Fraser

Robert Fraser (Bob) is the bass trombonist in the Victoria (British Columbia) Symphony, a position he has held since 1990. He has also worked with the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, the Vancouver Island Symphony Orchestra, and the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra.

Bob was born in the Canadian province of Manitoba and attended Brandon University (Bachelor of Music Education), McGill University in Montreal (Licentiate in trombone performance) and the University of Victoria (Master of Arts in Musicology/Performance). His M.A. Thesis was a repertoire study of six Canadian symphony orchestras, examining and cataloguing performances of works by Canadian composers over a 25-year period.

His advocacy work for musicians began in 1991 when he was elected Secretary-Treasurer of Local 247 of the AFM, a position he held until 2002. In 2023 he took up this same post for a second time. Since 1999 he has been involved with the Organization of Canadian Symphony Musicians (OCSM/OMOSC), first as a delegate for the Victoria Symphony, then as a board member starting in 2003, and as President since 2013.

Besides being a passionate advocate for orchestral music, Bob has been a chorister for his whole life and is currently an active member of the choir at Christ Church Cathedral in Victoria and the Vox Humana Chamber Choir. He was a member of the very first National Youth Choir of Canada in 1984. He is also a keen devotee of both jazz and early music (he plays both tenor and bass baroque sackbuts and numerous early wind instruments).