Originally from Tasmania, percussionist and composer Robert Cossom studied with Tom O’Kelly and Eric Johnstone before training at the Tasmanian Conservatorium, where he gained distinctions in composition and performance. Appointed to the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra in 1995, he has also performed with the Queensland, West Australian and Tasmanian Symphony Orchestras and appeared as a soloist and recitalist across Australia. He is deeply committed to education, coordinating percussion studies at the University of Melbourne, tutoring at National Music Camps, and presenting masterclasses such as at the 2025 PAS Australia Day of Percussion. In 2004 he founded the MSO Snare Drum Award, which he endows. His compositions, published by Rhythmscape Australia and performed widely, appear in AMEB, VCE and tertiary syllabi; he has also served as composer-in-residence for the Sydney Youth Orchestras.