martin daws quintet

we play jazz guitar, classical cello, world percussion, soprano sax and spoken word live with listening audiences. our aim is to express our thoughts and feelings in a cultured form. the project began in 2004 with poet martin daws and guitarist jo hinchliffe experimenting with jazz poetry as a duo, and has passed through trio (with cello), and quartet (with percussion) phases, before becoming a quintet with the addition of soprano sax in March 2006. the diversity of musical genres we draw upon creates a fresh sound that has a representative feel of the mountains where we live. you are as likely to hear us playing a beatbox and tabla jam as you are to catch a lushly set love poem, short story set to sound, or post-bop banger. we have a wealth of musical experiences among us, from doing slam poetry competitions, being in punk, jazz and funk bands, and playing in classical orchestras and ensembles. the depth of our experience sets a high standard of playing with, most notably, Niki Pierce having played as principal cellist in the London Symphony Orchestra (see River Song intro/outro for an example of her improvisation). in peformances we are ennervating. moving between a serious music show and art/poetry performance. we've enjoyed making MDQ. we hope you enjoy our poetry and music.