Richard Crabtree  ARCM

Richard studied violin and viola with his mentor Nicholas Roth at Trinity College of Music (now Trinity Laban). Early in his career, he worked with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and the London Mozart Players. As a principal violist and soloist, he has appeared with the London Soloists Ensemble, Wessex Sinfonia, Clifton Virtuosi, and the English National Baroque Orchestra. In 1989, he made his BBC Radio 3 solo recital debut and has since recorded numerous solo soundtracks for radio and television.

A passionate advocate for contemporary music, Richard has premiered works by Leonard Salzedo, Ellis Pehkonen, Chris Toon, Chari Numerov, John Marsh, Sarah Class, Martin Pring, and William Godfree, helping expand the modern viola repertoire. His commitment to new music led to performances for the British Council and Turkmenistan’s Ministry of Culture at the Makhtumkuli Festival, where his concerts were broadcast nationwide—making him the first British musician to perform there since Glasnost.

In 2011, he published The Crabbers Scale Manual for violin, viola, and cello—a unique system using letters and numbers to help students of all ages and abilities build confidence in scale practice