Born in London, Paul Philbert displayed his musical propensity early in life, studying at the Purcell School of Music, and further, at Trinity College of Music. He then established himself on the professional stage as the founding Principal Timpanist of the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra in 1998. Paul has appeared as a guest performer with many renowned ensembles in the UK and Asia, including the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, Seoul Philharmonic, the Philharmonia, BBC Symphony, the Hallé and Qatar Philharmonic, to name but a few. In 2015, Paul became the founding Principal Timpanist of the Chineke! Orchestra. He was also appointed Principal Timpanist of the Orchestra of Opera North, a position he held for three years before moving to Scotland where he is now the Principal Timpanist, and a Player-Director with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, a member of the Board for Sistema Scotland, Direct Mediation Services, and The Culture Exchange, a Timpani Tutor at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, and continues his role with Chineke! Paul was awarded an MBE for services to music in H.M. the Queen's Birthday Honours List on 10th October 2020.