Ashton Parris began his musical journey on trumpet in primary school concert and jazz bands, along with singing in choir. At 13, he became fascinated by that extra large instrument his school band was missing: the tuba! Intrigued by its velvety sound, he borrowed the school’s instrument and decided bigger really was better. Throughout high school, he performed in various ensembles including the arts unit’s Symphonic Wind Ensemble, Jazz Orchestra, Senior Singers and Millennium Marching Band. He also performed in Schools Spectacular, in both the orchestra and as a backing vocalist. After graduating, he was selected to perform Allegro Sonata by Telmo Marques for Encore at the Sydney Opera House. Now in his second year studying Tuba at the Sydney Conservatorium, learning from Scott Frankcombe, Ashton has performed with their Symphony Orchestra, Wind Symphony, Brass Ensemble, and Art Ensemble. He’s also learnt from Fabian Russell, Karina Filippi, and Chloe Higgins. He regularly performs with Willoughby City Band and ‘Choro do Koala’, having previously played with Willoughby Symphony, North West Wind Ensemble, Ku-ring-gai Philharmonic, Western Sydney Philharmonic, Sydney Youth Jazz Orchestra, Warringah Concert Brass, and even OneFour. Having previously played in SYOP under Steve Williams, he’s excited for his first year with The SYO under the baton of Stanley Dodds, especially the double tuba action in Strauss’s An Alpine Symphony.