Within the brass band of the local Salvation Army, Richard Phillips first came into contact with music, where he played the trumpet. He studied piano, trumpet, orchestral conducting, and composition at the Royal College of Music in London . During his studies he was in great demand as a pianist in and outside the United Kingdom.

After graduating he went back to Chatham (Kent) and became the conductor of the Chatham Citadel Band of the Salvation Army and became Editor-in-Chief of the International Music Editorial Department of the Salvation Army from 1994. London. He also worked as a pianist with the International Staff Songsters of the Salvation Army for around 13 years. In November 1997, he left Chatham (Kent) for Enfield (London) where he succeeded James Williams MBE as Bandmaster of the well-known Enfield Citadel Band of the Salvation Army. In 2000, he returned to the Peterborough and Kettering region of England and first worked as a music teacher at Peterborough Regional College. There he became Bandmaster of the Kettering Citadel Band . Today, he is head of the music department at Thomas Deacon Academy in Peterborough, one of the largest music academies in England.

As a pianist and conductor, he made concert tours through the United States, Canada, Norway, Sweden,  Australia, and New Zealand. He is known within and outside the brass band and choir world, but especially within the Salvation Army. A CD recording with the Enfield Citadel Band and him as conductor was named CD of the year in 2000 by Brass Band World magazine.

He is featured on this show conducting the Enfield Citadel Band playing his own composition with cornet soloist David Daws.

Enjoy