Principal trumpet of the London Symphony Orchestra and Professor at the Royal Academy of Music in London, Rod Franks was awarded the title Doctor Honoris Causa and the “Coat of Arms” by the Huddersfield University in 2002.
Born in Yorkshire in 1956, he studied with Maurice Murphy and with Phillip Jones at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester where he graduated with the Gold Medal in 1977. He was principal trumpet with the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra for 7 years, during which time he performed extensively as a soloist and as a conductor.
In 1983 he joined the Phillip Jones Brass Ensemble as principal trumpet and in 1990 became the principal trumpet with the London Symphony Orchestra.
Rod Franks has enjoyed a 22 year long partnership with the well known company Yamaha, designing and producing trumpets. He recently designed a new instrument which was used for the soundtracks of the movies Thor and Harry Potter.
