Leslie Christopher Palmer was born in The Hague, Netherlands of Canadian parents, and grew up in London, England. He studied at the Royal College of Music in London, and later at the University of Ottawa.

He lives in Halifax, working as a professional bassoonist with Symphony Nova Scotia. He also plays piano and organ, and has been active in the community as a teacher, coach, conductor, and organizer of chamber-music events.

His training and experience in the Classical, Jazz, and Pop traditions serve him well as a composer and arranger, and he has written scores for Symphony Nova Scotia, the Blue Engine Quartet, the Rhapsody Quintet, and other groups in a variety of styles.

As an arranger, he has worked with many East Coast artists of different backgrounds, including Meaghan Smith, Ben Caplan, the Barra MacNeils, Bruce Guthro, Eleanor McCain, and J.P. Cormier. His arrangements of songs by Leonard Cohen for the Blue Engine String Quartet with singer/actor Cliff Lejeune have been performed many times, and have been recorded and broadcast nationally on CBC Radio 2.

Among his compositions are Pier 21 Overture, For Those In Peril On The Sea, Overture: Juvenescence (commissioned and first performed by the Nova Scotia Youth Orchestra), Suite de Jazz for jazz pianist and orchestra, and Ships and Flags: A 2012 Overture, which was commissioned by the CBC, and was first performed on the Halifax Waterfront as part of the 2012 Tall Ships Festival.

Recent commissions include Halifax, December Sixth 1917 for choir and chamber ensemble, commemorating the Halifax Explosion on the centenary of the disaster; Fanfare for Province House, for the 200th anniversary of Nova Scotia’s legislature building; and music for classic animated films presented by the Inner Space concert series.