George Barker

I Began playing BBb Bass at the age of 13 and im still playing into my 50’s.

I Joined the Stacksteads Band Bacup at 16 and made my first appearance with the NYBBGB under the tutelage of Sandy Blair and sitting in the same section as some fabulous players like “Dean Morley and Graham Sibley”.

At the age of 17 I moved to Besses O’ Th Barn band who had recently won the British open in 84. This gave me the taste for Championship section banding and a grounding to work with some of the top bands in the country. After a 10-year absence I returned to playing and took the decision to limit my banding to helping any bands in need. Over the past few years I have had the pleasure of playing with the likes of Fodens, Black Dyke, Grimethorpe, Brighouse & Rastrick and the Leyland band. Long may it continue.

Outside of banding I live with my partner of 19yrs Ann Marie have two daughters and two grandchildren.

My career took me into Warehouse Operations and more recently EHS & Facilities Management. During my years working within an engineering company I took inspiration to take the leap into manufacturing my own Tuba Mouthpiece and the spark was created.

Myself and good friend Carl Mercer decided to join forces and create Mercer & Barker Ltd initially manufacturing Tuba Mouthpieces, we are now looking to develop our brand even further to incorporate the full complement of Brass Instrument Mouthpieces within our portfolio.

With the help of some of the UK’s elite players we have been able develop and offer globally some of the finest precision engineered mouthpieces on the market.