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Mike Westbrook

Born in High Wycombe in 1936, Mike Westbrook grew up in Torquay and was educated at Kelly College, Tavistock. He formed his first band while studying painting in Plymouth in 1958, moving to London in the early 1960s. He has led and composed for a succession of groups, notably his 1960s Sextet and Concert Band, his Brass Band, formed in the mid 70s, the jazz rock group Solid Gold Cadillac and the Mike Westbrook Orchestra. He has toured extensively throughout Europe, and as far afield as Australia and the Far East, Canada and New York. He has directed performances of his work with big bands in Norway, Sweden, Finland, Germany, France, Italy, Slovenia, Switzerland and Australia. He has broadcast on radio and TV in many countries, and made over 50 albums.

Mike Westbrook first made his mark as a composer with his 1960s recordings for Deram, - Celebration, Release and Marching Song, followed by Metropolis for RCA. Subsequent compositions for Jazz Orchestra include Citadel/Room 315 featuring John Surman, The Cortege, On Duke's Birthday dedicated to the memory of Duke Ellington, Big Band Rossini which was featured in the 1992 BBC Proms and Chanson Irresponsable, (Enja Records) commissioned by BBC Radio 3, which brings together jazz and classical musicians.

Works for classical ensembles include a saxophone concerto Bean Rows and Blues Shots which was commissioned by the Bournemouth Sinfonietta for John Harle, a score for the silent movie Moulin Rouge commissioned by the Matrix Ensemble, and Classical Blues in 2002 for the BBC Concert Orchestra. Mike's television music credits include the award-winning BBC drama Caught on a Train by Stephen Poliakoff and directed by Peter Duffell starring Peggy Ashcroft and Michael Kitchen.

His involvement in experimental theatre began in the late 60s with the multi-media work Earthrise, andcollaborations with The Welfare State Theatre Company and The Cosmic Circus. His work for the stage includes Adrian Mitchell's Tyger a celebration of William Blake, staged by the National Theatre in 1971, and Mitchell’s White Suit Blues about Mark Twain. His opera Quichotte commissioned by L’Ensemble Justiniana, toured in France in the 1980s. Coming Through Slaughter, based on the novel by Michael Ondaatje about the New Orleans cornettist Buddy Bolden, was premiered in London in a concert version in 1994.

In collaboration with his wife, singer/librettist Kate Westbrook, he has generated a whole series of jazz/cabarets and music-theatre pieces, notably The Ass, based on the poem by D.H Lawrence, Pierides commissioned by Extemporary Dance Theatre and Good Friday 1663, a TV opera commissioned by Channel Four with libretto by Helen Simpson. Their 2003 composition Art Wolf commissioned by the Aargauer Kunsthaus, Switzerland, is dedicated to the 18th century Alpine painter Caspar Wolf.

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3
Book Review

Talking the Groove: Jazz Words from the Morning Star

Read "Talking the Groove: Jazz Words from the Morning Star" reviewed by Duncan Heining


Talking the Groove: Jazz Words from the Morning Star Chris Searle (foreword by Mike Westbrook) 394 pages ISBN: #978-1-9163206-7-3 Jazz in Britain 2024 Talking the Groove collects Chris Searle's more recent reviews, articles and interviews from the British socialist daily paper, the Morning Star, acting as a follow-up to Red Groove from 2013. The sheer span of artists covered in this book is astonishing. From the U.S.A, older statespersons like Anthony Braxton, Archie ...

7
Album Review

Mike Westbrook: Band of Bands

Read "Band of Bands" reviewed by Duncan Heining


For over six decades, composer, bandleader and musician Mike Westbrook has pursued a personal vision of jazz inspired by his hero Duke Ellington. That vision rests on the life-affirming, metamorphic potential at the music's heart. Band of Bands, built upon musical friendships old and more recent, is as fine a set of performances as any in Westbrook's long career. Several things impress immediately here. Firstly, though known primarily for their association with Westbrook, the rhythm section of bassist ...

Radio & Podcasts

Mike Westbrook, Prince Lasha and More

Read "Mike Westbrook, Prince Lasha and More" reviewed by Jerome Wilson


This show features several British jazz musicians such as Mike Westbrook and Yazz Ahmed. There is also music from Prince Lasha, Dan Pugach and Dave Douglas among others. Playlist Henry Threadgilll Sextett “I Can't Wait Till I Get Home" from The Complete Novus & Columbia Recordings of Henry Threadgill & Air (Mosaic} 00:00 Schapiro 17 “Tango" from Human Qualities (Summit) 00:55 Dan Pugach Nonet “Love Dance" from Plus One (Unit) 8:44 Host Speaks 14:38 Dewey Redman “Venus and ...

16
Album Review

Mike Westbrook: London Bridge Live In Zurich 1990

Read "London Bridge Live In Zurich 1990" reviewed by Chris May


Viewed from the other side of the Atlantic, Mike Westbrook is probably Britain's best kept secret. A composer, pianist and tubaist--above all, composer--Westbrook's recording career began in the late 1960s. Since then he has released upwards of fifty albums, spanning jazz rock through jazz and contemporary-classical fusions such as the 2 x CD London Bridge Live In Zurich 1990. Westbrook's albums have been performed by lineups ranging in size from trios through to, in this case, an eleven-piece jazz orchestra ...

Album Review

Mike Westbrook Concert Band: Marching Song Volumes 1 & 2 Plus Bonus Tracks

Read "Marching Song Volumes 1 & 2 Plus Bonus Tracks" reviewed by Maurizio Comandini


Mike Westbrook, pianista e soprattutto direttore di orchestra, è nato il 21 marzo del 1936 a High Wycombe, 50 chilometri a nord-ovest di Londra. Dapprima tentato dalla Art School di Plymouth, si dedica poi con decisione alla musica, dalla fine degli anni cinquanta. Nel 1958 forma la sua prima band per la quale gli capita di reclutare il sedicenne John Surman, giovane talento emergente che stava terminando il suo percorso scolastico. Quattro anni dopo Westbrook si sposta a Londra per ...

6
Album Review

Mike Westbrook Orchestra: Catania

Read "Catania" reviewed by Ian Patterson


A major figure in British jazz since the late 1950s, composer-pianist Mike Westbrook continues to write, perform and record at a rate of knots which would leave contenders half his 83 years on the ropes. Four albums since 2016, including--after a gap of forty years—not one but two solo piano recordings, are testament to the creative fire that continues to burn inside him. This previously-unreleased live recording from Sicily in 1992, captures the twenty-three-piece Mike Westbrook Orchestra in truly scintillating ...

Album Review

Mike Westbrook: Starcross Bridge

Read "Starcross Bridge" reviewed by Vic Albani


Sia ringraziato il cielo per avere tra noi un musicista come l'inglese Mike Westbrook e un intelligente discografico come lo svizzero Werner Uehlinger. Il primo per avere rifondato e fatto germogliare tutto il new jazz britannico, il secondo per avere dato la possibilità a decine e decine di musicisti di esprimersi come forse non avrebbero potuto fare e avere creato una sorta di “new way" dell'ascolto del jazz per almeno una generazione di passivi ascoltatori. E grazie, ...

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Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Mike Westbrook

Jazz Musician of the Day: Mike Westbrook

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Mike Westbrook's birthday today!

Born in High Wycombe in 1936, Mike Westbrook grew up in Torquay and was educated at Kelly College, Tavistock. He formed his first band while studying painting in Plymouth in 1958, moving to London in the early 1960s. He has led and composed for a succession of groups, notably his 1960s Sextet and Concert Band, his Brass Band, formed in the mid 70s, the jazz rock group Solid Gold Cadillac and ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Mike Westbrook

Jazz Musician of the Day: Mike Westbrook

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Mike Westbrook's birthday today!

Born in High Wycombe in 1936, Mike Westbrook grew up in Torquay and was educated at Kelly College, Tavistock. He formed his first band while studying painting in Plymouth in 1958, moving to London in the early 1960s. He has led and composed for a succession of groups, notably his 1960s Sextet and Concert Band, his Brass Band, formed in the mid 70s, the jazz rock group Solid Gold Cadillac and ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Mike Westbrook

Jazz Musician of the Day: Mike Westbrook

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Mike Westbrook's birthday today!

Born in High Wycombe in 1936, Mike Westbrook grew up in Torquay and was educated at Kelly College, Tavistock. He formed his first band while studying painting in Plymouth in 1958, moving to London in the early 1960s. He has led and composed for a succession of groups, notably his 1960s Sextet and Concert Band, his Brass Band, formed in the mid 70s, the jazz rock group Solid Gold Cadillac and ...

1

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Mike Westbrook

Jazz Musician of the Day: Mike Westbrook

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Mike Westbrook's birthday today!

Born in High Wycombe in 1936, Mike Westbrook grew up in Torquay and was educated at Kelly College, Tavistock. He formed his first band while studying painting in Plymouth in 1958, moving to London in the early 1960s. He has led and composed for a succession of groups, notably his 1960s Sextet and Concert Band, his Brass Band, formed in the mid 70s, the jazz rock group Solid Gold Cadillac and ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Mike Westbrook

Jazz Musician of the Day: Mike Westbrook

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Mike Westbrook's birthday today!

Born in High Wycombe in 1936, Mike Westbrook grew up in Torquay and was educated at Kelly College, Tavistock. He formed his first band while studying painting in Plymouth in 1958, moving to London in the early 1960s. He has led and composed for a succession of groups, notably his 1960s Sextet and Concert Band, his Brass Band, formed in the mid 70s, the jazz rock group Solid Gold Cadillac and ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Mike Westbrook

Jazz Musician of the Day: Mike Westbrook

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Mike Westbrook's birthday today!

Born in High Wycombe in 1936, Mike Westbrook grew up in Torquay and was educated at Kelly College, Tavistock. He formed his first band while studying painting in Plymouth in 1958, moving to London in the early 1960s. He has led and composed for a succession of groups, notably his 1960s Sextet and Concert Band, his Brass Band, formed in the mid 70s, the jazz rock group Solid Gold Cadillac and ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Mike Westbrook

Jazz Musician of the Day: Mike Westbrook

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Mike Westbrook's birthday today!

Born in High Wycombe in 1936, Mike Westbrook grew up in Torquay and was educated at Kelly College, Tavistock. He formed his first band while studying painting in Plymouth in 1958, moving to London in the early 1960s. He has led and composed for a succession of groups, notably his 1960s Sextet and Concert Band, his Brass Band, formed in the mid 70s, the jazz rock group Solid Gold Cadillac and ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Mike Westbrook

Jazz Musician of the Day: Mike Westbrook

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Mike Westbrook's birthday today!

Mike Westbrook has led, and composed for, a succession of Big Bands and small groups since the early 1960\'s. He has toured extensively throughout Europe and further afield and made 40 albums. His principal compositions for Jazz Orchestra include Citadel/Room 315 featuring John Surman, On Duke\'s Birthday dedicated to the memory of Duke Ellington, Big Band Rossini which was featured in the 1992 BBC Proms and Chanson Irresponsable... Read more.

Place ...

3

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Mike Westbrook

Jazz Musician of the Day: Mike Westbrook

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Mike Westbrook's birthday today! Mike Westbrook has led, and composed for, a succession of Big Bands and small groups since the early 1960\'s. He has toured extensively throughout Europe and further afield and made 40 albums. His principal compositions for Jazz Orchestra include Citadel/Room 315 featuring John Surman, On Duke\'s Birthday dedicated to the memory of Duke Ellington, Big Band Rossini which was featured in the 1992 BBC Proms and Chanson Irresponsable... Read more. Place ...

50

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Mike Westbrook

Jazz Musician of the Day: Mike Westbrook

Source:

All About Jazz is celebrating Mike Westbrook's birthday today!

Mike Westbrook has led, and composed for, a succession of Big Bands and small groups since the early 1960\'s. He has toured extensively throughout Europe and further afield and made 40 albums. His principal compositions for Jazz Orchestra include Citadel/Room 315 featuring John Surman, On Duke\'s Birthday dedicated to the memory of Duke Ellington, Big Band Rossini which was featured in the 1992 BBC Proms and Chanson Irresponsable...Mike Westbrook has led, ...

"Mike Westbrook is one of Britain 's most creative, experimental and daring jazz composers." —The Times

Britain's most innovative Big Band leader. —The Wire.

With this immensely powerful work (London Bridge is Broken Down) Westbrook reinstates his claim to international pre-eminence among the heirs of Duke Ellington and Charles Mingus. —The Times.

By the end, Catania (the Mike Westbrook Festival) had massively affirmed Westbrook's stature as a giant of contemporary music. —The Guardian.

As his career amply demonstrates, - he has produced a body of work embracing everything from opera through settings of Kate Westbrook's song cycles, to jazz suites and cabaret, - he is luckily for all lovers of innovative and original music, thoroughly committed to maintaining his reputation as the UK's foremost jazz composer. —The Times.

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Rasmus Henriksen
composer / conductor
Al Lloyd & His Orchestra
band / ensemble / orchestra

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Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

Band of Bands

Westbrook Records
2024

buy

London Bridge Live In...

Westbrook Records
2022

buy

Starcross Bridge

Hat Hut Records
2019

buy

Catania

Westbrook Records
2019

buy

The Last Night At The...

Cadillac Records
2018

buy

Live 1972

Hux Records
2017

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