Benjamin Hartnell-Booth

After beginning his musical journey as a cornet player in Greater Manchester, Benjamin Hartnell-Booth is now a freelance horn player based in London. Benjamin originally read History at Merton College, Oxford, before winning a scholarship to study horn playing at the Royal Academy of Music with the generous support of the Countess of Munster Trust and Pendle Young Musician and graduated in 2022. As well as graduating with distinction, Benjamin was awarded an additional diploma for an ‘Outstanding Final Recital’ in which he performed works by Poulenc, Messiaen and Britten.

Since then, Benjamin has focused primarily on orchestral playing, achieving trial positions for principal horn with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Opera North, Welsh National Opera, Irish National Symphony Orchestra, and Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra. He has also worked as guest principal with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the Philharmonia, the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and Scottish Opera. He has in particular developed his operatic work, performing Wagner’s The Flying Dutchman and Tristan und Isolde at Grange Park Opera, Puccini’s La Boheme with the Glyndebourne Touring Orchestra, Janacek’s Cunning Little Vixen with Opera North, Janacek’s The Makropulos Affair with Scottish Opera, Mozart’s Cosi fan tutte with Welsh National Opera and Humperdinck’s Hansel und Gretal and Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro at the Chateau de Panloy.

Benjamin has also enjoyed performing a great deal of chamber music over the years; a regular member of the Vacation Chamber Orchestra as a student, he was recently invited back to perform Mozart’s Horn Quintet, the Schubert Octet and Dukas’ La Villanelle in several concerts across Yorkshire and recently performed Britten’s Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Strings in London with Westminster Opera Company. He is also booked to appear at the Lopen Music Weekend in a solo recital later this year.

Benjamin is also a member of the award winning Lumas Winds. After winning the 2023 Mixed Chamber Ensemble prize from the Royal Overseas League, Lumas have toured Scotland and appeared at Wigmore Hall, Kings Place, the Lake District Music Festival, Peasmarsh Festival, Buxton Music Festival and music clubs across the country to great acclaim. Lumas are generously supported by Kirckman Concerts Society, the Countess of Munster Trust and have held residencies through Britten-Pears Arts, the Tunnel Trust and, most recently, as ensemble-in-association at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama.