John’s remarkable career with The Royal Marines Band Service spanned the second half of the twentieth century. He rose through all ranks to become the Director of Music of the Royal Band, retiring in the year 2000 at the rank of Major. Along the way were seven years travelling the world with HM The Queen in HMY Britannia, as well as many musical highlights as a conductor and violinist around the globe. John’s arrangement and recording of “The Ashokan Farewell” has sold over one million copies and is believed to be the highest selling military band recording of all time.
Born on 28th November 1950, the son of a serving Royal Marines musician, John Perkins joined the Royal Marines Band Service in 1965 at the age of fourteen as a trumpet/violin player. During training he was awarded numerous prizes, most notably the Commandant General’s Certificate for the most promising student, and the Cassel Prize for violin playing. At the age of seventeen he was appointed Leader of the Orchestra in HM Royal Yacht Britannia, a position he held for the next 8 years. During this time he continued his violin studies with Molly Mack at the Royal Academy of Music, and Mr KoeKoe in Arnhem, Holland. In 1977, John completed the one-year Bandmasters' Course at the Royal Marines School of Music; at the same time gaining the professional qualifications of the Royal Academy of Music (LRAM), the Royal College of Music (ARCM) and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama (LGSM). He was also awarded the Chappell Conducting Prize and the Silver Medal of the Worshipful Company of Musicians. After completion of the Bandmasters’ Course John became Leader of the Staff Orchestra at The Royal Marines School of Music where solo performances included concertos by Mozart, Mendelssohn, Bruch and Rimsky-Korsakov (Scherherazade).
In 1980, he undertook the one-year Advanced Conductors Course at the Royal Academy of Music with Maurice Miles and Malcolm McDonald, where his joint first study of composition resulted in composer membership of the PRS/MCPS and numerous recordings of his music. Appointments in the early 1980s as Bandmaster of the Staff Band and Chief Instructor in Higher Training at the Royal Marines School of Music were followed by selection, aged 32 years, to become Warrant Officer First Class (WO1). John’s officer appointments were as Director of Music to The Flag Officer Plymouth (1984 -88), The Supply Officer (Music) at the Royal Marines School of Music, Editor of the Blue Band Magazine and Sponsor Officer for The Royal Naval Volunteer Band Service (1988-92), The Band of HM Royal Marines Commandos (1992 -94), The Band of HM Royal Marines Plymouth (1994-96), Director of Music (Training) (1996-98) and The Band of HM Royal Marines Portsmouth (Royal Band) (1998-00) from which he retired, in the rank of Major, in November 2000.
In 1997 John was elected an Associate of the Royal Academy of Music (ARAM) and in 1998 he completed his Master of Music Degree (with Distinction). He appeared as a solo violinist at the Royal Albert Hall in 1999 and 2000 and his popular recording of the 'Ashokan Farewell', performed in a live broadcast with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra from London’s Royal Albert Hall in 2001, reached 6th in the 2003 Classic FM ‘Hall of Fame’ chart. John is Managing Director of ‘Clovelly Recordings’, and has been producing recordings since the mid-eighties working with military bands, brass bands, choirs, shanty groups, Big Bands, pop groups and enthusiasts! He has produced numerous recordings at Abbey Road studios and Sony Studios London as well as regular location recordings in concert halls, churches and cathedrals around the country. For three decades John was leader/conductor of ‘The Kent Concert Orchestra’ and also ‘The Becker Ensemble’.