned my playing around completely and gave me a new found passion for music. I flew through my ABRSM exams with Kev and ultimately received a distinction in my Grade 8 in 2017. After completing my classical grades, Kevin began to teach me jazz and improvisation. His excitement and passion for jazz meant it wasn’t long until I fell in love with jazz too. With Kev’s support I have been able to play Trumpet in several orchestras and take part in Leeds Conservatoire’s Generation Big Band. With Kev’s teaching and inspiration, I managed to get into the National Youth Jazz Collective 2 years in a row. His teaching is relaxed and informal and he provides you with encouragement and gives you areas to work on which keep you motivated to practice. Following Kev around the country to play with him and to watch professional rehearsals has been invaluable to me and allowed me to learn so much about what life is like as a musician. Kev is an incredible trombone player and an inspirational educator. With his support I have been able to live out my dream as I have received a scholarship to study jazz at the prestigious Trinity Laban Conservatoire. I can’t thank him enough for what he has done for me. You will struggle to find a better teacher than Kev!"  

Toby Young- Trumpet, BMus(Hons) Jazz Performance Trinity Laban

‘I had Jazz Trombone lessons for around two years with Kev after deciding to audition at Conservatoires to study a Jazz degree. Kev prepared me extremely well for the auditions and I ended up getting offers from both places that I auditioned at thanks to his teaching. I found Kev’s lessons to be very inspiring due to his amount of experience, advice and passion for Jazz music, and I always came out of his lessons motivated to practise more.  

He got me started with all of the foundations of jazz playing which I still use to this day as a gigging musician, for which I will always be grateful.’ 

Antigone Blackwell BMus (Hons) Jazz Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, freelance musician

"Kev is an encouraging and patient educator who continually aided me towards becoming a much stronger trombonist and musician. I studied with him for  three years at Leeds Conservatoire on the BA Jazz (Hons) degree. During that time he enabled me to develop a finer technique, both on the instrument and in performing jazz. Kev would continuously inspire me with new material to work on whilst being patient and attentive with the things I found challenging. Kev is a teacher who cares about his students. If there wasn't an opportunity for him to answer my questions in class he would always come back with an answer at our next session. His expertise on the trombone is very inspiring and that translates to the quality of his education. 

Studying with Kev had many benefits for my development, he helped me achieve the Reuben Vincent Trombone Scholarship in 2018 and more recently supported me to achieve a place on the Masters course at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. His wealth of experience provided me with the necessary tools starting a freelance career in music. He is a very supportive teacher, mentor and I would strongly recommend him to anyone looking to study music."

Connor Martin BA (Hons) Leeds Conservatoire, MA Guildhall School of Music and Drama, Freelance Trombonist

"Entering my teens as a classically trained trombone player, I started getting into jazz and when I was fifteen my current teacher recommended that I go to see Kev to pursue the genre properly. The first lesson that I had with Kev provided a lot of practical advice on how to approach improvisation, something I had found fairly daunting previously, but which Kev quickly made doable both in practice and in performance. I would then continue to go for a lessons every couple of m"onths, each one providing a wealth of material to work on. Whilst being very encouraging in his feedback to my playing, Kev always pointed out an area to develop, which I think is what gave me the drive to keep working hard; I would always feel incredibly motivated coming out from a lesson! As well as his musical guidance, I have also learned a huge amount from Kev’s rich and varied experience in the music industry, something invaluable for a budding musician! I have since had a number of opportunities opened up for me, from appearing twice in the semi-finals of the BBC Young Jazz Musician of the year to depping with the National Youth Jazz Orchestra (NYJO), and I am currently musical director of the Cambridge University Jazz Orchestra (CUJO)."  

Max Mcleish- Trombone,  MA Royal Academy, Music Student Cambridge University, Semi Finalist BBC Young Jazz Musician of the Year 2018

"During my time with Kev, trombone lessons were not only extra for me, but they were a massive learning curve and booster before starting at Trinity College of Music, London. He taught many things that have stayed with me throughout my life of trombone playing. I have kept lessons and techniques he taught me and still keep those in mind today. I really needed a boost ready for London life as a musician, and he set me up for sure! His way of teaching was enjoyable and comfortable."

Ellie Smith- Professional freelance trombonist & Educator, Trinity Guildhall

 "I studied with Kevin throughout my degree at Leeds College of Music. He is a passionate teacher whose enthusiastic and supportive approach broadened my musical horizons, strengthened my trombone technique and developed my voice as an improvisor. His wealth of knowledge and professional experience  gave me a well-rounded and unique education perfectly suited to a trombonist in the modern world. Six years on, I still practice the techniques and methods he taught me!"

Pete Johnson- Professional freelance trombonist and teacher, BA (Hons) Leeds College of Music and MA Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama

"Over the past seven years I've had Kev as a teacher, every lesson has been invaluable. From picking up the trumpet for the first time to recently passing grade 8 with distinction and getting an A* in music A level, he has never failed to provide useful advice about every aspect of playing (tone, breathing, improvisation and especially musicianship). He always explains ideas very clearly and makes it clear what it is I need to do to improve my playing. Practising never seems like a chore- Kev makes sure you're always inspired and playing is never boring. He has encouraged me over the years to gain as much musical experience as possible- I've been on residential jazz summer schools, played lead trumpet in Leeds Youth Jazz Rock Orchestra and 1st trumpet in the City of Leeds Youth Symphony Orchestra. One of the best musical experiences of my musical life so far has been travelling with Kev to Wigan Jazz Festival where I was allowed to sit in rehearsal of a band he was performing with  featuring  world-class musicians such as Wayne Begeron, Eric Marienthal and Gordon Goodwin, speak to them and watch their performance! If you want teacher who can teach both classical and jazz playing to the highest standards on a brass instrument, I couldn't recommend Kev More."

Isaac Dunn- Trumpet student, Leeds

 "As a chap in his late fifties, I suppose I am not the typical music student! I come from a background of classical music playing and teaching and have always found jazz a bit of a mystery, that is until I met Kev. I have had many music teachers but whilst I am not the typical student, Kev is not the typical teacher! He teaches jazz of course but also teaches the instrument and a whole lot more. He has a knack of pinpointing exactly what needs work and offers a variety of ways in which problems can be overcome. His way of unlocking improvisation works well and at last I am able to enjoy a whole new approach to music making. In recent times Kev has shown that online lessons can work too. He has been able to see and hear my playing remotely and I have been able to continue to benefit from his encouraging and positive input."

Alan Parris- Trombonist/adult learner and online learner

"I'd played trombone as a kid at school but quit when I went to University. As the years went by I started regretting this, until I decided to buy myself a new horn and give it another try. I was extremely rusty to say the least! Luckily, I found Kev Holbrough who was incredibly patient with me. He gave me a completely fresh perspective and new way of approaching the instrument, and music in general. His teaching took me from barely being able to breathe through a 2-bar phrase, right through to getting my Grade 8 within a year, and ABRSM Diploma within two. I now play with a championship-section brass band and am a member of the Harrogate Symphony Orchestra.

Stephen Smith- Trombone student, adult learner