Education
He studied at the Royal College of Music in London with Archie Camden and Vernon Elliott.
He studied at the Royal College of Music in London with Archie Camden and Vernon Elliott.
His playing, characterized by an ability to weave long, sustained, singing lines and deliver powerful utterances, has influenced subsequent generations of British bassoonists. After graduation, he joined the London Philharmonic Orchestra in 1959 as second bassoon to Martin Gatt. Upon returning to England, he served as principal bassoonist of the newly formed Northern Sinfonia, where he stayed for almost 15 years.
In 1978, he became principal bassoonist of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and he held this post for the next 21 years.
He taught privately, and at University of York, and Trinity College of Music in London. He made the first recording of Elgar’s Romance for bassoon and orchestra Operation
62 with the Northern Sinfonia conducted by Neville Marriner. Joubert"s Bassoon Concerto was commissioned for Chapman.
He founded his own reed-making company, applying a skill he learned from Muccetti.