I coudl never think of anything else to call myself when I started using the internet, so I've always used my real name.

Bron in NW England in the late 70s, my first musical experiences were singing in the local parish church choir (once my initial hearing problems caused by glue ear had been more-or-less sorted out).  Apart from a brief break when my voice changed, I've been involved in choirs ever since, now singing in a West London choral society and a Peterborough based chamber choir, which largely exists to act as a visting choir around English cathedrals (and occasionally further afield).

When I was eleven or so, I started playing the bugle in a Boys' Brigade band, and when my parents mentioned this to the music teacher at my secondary school, she suggested that I try another brass instrument.  After failing to get a note out of the horn, I ended up on trombone, as that was the other instrument the school had available at the time.  Trombone was my main instrument through GCSE and A-level, and I played in various local authority run groups, starting off with what they called the local music centre, and then moving to the borough-wide wind band (in which one ofthe horns was ben Foster, recently come to prominence via judging the BBC YM competition).  I read maths at Imperial (choosing it above Durham partly becuase of the proximity of the RAH), and started buying a Proms season ticket, promming has taken up much of my summers ever since.  Trombone rather fell by the wayside, because of a clash of activities on Wednesdays - hockey won out as it took place earlier in the day, and despite the stereotypes, beer isn't really very good for playing a musical instrument.  Singing in the college choir was a major activity though.

After graduation, I didn't quite know what to do with myself, and eventually ended up working in IT for a Peterborough based insurance company.  Did various bits of singing around Peterborough, in the lcoal choral society, in the catehdral's voluntary choir, and the chamber choir.  After 5 years or so I switched jobs (still in IT) to become a civil servant back in London (largely because of a young lady I met in the Proms season ticket queue).

Wasn't sure whether to put mine in as I'm so new but what the heck...

I was brought up on classical music and never really discovered popular music until I was about 15.  My parents bought me a toy guitar when I was about 6, but then they found me trying to bow it with a stick that I had tied a piece of string to, at which point it became fairly clear that I wanted to play the violin instead.  I had to learn the recorder first so that the teachers could be sure I wasn't a thug likely to smash it against the wall or too tone deaf to be worth the expense, but eventually I started playing at about 9.  I was in various school orchestras including a stint in the tiered Leicestershire schools orchestras that auditioned you every year and promoted/demoted accordingly. 

When I went to Uni I discovered that you could pull guitarists like nobody's business by telling them that you played the violin (I think it has some mystical draw - "No frets!  Woh....")  Meanwhile I became a bit of a goth, but I'm over that now.  I still wear a lot of black but I blame that on the following...

My first love has always been art, so 4 years of art education later (no that doesn't mean I failed all my exams, I did quite well actually) I'm now a civil servant (the obvious choice for an illustration/graphics graduate...)  I do however have a list of commissions that I'm about a year behind on, and I've had a couple of exhibitions locally, so most of my spare time (spare time???) goes there.

I'm horribly intimidated by the breadth of everyone's knowledge on here, but you all seem nice so I think I'd like to stick around and learn more.    Interesting thread as well, good idea!

I imagine no one thinks of 'seniority' or posting frequency as either necessary or decisive conditions for posting here something about themselves.

No - nothing that glamorous I'm afraid!  It just seemed to pull together my two biggest interests rather nicely (even though it's a cello neck rather than a violin).  I saw the sculpture at the Tate modern and it actually reduced me to tears for some reason.   Very powerful mixture of sadness and dignity.  Or it might just have been PMT...

How do, I'm a refugee from beebjass board....I'm a painter and ceramicist....whose circumstances mean that I can do pretty much as I like....but mostly I just walk my dogs....first rec's bought Cream & Led Zep & Taj Mahal & FrankZappa circa early 70's....the lucky meeting of my mate Pete brought Weather R Sweetnighter ,LIVE EVIL< ON THE CORNER into my life , and the rest is....do not bother with much prior to Coltrane, though i do not diss it....HATE romantic orchestral works with avengence....gen like string quartets,piano quintets, early music, Russian Choral works Big up for Bortnyansky....Love to walk in the open air on the tops/woods and get a improvisation going....often from the starting point of Mike Westbrook orchestral sound or Milestones (I become a Big Band, of the like there are few left....memories of Buddy Rich at the Colston Hall)........

Very political during certain periods of my life in Anarchic mode....these days burnt out, as regards that, BUT ready to kill still....

I live as a recluse listening to music all day, smoking all day, I'm teetotal since 82, ganj free since 84....gallons of black tea.

Interests are ALL ARTS....and one way and another I used to be invlolved as songwriter,singer(blues version of Beefheart),demon gob ironist,actor, writer, placer of strange things in forest clearings, one man shows/stand up (similar to Reeves and Mortimer....)....

I like cyber talking to decent human beings and polymaths who are creative and imaginative,BUT are not pedants ....as I am Dyslexic,I have problems communicating but at least  this way i can turn off and do not have to tell you its time for you to go....

TRy to keep life SIMPLE....just witnessing without too much reaction....then i take it away and try to do something artistic with it....(that is until i drink some coffee ....then watch me go.... known as a bit of a circus act once i get on a roll)

Love n'Sucks....ONILE ONILE JIVAM ONILE ACHALA....

Ruth Elleson (real name), opera and vocal music fanatic currently seeing out the twilight moments of my twenties.

Born in Durham to a mother from a musical family and a father from a non-musical family.  Moved to Maidenhead as a child and back to Durham again aged 9.  Learnt the piano and violin (half-heartedly) and always enjoyed singing.  Attended a state comprehensive school without a strong musical tradition, and a low Anglican church, ditto.  Got very into G&S when I was 12 (and helped to found a school G&S society a couple of years later - I ditched my violin lessons for good after finding they clashed with rehearsals for The Mikado), joined Durham County Youth Choir when I was 13, started taking vocal lessons, and during my A-levels at nearly 18, fell head over heels in love with Verdi's La traviata at a performance by Scottish Opera at the Newcastle Theatre Royal.  So began an adulthood of operatic fanaticism.

Studied English Language and Linguistics at York, where I sang in the University Choir, University Chamber Choir, and student G&S society.  Had originally intended to apply to music college as a singer after finishing my degree, but changed my mind, a decision I have never regretted, though the downside to this was that I never got around to working out what I actually wanted to do for a living

Moved to London aged 21 with no ambitions or goals other than to join a decent church choir and see lots of opera.  Have been here ever since, doing just that.  Since 2000 my day job has been number-crunching and putting together corporate reports for a specialist arm of a major electricity company.  I attend two or three opera and concert performances a week on average, outside of Proms season when it can be as many as seven or eight.  I started Promming in 2000 and have been an Arena season ticket holder since 2001.

Joined the (professional) choir of the Church of the Annunciation, Marble Arch in 2000, and have been there ever since as well as singing in other amateur and semiprofessional odds and ends.

Based on opera reviews I had posted on newsgroups and lists while at university, I was soon asked to write for various online opera magazines.  I wrote for Opera Japonica for a long time and am currently writing for Opera Today.

Specific interests: almost all opera, but especially Verdi, Wagner, Strauss, Handel and Britten; big Russian symphonies; Bach and Handel vocal music (both to sing and to hear).  Non-musical interests: real ale, cookery.

Would love to tip the balance into doing more performing and less opera- and concert-going, but this would need to be planned a year in advance so as to avoid booking myself solid with tickets for performances, and somehow I've never got around to it yet.  I never seem to have time for anything...

Hi, I know some of you from the R3 message boards. My proxy name is Freud-Lacan, I live in north London . I have a long suffering wife and an equally long suffering daughter who is married but still won't leave me alone. I'm sort of retired but I teach Psychology part time, my PhD is on the education of very naughty children with whom I worked for many years. It has probably left me more than slightly bonkers in some ways. Classical music has always been one of my great passions in life ditto for fine art, the cinema, literature and religion. I suppose that's why I find Lacan so interesting: I don't understand him but then that's the whole point. Similar to some types of music I think. I like music from medieval polyphony through to Birtwistle. I don't care for Webern, Stockhausen, Boulez. So, interests pretty eclectic.

Thanks for sharing, Tommo, thanks to all; this is a great thread!