Musical Director Joe Murtagh.

Joe began his brass banding career in Colwyn Bay, North Wales, in 1996 at the age of eight, when he was handed a cornet and instantly fell in love with it.

​In 2002, he joined his local 4th Section band, Conwy Town Band, on 3rd cornet, working his way up to principal cornet before leaving in 2006 to study cornet at the Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM) in Manchester under the guidance of Roger Webster and Richard Marshall.

​After brief stints with the Besses o’ th’ Barn and Tyldesley bands, Joe was invited to join the cornet section of the Grimethorpe Colliery Band in 2008, where he won the English National Championship. He then joined Black Dyke in 2009, winning both the English Nationals and the National Championships of Great Britain. During his time with Black Dyke, Joe featured on multiple CD recordings and performed across Holland, Germany, Norway, Austria, Switzerland, and Australia—the latter as part of a two-week tour with soloist James Morrison—before leaving the band in 2011.

​While at Black Dyke, Joe also held the principal cornet chair for both the RNCM Brass Band and The National Youth Brass Band of Wales.

​In 2012, Joe began a five-year stint with Foden’s, which included a ‘double’ win at The British Open and The National Finals during his first year. He went on to win two North West Area Championships in 2016 and 2017. The highlight of his time with Foden’s came in 2014, when he was named ‘Bandsman of the Year’, as voted for by his fellow band members.

​Joe left Foden’s in 2017 to pursue a career in conducting, accepting the role of Musical Director for the Whitworth Vale and Healey Youth Band, where he remained for six years. While conducting the youth band, he continued to dep regularly as a player for top bands including Brighouse and Rastrick, Faireys, and Leyland.

​In October 2023, Joe accepted the position of Musical Director for the Hoover Bolton Band, enjoying a three-year stint with the group. He now joins Lostock Memorial Hall Band during an exciting period, fresh off a win at the 2nd Section Area and preparing for the 2nd Section National Championships.

The band are really looking forward to working with Joe and look forward to taking to the stage with him for his first engagement which will be the National Brass Band Championships of Great Britain