Ben du Toit

Double Bass

Born in Northern Ontario, Canada, Benjamin du Toit began his formal studies of the double bass at the age of 19. Before this he was an amateur fiddle player from the age of 5 and picked up the electric bass as a hobby at age 14. He completed two degrees at the university of Ottawa, a Bachelor of Music Performance and a Master of Music Performance. While in his studies he was an active freelance musician, playing with the Ottawa Symphony Orchestra, the Gatineau Symphony Orchestra, and the Quebec Symphony Orchestra. He was a member of the Canadian National Youth orchestra for two of their summer tours, 2015 and 2016. In January 2018 he was invited as a guest musician to perform in the National Arts Centre’s “Wolfgang Sessions” concert series, a series that places contemporary small chamber works in nonstandard venue settings. The following year he attended the National Arts Centers prestigious “Institute of Orchestral Studies” where he spent 4 intensive weeks working with the orchestra and studying privately with Joel Quarrington. In September 2019 he moved to the United Kingdom to start studying with Luis Cabrera and Rinat Ibragimov at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, where he is currently completing his second year of the Orchestral Artistry side-by-side program with the LSO. Since arriving in the UK he has performed regularly with the Guildhall Symphony Orchestra as well as in rehearsals with the London Symphony Orchestra. In February 2020 he was awarded a coprincipal trial with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales. When not practicing or performing, he can be found enjoying a good book, carving soapstone, or bouldering at the local climbing gym.