Conductor

Howard has held conducting posts including that of the National Bandmaster for the Salvation Army in the UK from 1988 to 1992, during the period of his officership within the SA; Director of Music for the SA in the Netherlands, and conductor of the Amsterdam Staff Band from 2000 through to 2006.  From 2007 to 2015 he was Director of Classical Performance at the University of Salford, during which time he was responsible for the University Ensembles, including the Salford University Brass Band and Wind Band. He also mentored student conductors with the Adelphi Brass Band. He has also been Bandmaster of the Boscombe Salvation Army band from April 2002 through till June 2019, but has since resumed leadership of the group from January 2021.

Howard has also often worked as a guest conductor for a number of major bands, directing at the RNCM Festival of Brass with the Leyland Band, the Grimethorpe Colliery Band and with the Brighouse and Rastrick Band, as well as appearing with these bands at other concerts. He was also engaged as the musical director for the Jaren Hornmusikkforening, an Elite Division band in Norway, from January 2012 to 2017. He also directed the Eikanger-Bjorsvik Band in Bergen in 2017 in between their successes at the Norwegian National and the European Championships. His contesting appearances include directing the Woodfalls Band at the British Open in 2016, and a first section area win with Bournemouth Concert Brass in 2018.

In 2022 he become the professional conductor of Brass Band Central England (formerly the Jaguar Land Rover Band), based in Coventry. He also returned to Norway in 2022 to work with the Elite Division Band, Ila Brass Band, based in Trondheim, appearing again at the Norwegian National Championships.

More recently Howard has been appointed as he Bandmaster for the German Staff Band from September 2023.