Andrew Farquharson BMus (Hons) was born and raised in Sussex, and from an early age developed a keen interest in music. For his 7th birthday he asked for Piano lessons, and began to study under June Wyatt.

At age 9 he began learning the trumpet under the West Sussex Music Support Service at Primary School, and played in a number of bands within the service; beginning with Trafalgar Concert Band, and progressing through to the Mid Sussex Youth Big Band and Mid Sussex Youth Concert Band, of which he was 'Band Leader' 2003-4.

After completing his A-levels at The College of Richard Collyer ('Collyers') in Horsham, he took a gap year and worked for Club Europe Concert Tours where he gained the position as a Senior Tour Manager; taking youth bands abroad and organising concerts, activities, and making sure everyone on the tour enjoyed themselves.

Click here to read reviews of Andy as a Tour Manager.

Whilst on this gap year, he was awarded a grant from North Horsham Parish Council, which enabled him to purchase a Flugel Horn to play alongside the trumpet. He also organised, together with fellow musician Paul Oldfield, a youth Big Band event called 'In The Swing of Things'. The idea behind this project was to reunite many local players from over recent years, and with support from Horsham District Council, the show was put on in Horsham's Capitol Theatre on 8th April 2005.

In July 2007 he graduated from Cardiff University as a Bachelor of Music with an Upper Second-Class Honours (2:1) degree, where he had studied trumpet for 3 years under Martin McHale of Welsh National Opera. He was also awarded a share of the Elizabeth Griffiths Donation Fund for his role in promoting and encouraging music within the University.

Whilst studying Andy participated in a number of University ensembles, and held a number of positions - including being the Musical Director of the Cardiff University Big Band. In March 2005 he joined The Regimental Band of The Royal Welsh (formerly The Regimental Band of the Royal Welsh Regiment, before amalgamation in March 2006) on cornet.

Present

Having completed his Undergraduate degree, Andy is now working for The Walt Disney Company as an 'Adventure Guide' on their Adventures by Disney vacations. These five-star holidays give families the opportunity to explore a variety of worldwide destinations with one-of-a-kind experiences that let you do things in ways that would be virtually impossible to do on your own. Part concierge, guide and storyteller, Adventure Guides make the holiday a seamless experience and provide personal attention and excellent service every step of the way. From dining reservations to hotel check-ins, from arranging special experiences to ensuring you never have to worry about your luggage, it is their job to make sure your adventure is special. For more information on these magical holidays, please click here.

Although he travels the World with Disney, Andy is still based in Cardiff and continues to develop his musical career in both performing and organising. Over the past 3 years he has put on a fundraising event for Oxfam as part of the charity's 'Oxjam Music Festival' event. This has involved a jazz night at a student venue in Cardiff, and has featured the Cardiff University Big Band, a ten-piece jazz band called Imperfect Tenth, and a swing/blues ensemble called the Ch'Boogie Band. The events have been a great success, and over the 3 years have raised over £1500 for Oxfam.

More recently, Andy has set up The South Wales Music Agency to help those in the South Wales area find talented musicians to perform at their events and special occasions. For more information, please visit www.southwalesmusic.co.uk

As well as doing session and recording work, Andy continues to play for The Regimental Band of The Royal Welsh which, although part of the British Armed Services, is a non-mobilising unit and are very much the 'public face' of the Army within Wales. As a result, they get many high-profile engagements which Andy has been fortunate enough to play a part in; ranging from regular appearances playing the National Anthems in the Millennium Stadium, to performing to HM The Queen at the 2005 Royal Variety Performance. Another major highlight was the opportunity to tour Australia with the Band in November 2007, and play in the prestigious Sydney Opera House. On their most recent tour in July 2009 the Band travelled to Canada to participate in the Nova Scotia Military Tattoo.

In February 2010 Andy was awarded the Lord-Lieutenant's Certificate of Merit by HM Lord-Lieutenant for the County of South Glamorgan, Dr Peter Beck. This is awarded for 'outstanding service and devotion to duty', and you can view Andy's certificate by clicking here.

As well as performing with the Band, Andy has also designed their website, which can be found at www.royalwelshband.com.