Merton Cox
President
Merton has been president of the ESO since 2019, taking over from Paul Lucas.
Music has always been part of his life, attending his first orchestral concert in the newly opened Royal Festival Hall at a very young age. From singing at his primary school, he became a chorister at All Saints’ Church, Fulham, later joining the Hammersmith and Fulham Choral Society.
He left school at 16 and then worked for many years on the furniture floor of Harrods, eventually becoming senior furnishing sales consultant specialising in antiques and fine furniture.
Now well established in Sussex, he tends his much-admired and award-winning garden, and supports both local and national cultural organisations including several music and church charities.