William Michael Allingham Ashton OBE (born 6 December 1936) is a British band leader, saxophonist and composer. He is best known for co-founding NYJO - the British National Youth Jazz Orchestra, of which he was Musical Director from 1965 until his retirement in 2009 when he became Life President. [1] [2] [3]
From 1955-57 he was educated at Rossall School which soon developed into a career in the Royal Air Force doing National Service, before he then went to Oxford University in 1957, where he first began playing jazz professionally at functions and competitions, founding the Oxford University Big Band. On leaving university in 1960, he went to France and worked as a professional musician in the American army bases for about nine months. Returning to London, he did supply teaching, mostly French, and started to join various blues bands. After working with Red Bludd’s Bluesicians, he founded what became NYJO with Pat Evans and Mike Kershaw in 1965. [4]
Ashton is highly regarded as an indefatigable promoter of British jazz talent, by organising tours, producing recordings, encouraging established players to collaborate with the band and publishing the works of young jazz composers.
He was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for services to jazz in 1978 and Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2010 Birthday Honours. [5] Ashton has also received the BBC Radio 2 Jazz Award in 1995 for his Services to Jazz, a Silver Medal from the Worshipful Company of Musicians, and is a Fellow of Leeds College of Music. [6]
Ashton was born in Blackpool, Lancashire. [7]
Tadley Ewing Peake Dameron was an American jazz composer, arranger, and pianist.
Sir John Phillip William Dankworth, CBE, also known as Johnny Dankworth, was an English jazz composer, saxophonist, clarinettist and writer of film scores. With his wife, jazz singer Dame Cleo Laine, he was a music educator and also her music director.
Ronnie Scott OBE was a British jazz tenor saxophonist and jazz club owner. He co-founded Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club in London's Soho district, one of the world's most popular jazz clubs, in 1959.
Nikki Anne Iles is a British jazz composer, pianist and educator.
Julian Raphael Nathaniel Joseph OBE is a British jazz pianist, bandleader, composer, arranger, and broadcaster. He has worked solo, in his big band, trio, quartet, forum project band or electric band.
Ian Carr was a Scottish jazz musician, composer, writer, and educator. Carr performed and recorded with the Rendell-Carr quintet and jazz-fusion band Nucleus, and was an associate professor at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London. He also wrote biographies of musicians Keith Jarrett and Miles Davis.
Neil Richard Ardley was a prominent English jazz composer and pianist, who also made his name as the author of more than 100 popular books on science and technology, and on music.
Gary Crosby is a British jazz double bassist, composer, music arranger, and educator. He was a founding member of the celebrated group the Jazz Warriors in the 1980s and has worked with many top international artists.
Michael John David Westbrook is an English jazz pianist, composer, and writer of orchestrated jazz pieces. He is married to the vocalist, librettist and painter Kate Westbrook.
Stanley Cowell was an American jazz pianist and co-founder of the Strata-East Records label.
The National Youth Jazz Orchestra (NYJO), established as the London Schools' Jazz Orchestra in 1965, is a British jazz orchestra.
Gerard Presencer is an English jazz trumpeter.
Django Bates is a British jazz musician, composer, multi-instrumentalist, band leader and educator. He plays the piano, keyboards and the tenor horn. Bates has been described as "one of the most talented musicians Britain has produced... his work covers the entire spectrum of jazz, from early jazz through to bebop and free jazz to jazz-rock fusion."
Richard James Burgess is an English musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, composer, author, manager, marketer and inventor.
Franco Ambrosetti is a jazz trumpeter, flugelhornist and composer. He was born in Lugano, Switzerland; his father, Flavio, was a saxophonist who once played opposite Charlie Parker. He has recorded several albums for Enja Records, and worked professionally with his father in a group which also included George Gruntz.
Richard John Charles "Digby" Fairweather is a British jazz cornetist, author and broadcaster.
Neil Yates is a British jazz and folk musician.
The Oxford University Jazz Orchestra (OUJO) is a jazz orchestra based in the University of Oxford, England. It was founded in 1991.
David Newton is a Scottish jazz pianist, composer, arranger and educator.
This is a summary of 2010 in music in the United Kingdom.