Quentin H. Poole (born 1957)^[1] is an English oboist, conductor and former boy chorister, who served as Head Chorister of King's College, Cambridge.^[2]

Poole was born in Surrey, England, the son of Joseph W. Poole and Esme B. Mounsey Poole,^[3] but he grew up, as the youngest of five children, at Coventry, where his father was Precentor of Coventry Cathedral.^[4] He learned piano from the age of seven and trained under Sir David Willcocks at King's College,^[5] where he joined the choir aged nine.^[4] He also took up the flute there.^[4] He subsequently sang in the choir of The King's School, Canterbury,^[4] and was a member of the National Youth Orchestra.^[5]

He studied at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge and then at the Royal Academy of Music under Janet Craxton.^[5]

Poole was a founder, member and oboist of the Endymion Ensemble and later its conductor.^[5] He was also principal oboe for the City of London Sinfonia and other orchestras and chamber groups.^[5] He was Director of Music of the Purcell School from 2001,^[5] from which he was made redundant in 2013.^[6] He was made a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Music in 2004.^[5]

He appeared as a castaway on the BBC Radio programme Desert Island Discs on 26 December 1970.^[4] He was 13 at the time; the programme's youngest guest.^[4] His picture was published in a contemporary issue of the Radio Times.^[4]