David Jarratt-Knock was born in Newcastle-under-Lyme and educated in Staffordshire and Birmingham. He began studying the trumpet at the age of 12 and subsequently studied privately in London with David Staff and also later at the Birmingham School of Music (now Birmingham Conservatoire) with Alan Whitehead and John Wilbraham. He has a keen interest in Early music, which resulted in a determination to play the Renaissance cornetto; initially learning with David Staff, he has since studied with Bruce Dickey in Italy, Jean-Pierre Canihac in Spain and Jeremy West in London.
As a cornettist he is much in demand in the UK and abroad for historically informed performances of works such as Monteverdi's Vespers and has a particular interest in the virtuoso Italian chamber music of the early 17th century; he has performed with The Scholars Baroque Ensemble, Ex Cathedra, Quintessential and Fiori Musicali and has also worked with The Royal Shakespeare Company. He is a member of the Elizabethan band Diabolus in Musica, and regularly works with other specialist chamber groups in the UK. He can also often be found performing during the Summer at Hampton Court Palace in London.
