Owain A. Williams

From a young age Owain showed a disposition towards hitting things, however it was not until the age of 15 whilst watching the BSO rehearse that he realised that he wanted to play orchestrally. Not was at that point that Owain was able to study with Matt King and Matt Perry, the principal percussion and timpani of the BSO at that time, these two people had a huge influence on Owain’s playing and out look in life.

After this period Owain moved to London to study at Trinity College of Music before moving to the Royal College of Music for postgraduate studies. During his time at the RCM Owain was the recipient of several scholarships and the Sabian Prize for Percussion. It was whilst studying at the RCM that Owain was a member of the inaugural YouTube Symphony Orchestra performing in New York.

After finishing at the RCM Owain continued his studies privately, primarily with Chris Ridley of the Royal Opera House and several players internationally in both New York and Berlin.

Owain worked as a freelance player whilst staying in London after his studies working both orchestrally and with other projects including as a drum captain for the London 2012 Olympics. In 2014 Owain was appointed Principal Timpani of the Macau Orchestra where he remained for 2 years. After returning to the UK Owain returned to freelancing but also developed his long time passion for the construction and workings of timpani working with several different organisations to further his understanding of the engineering and design of drums.