Simon Bond took up the bassoon whilst at school in Coventry where he performed the Weber concerto with the local youth orchestra. At Oxford University he played with numerous chamber ensembles, orchestras, and opera groups and studied mathematics in his spare time. Having had a brief sojourn in gainful employment in London, he returned to Warwick University to read for a PhD in statistics, where he was part of the first student group to win a gold at the National Concert Band Festival final. In September 2003 Simon started a post-doctoral position in the Institute of Public Health and he is now playing with several orchestras including the Cambridge University Chamber Orchestra.