The new Quartet was formed in December 2015 and it features some of my favourite musicians from the London scene. They are Jon Shenoy on saxophones and bass clarinet, Sophie Alloway on drums and Dave O'Brien on bass/synths. These guys (and girl!) are all absolute monsters and it is a real privilege for me to have them on board playing my music. Dave and Jon are also great composers and they will be contributing material too which I am really looking forward to playing!
The Alex Curtis Quartet was formed in January 2016 and features Alex Curtis on piano, Jon Shenoy on saxophones, Sophie Alloway on drums and Dave O'Brien on bass/synths. This group of friends had played together in various guises over the years but the highly enthusiastic audience reactions to their concerts throughout 2016 and 2017 are testimony to how well they work together in this setting. In addition to their individual instrumental strengths, Alex, Jon and Dave are all established composers in their own right. This combination creates an ideal unit with great creative potential and allows for plenty of stylistic diversity as well as a broad range of original repertoire. 2017 has been a busy and exciting year for this band which will culminate in the release of their debut album 'Patterns, Habits and Changes.'
Sophie Alloway is a busy freelance drummer, working in a variety of musical settings for a wide range of artists. She played drums for rapper Roots Manuva for two years; touring the UK, Australia and New Zealand with him. As well as appearing on Later With Jools Holland, Mercury Music Prize and BBC Introducing she has played top festivals including Glastonbury, Hop Farm and Bestival; whilst also touring with the Michael Jackson musical 'Thriller'.
Sophie has recorded/performed with multi-platinum selling singer Kenny Thomas, pop/punk artist Hazel O'Connor, Afrobeat legend Tony Allen, fusion group Lydian Collective, singer/songwriter Kate Dimbleby, jazz/funk band Wild Card, singer/songwriter Helen Boulding, R&B singer Lei-An, Brazilian artist Angelita Jimenez, rock musician John Hogg and West End/TV/film actor Clive Rowe. In the jazz/fusion world she has worked with Jason Rebello, Harvie S, Wayne Brown, Paul Carmichael, Dill Katz, Michael Mondesir, Ugo Delmirani, John Critchinson, Mornington Lockett and George Melly.
David O'Brien has been in demand as a bassist, pianist, composer, arranger and educator ever since he graduated from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in 2004, in the fields of jazz, fusion, rock, funk, soul, Cuban, Brazilian, klezmer, Balkan, Arabic and Sephardic music in London and beyond. In 2006 his contribution to cutting edge jazz won him the prestigious Peter Whittingham Award. As a side-man he has worked with Brian Abrahams, Ahmed Muktar, Mor Karbasi, Zhenya Strigalev, Barak Schmool, Jim Hart, Julian Seigel, Thomas Gould and The Man Overboard Quintet, Peter Horsfall among many others, and as a band-leader with the critically acclaimed Porpoise Corpus (eponymous album 2006 F-IRECD19), and his trio featuring virtuoso bassist Kevin Glasgow. He is also a member of London's forward-thinking F-IRE collective, and he has been involved in many other varied collaborations such as the poetic/musical Tongue Fu and the Anglo-Gambian musical/visual Mbencafo in Bacao, Gambia 2006. He has performed at the Albert Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Elgar Room, and concert halls, jazz clubs, around the world. As a composer and arranger he has had works performed by his own band, various big bands and the Aurora Orchestra.
Jon Shenoy is a saxophonist, clarinettist and composer/arranger living in South London. A talented improviser and creative spirit, he plays a wide range of music in a number of celebrated ensembles. Somewhat a stylistic chameleon, he balances a prolific contribution towards the contemporary sounds of the London jazz scene in the Ivo Neame Octet, Fringe Magnetic, Groove Therapy & his own Draw By Four with a sought after stylistic awareness of pastiche in Syd Lawrence Orchestra, Bad Ass Brass and his own King Candy & The Sugar Push. Recent concerts include the North Sea Jazz Festival and repeated sell-out shows at Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club.
