Billy Adamson

I first got into jazz when I was about 15 with encouragement from Trevor Tompkins, Tim Whitehead, Martin Speake and Nick Weldon. Then after finishing school I went to live and teach English and music in Borneo for 6 months, which offered an opportunity to absorb and play non Western music. Following this I studied music for a year at Newcastle University before being offered a scholarship to start in the second year of jazz studies at Middlesex University in London. Middlesex was a period of intensive study, under the guidance of Nikki Illes, Stuart Hall, Carl Orr and Chris Batchellor. It was also a period where I began getting involved in the London jazz scene, which prompted performances at venues such as the Vortex, Ronnie Scotts and the 606. Since leaving Middlesex, with the highest mark for performance in my year, I have worked with artists such as Marcella Detroit, Natalie Williams, Lea DeLaria, Caroline O’Connor, Gilad Atzmon, Asaf Sirkis and Sarah Gillespie.© MCT Layouts