About
Chris is a versatile bass and guitar player whose background playing many different styles of music and on multiple instruments, combined with exceptional listening skills, means he is able to fit perfectly into any musical situation, as well as giving him a unique voice in his own projects. He is currently working on a debut trio EP exploring how the natural resonances of the guitar interact with time, groove, and texture across the diverse genres in which the guitar is used.
Born into a musical family, Chris was experimenting on his parents' piano as soon as he could reach the keys. However, a knack for playing by ear meant he preferred improvising to reading what was put in front of him, and as a result he was fired by a succession of classical teachers until eventually discovering jazz as a teenager, under the tutelage of Vicki Kenny. In the meantime, he'd taught himself guitar, and played blues and rock alongside studying jazz piano.
At university it became apparent that simply owning a bass guitar was enough to get booked on it, so he started playing this too; eventually this became a mainstay of Chris' musical exploits.
After graduating, he worked playing in jazz, funk, and pop bands, including function gigs all over the country, Edinburgh and Cambridge jazz festivals, and even a TV pilot for ITV, until in 2022 earning a scholarship to study a Master's degree in Jazz Bass at the prestigious Royal Academy of Music. There he has studied electric and double bass with Laurence Cottle, Jasper Hoiby, Tom Herbert and Mike Mondesir, guitar with Chris Montague and John Parricelli, as well as composition with the inimitable Pete Churchill.
