Our Euph & Baritone Team
Daniel Thomas
Born in Abergavenny and raised in Rhymney in the valleys of South Wales, Daniel effectively started his musical association with brass bands when he signed up for peripatetic brass lessons in Blaenau Gwent at Abertillery Comprehensive. His first band was the now reformed Ebbw Vale Town Band, a local fourth-section band that regularly came recruiting into local schools. In 2009, Dan successfully auditioned for the National Youth Brass Band of Wales and worked with such distinguished musicians as Stephen Cobb, Nicholas Childs, and Edward Gregson.
In 2010 Daniel joined the Cory Band, spending a fulfilling year in the band before sadly leaving due to academic commitments. He transferred to play for local rivals Tredegar, and is very proud to have participated in the band’s British Open win of 2013, achieving the Best Euphonium prize on this memorable day.
Following another spell with the Cory Band, he moved to Manchester to study at the Royal Northern College of Music. He joined the Black Dyke Band on 2nd Euphonium. He became Black Dyke’s Solo Euphonium in December 2016, occupying the seat previously held by many of his playing idols. In 2017, Daniel won the Best Instrumentalist prize at the Yorkshire Regional Championships, and in 2019, he was awarded the Geoff Whitham award as the outstanding euphonium player at the British Open Championships.
In 2020, Daniel graduated from the RNCM with a Distinction in his Master’s degree.
2023 saw a career Daniel leave Black Dyke to pursue a different career and a relocation led him to re-join the Cory Band for a short spell. Dan joined the Flowers Band in January of 2024. In 2024 Dan was awarded the ‘Most Outstanding Player’ award at the National Finals, an achievement he is very proud of.
Daniel is a Besson Performing Artist and performs exclusively on his BE969 Sovereign.
Mike Cavanagh
Hailing from Stockport, Mike began playing the baritone horn aged just eight. Growing up in Stockport Schools’ Brass Band, he subsequently joined the National Youth Brass Band of Great Britain (NYBBGB) where he held the Principal Baritone seat for five years under the direction of renowned conductor Bramwell Tovey. Whilst at the NYBBGB, Mike performed as part of the BBC Proms at the Royal Albert Hall live on BBC Radio 3 and was a recipient of the coveted Maude Wright Award; the Harold and Bernard Tovey Award for excellence; the Harry Mortimer Concerto Soloist Award and the Katie Ogden Soloist Prize.
In January 2014 he accepted the position of Solo Baritone with the world famous Grimethorpe Colliery Band and after a short period with Brighouse and Rastrick Band, Mike joined Black Dyke in January 2020.
In June 2016 Mike graduated with First Class Honours from the Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM) under the tutorship of Professor Steven Mead and Dr. David Thornton. Whilst at the RNCM he was a co-founder of the multi award-winning A4 Brass Quartet and developed into a distinguished chamber musician. With A4 Brass Mike has won the internationally recognised Royal Over-Seas League Chamber Music Competition (2018); the Royal Philharmonic Society Henderson Chamber Music Prize (2018); a Tunnell Trust Award (2017); the Tillett Trust Young Artists’ Platform (2017) and selection as 2018 City Music Foundation Artists. He regularly works with Live Music Now! and Music in Hospitals & Care, helping to transform lives through the power of live music.
Mike prides himself on taking the Baritone to new audiences and venues for the instrument and performance highlights with A4 Brass include appearances at Wigmore Hall, Cadogan Hall, Bridgewater Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall and Purcell Room in addition to concerts in Lithuania, Finland, Switzerland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. In June 2018 A4 Brass completed the prestigious RNCM International Artist Diploma in Chamber Music as John Fewkes Scholars and were subsequently invited to become Honorary Associate Artists of the RNCM in recognition of the quartet’s success in the music profession.
In March 2020 he was delighted to accept the invitation from Besson/Buffet Crampon to become a Besson Artist and Consultant.
Adam Bokaris
Adam was born in Sydney, Australia and began playing euphonium at the age of 9 in his primary school concert band.
In 2014, he relocated to Manchester to study at the Royal Northern College of Music under the tutelage of David Thornton and Steven Mead. In 2018, he completed his studies at the RNCM with a First Class degree with Honours. He then went on to complete an MA in Music with Distinction from The University of Salford.
Previous to Black Dyke, Adam has enjoyed time with the Grimethorpe Colliery Band, Fairey Band, and Leyland Band. He has performed in some of the world’s most iconic venues – most notably the Sydney Opera House stage in 2013, as a soloist. In that same year he became the Australian National Euphonium Champion.
Adam is the tutor of euphonium and baritone at The University of Salford and The University of Manchester. He also teaches within the Stockport Schools’ Brass Bands, and as a private tutor.
Adam has experienced significant success with his quartet, ‘The Brass Compass Euphonium Quartet’. The group won the ‘International Tuba and Euphonium Quartet Competition’ in 2016, which was held in Tennessee, USA. And in the same month also won the prestigious ‘Philip Jones Brass Ensemble Chamber Music Competition’. Later that year, the quartet were invited to perform as artists for the ‘Singapore Low Brass Festival’.
Adam is a euphonium artist and development consultant for The Oldroyd Group.