Originally from Wynyard on the North-West Coast of Tasmania, James currently performs as a casual cellist in the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra. He is currently studying a Master of Teaching at the University of Tasmania, having completed his Bachelor of Music in 2018 studying under Sue-Ellen Paulsen. He enjoys teaching students and chamber groups of all ages and abilities, doing so privately while also regularly working with the Launceston Youth and Community Orchestra. He has attended the orchestra’s Residential Summer String Camp since 2007 as both a student and a tutor. James has previously been a member of the Australian Youth Orchestra, the Australian International Symphony Orchestra Institute, the Jan Sedivka Camerata, and the Tasmanian Discovery Orchestra.
In 2018 James worked with the ensemble Musik Fabrik in Cologne, were he performed works by Olivier Messiaen, John Cage and Morton Feldman, while also spending time at the Royal Conservatory of Den Hague in the Netherlands. James has performed in masterclasses with internationally renowned cellists, Raphael Wallfisch and Steven Isserlis. James particularly enjoys studying and performing new music, having performed significant works by Iannis Xenakis and György Ligeti, as well as works by local Tasmanian composers such as Don Kay and Dominic Flynn. Aside from musical life, James enjoys working casually with Seven Sheds Brewery, based in Railton on the North-West coast of Tasmania.