Barrie Mills

It was almost inevitable that Barrie Mills was destined for a career in the Services as both his father and stepfather had served in the Welsh Guards. At the age of 16 he auditioned for the Royal Marines School of Music and was offered a place as an oboist. During his training he was a finalist in The Cassel Prize solo performers competition and was inspired by meeting and hearing both Heinz Holliger and Leon Goossens, two of the greatest oboists of the 20^th century. Whilst under training Barrie also trod the boards for the first time as a member of the chorus of ‘Yeomen of The Guard’ in the Depot Operatic and Dramatic Society. This made a great impact on him, and he has been actively involved in amateur dramatics ever since with notable success, both as an actor and, more recently, director and musical director.

His first professional employment was with the Staff Band of The Royal Marines at Deal in Kent. This was a very busy band with frequent recordings, radio and TV appearances and a testing series of winter and spring orchestral concerts. Major works were a key part of the concerts and this gave Barrie an early and comprehensive introduction to the orchestral repertoire. Barrie also enjoyed a fair amount of travel including visits to Canada and a memorable trip to the Seychelles Islands. During this period, he also worked with stars of stage and screen such as Bob Hope, Sir Laurence Olivier and Kenneth More.

Barrie served in a number of Royal Marines Bands over the next 11 years and gained a number of professional qualifications including LRAM and ARCM diplomas before being promoted to Bandmaster and joining The Band of HM Royal Marines CinC Fleet in 1987. One major highlight of this appointment was a four month deployment to the Far East including performances in Hong Kong, Singapore and every major city in Australia. He also found time to complete his Arts degree with the Open University.

Barrie was selected for a commission in 1989 and, in 1990, he was seconded to Salford College in Manchester to study for the BA (Hons) in Band Musicianship. Having completed his second degree, the now, Lieutenant Mills, was appointed to Flag Officer Scotland and Northern Ireland RM Band as Director of Music.

There followed a most successful 3 years which included a very challenging tour of the West Indies on HMS Fearless, directing an International Tattoo in Toronto, Canada and numerous recordings and concerts including the first of many appearances at The Royal Albert Hall conducting the Massed Bands of the Royal Marines in The Mountbatten Festival of Music. Success with amateur dramatics also continued with him directing ‘Pardon Me Is This Planet Taken’. This virtually swept the board at the 1993 Royal Navy Drama Festival. He also found time to take up the noble sport of fly-fishing which continues to be his main form of relaxation. 

Following two subsequent posts, Barrie’s final appointment was as Director of Music of the Plymouth RM Band in October 1999. Highlights of a very successful tenure included a visit to Russia where he was the first Western Director of Music to be invited to adjudicate at The Moscow Academy of Military Conductors. He also conducted bands in the USA, Sweden and Malaysia, and worked closely with BBC South West on a number of live broadcast projects including ‘Friday Night Is Music Night’ and a memorable Beat Retreat on Millennium eve that was broadcast around the world, live, and was estimated to have been seen by over 2 billion people. As the end of his career approached, he visited the USA to conduct the Long Beach Municipal Band, a renowned ensemble consisting of Hollywood studio musicians who performed a series of concerts in parks all over Long Beach, California. He also had the honour of returning to Sweden as Guest Director for the Ystad Military Tattoo which the Plymouth Band had performed at some 2 years earlier.

On retiring from the Royal Marines in 2003, Barrie immediately embarked on a teacher training course at Dartington and, after completing the course, successfully applied for his current post as Instrumental and Vocal Tuition Coordinator for Plymouth Youth Music Service. He currently directs the Plymouth Youth Concert Band and is responsible for a number of other youth ensembles in the city. He has maintained his interest in the theatre and is currently musical director for The Wranglers Music Theatre Company. He also conducts The Plymouth Radio Light Orchestra, a professional ensemble dabbling in the lighter side of the classical repertoire, to great acclaim.

Music continues to be the absolute focus of Barrie’s work and he derives tremendous satisfaction from working with young people and inspiring them to achieve their musical goals.