I'm currently studying Jazz at the Guildhall with Martin Hathaway, in my second year. Previously studied with Carlos Lopez Real and Simon Colam at the Purcell school of music and Nick Smart at the Academy, where I had the oppurtunity to play with Stan Sulzmann, Tim Garland and Pete Churchill, and have coaching sessions with the aforementioned as well as Nikki Iles, Tom Skinner, Simon Finch, Tom Herbert and Darren Altman.
In the final semester of 2006/07 I played reeds in the off-broadway musical 'The Thing About Men' which had a seven week run at the King's Head Theatre, Islington. The writers came over with the show from New York and made it a very exciting collaboration with West End stars Paul Baker (Taboo, Lion King, Chicago) Tiffany Graves (Chicago) Hal Fowler and Nicola Dawn in the cast. I also have attended NYJO for 3 Years, playing gigs for on 2nd alto, 2nd Tenor and Baritone. I take breaks from jazz by playing in a killing Pop/Soul/Dirty Funk group 'Pandora's Jukebox,' and when we get our arses in gear there should be some choons up shortly.
I have also appeared on British national television playing kit in two Cole Porter tunes on Channel Four as part of 'Howard Goodall's 20th Century Greats' but I expect that that's about as famous as i will probably ever get! In 2005 I became the founder member of the 'horns of contention' who back tasty rock gods 'Hamfatter' (www.myspace.com/hamfatter) playing regular gigs since, both in the UK and abroad, and doing the sessions for their album and their single 'Sziget', which reached 13 in the Indie chart in 2007. Please go check out their myspace page, some great music.
In Summer 2007, I was asked to tour with the University of London Big Band on Lead Alto, playing gigs in Jazz Venues in Bologna and playing Soprano for their classical saxophone quartet in plazas around the city. November 2007 I went on a mini-tour to Hungary with Hamfatter, appearing on Hungarian national television and national radio and then stupidly got in trouble with the organized crime scene over there...silly me. My West End Debut came in December, where I featured in a small on-stage horn section for a sell-out performance of 'Accentuate the Positive.' There has been so much demand for a CD after the one-off gig, that in January 2008 it will be taken into the studio.
On the 21st July I will be appearing on the BBC 2 show 'Dragon's Den,' with Indie-Rock band 'Hamfatter,' so make sure you tune in at 9pm!
