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Contact Andy Williamson/Big Buzzard:

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tel: 07980 680052 (outside UK: +44 7980 680052)

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Big Buzzard
Biography

Big Buzzard Brass

Music available as MP3s for download

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Big Buzzard and its audience

The Honkin' Hep Cats

Links

Sunday 13 November: FINAL concert in the 2011 series: Steve Lawson, Lobelia and Andy Williamson Full details HERE: Or click on the image below. Or if you'd like to know more, drop me a mail (link in the top right corner).

This is the online home of Andy Williamson.

I'm a musician with various pots on the boil. This site will give you a flavour of them but do give me A Buzz if you'd like to know more about anything you see here that tickles your fancy. I'm a saxophonist, a singer, a bandleader and a teacher. I help programme events and festivals, and have been doing all this for the last 20 years — and still love it as much now as I did when I started.

I play in a number of regular bands with some wonderful musicians from all over the country. There's my own small Buzztet, various collaborations from silly jazz and cabaret, to the large and funky Big Buzzard Boogie Band, plus the Brass Volcanoes, The Organ Grinders, Pavlov and The Denbone Walkers. [title=Óshowcasing the great music of T-Bone WalkerÓ]. I've also had the chance to play with some of my musical heroes, including Tom Robinson, Suggs and most recently Martha Reeves and the Vandellas.

I have an eclectic musical taste and experience that takes in many genres. You may have heard me playing Duke Ellington's Sacred Concerts on Radio 4 or in one of the UK's Cathedrals. I've also set ecological poetry to Gregorian chant style melodies in Plainsong for the Planet, brought together jazz activists to play New Orleans marching tunes at the Climate Camp and protest marches; I sing bass in the choir at the annual St Endellion festival or can be found reprising hep cat funky rude tunes at weddings. I've brought in tabla players, tap and break dancers, I've abseiled during gigs and from enormous towers while playing sax; I've cooked food on stage while the band raged around me; accompanied soul food diva Momma Cherri and all round diva Corliss Randall.

I teach sax, singing and jazz improvisation. I do this privately, and have run improvisation classes for tap dancers in London and students at Kindston University. I'm directing the Plymouth Community Choir while their usual maestro Jules Evans is away creating music in the ice and snow of Antarctica, following in his grandfather's famous footsteps.

But do you play at weddings?

I love playing at weddings, especially if you want to use music to create something special, during the service or at the reception. This has involved solo sax, duetting with other musicians, creating a ‘jazz service’, getting family and friends to sing ‘Lean on Me’ during a service with no celebrant, and creating new music or new arrangements for the service or for a first dance. For a Indian-Jewish-English wedding, I created a whole day of music which included a performance by tabla maestro Kuljit Bhamra, adding Bangra-style percussion to the Big Buzzard Boogie Band and singing the traditional Simcha Jewish wedding songs while the bride and groom were carried around the room in a frenzy. Here are a few testimonials from happy clients.

Big Buzzard Boogie Band

Big Buzzard at Cripps Barn
This is the official online home of Big Buzzard. Sometimes we're a big band, playing music with as high a swing factor as we can muster. We also play music that could be described as jazz, funk, and soul with some spicy latin flavours in the mix too from a mambo to a bit of Cubano Chant. We do our own arrangements of a few tunes you might already know, and we perform our own material, which is superb! Do have a listen here. We don't take ourselves too seriously, but we're serious enough to have played at Buckingham Palace, or to accompany choral evensong on Radio 3. We've joined up with a great choir to perform Duke Ellington's Sacred Concert. Sometimes we're known as the Big Buzzard Boogie Band, sometimes just a concise Big Buzzard. We're available for festivals and events wherever they may be. If you'd like to know more, read our biography or send us an email.

Free MP3 downloads of some Big Buzzard music, recorded LIVE in The Famous Spiegeltent.

JazzPicnic-8May2011

JAZZ PICNIC - Sunday 8 May, 2.30-6pm, Edgemoor Hotel, Haytor Road, Bovey Tracey, TQ13 9LE

The Brass Volcanoes play fantastically funky 'street' jazz, in the tradition of the brass bands of New Orleans (eg The Dirty Dozen, or Rebirth Brass Band). The band is full of superb musicians, who all have a great sense of fun. Live, their music is the sort of thing that's impossible not to like - whatever your age, or the sort of recorded music you listen to.

If the weather's good, they'll be playing outside in the natural amphitheatre of the hotel gardens - bring your own food for a picnic.

Tickets are FREE for children under 16. For everyone else, they're £7 f booked in advance, or £9 on the day. To book, send an email, or call the hotel on 01626 832466.

Featuring James Evans (sax), Malcolm Earle-Smith (trombone), Sam Ritchie (trumpet), Graham Hughes (sousaphone), Andy Williamson (sax) and Bubu (drums).

Next...

Past events

The band appears regularly in various incarnations. Here are a few highlights over the years...

2010

Denbone Walkers @ Ashburton Blues Festival

Sun 30 May 2010. 5pm – 11.45pm
The greatest little blues festival in the world, in this tiny Devon 'stannary' town. We're on a bill with Mike Sanchez, among others.

Sacred Concert in London

Weds 16 June, 8pm, St Giles in the Fields

With Tina May, Steve Waterman featuring tap dancer Junior Laniyan, and opera star Roderick Williams plus the Vox Cordis choir under the baton of Jamie Burton. This should be an extraordinary night. More info...

Sacred Concert in Bristol

A return visit to Westbury on Trym church with the glorious voices of the Exultate Singers.

Denbone Walkers at the Edinburgh Fringe

Tue 10 - Mon 16 August, 11.30pm

We're on at the Pleasance's spectacular new Fringe Venue "Ghillie Dhu", in the heart of the city, dripping with chandeliers, red velvet, intimate booths, and everything you could wish for in a late night Edinburgh Jazz Den. Booking details coming soon.

2009

BBC1
On 12 March, 2009, The Andy Williamson Buzztet went to Bristol to record a jazz version of Songs of Praise, for BBC1. The band featured Zoe Rahman on piano, Charlie Stratford on drums, Dan Farrant on bass and Ben Cummings on trumpet and flugelhorn. Ned Bennett managed to create a wonderfully fresh arrangement of one of the oldest tunes in the book, 'O When the Saints". Andy chose a tune he'd first heard Eric Bibb perform in the tiny Ain't Nothin' But...
Andy Williamson and Ben Cummings Zoe Rahman Charlier Stratford upon the Drums
THe programme was broadcast on Sunday 3 May.

2008

Bewdley Festival with Scott Stroman

The Andy Williamson Buzztet returned to bewdley to perform Scott Stroman's Jazz Mass on Sunday morning with the choir of St Anne's Church as part of their festival service. As Scott was busy at another concert, Andy spent the previous day with pianist Robin Holloway in Bewdley rehearsing the choir. Scott arrived on Sunday morning to direct the choir and the band.

2007

Duke Ellington Sacred Concert, Bristol 24 Feb 2007

The Big Buzzard band joined with the Exultate Singers of Bristol to perform this wonderful music by Duke Ellington, with it's theme of 'Freedom' to commemorate the bicentenary of the abolition of slavery.

The concert featured the exquisite talents of Jacqui Dankworth (left) on vocals, and Zoe Rahman (right) on piano.

2006

"I'm a Believer" - Trafalgar Square

On 3 & 4 March 2006, the Big Buzzard Horns performed in Trafalgar Square as part of a piece of performance art by Reza Aramesh. He based it on the Changing of the Guard ceremony, with the soldiers replaced by a group of 2nd generation immigrants to the UK.
2005

The Andy Williamson Buzztet and Jonathan Cairney appeared for two nights at London's Pizza on The Park.
2004

Duke Ellington's Sacred Concert, Radio 4

Thursday 20th May 2004 - Duke Ellington's Sacred Concert live on BBC Radio 4 The Big Buzzard Boogie Band expanded to 18 musicians, and were joined by the Exultate Singers and members of the BBC Daily Service singers for the broadcast, live from St Martin-in-the-Fields in London.

The Buzzards at the Famous Spiegeltent

The Big Buzzard Boogie Band returned to one o the most amazing venues in the world, the 'Famous Spiegeltent' for performances at the Brighton Festival during May, and the Edinburgh Festival Fringe during August. Here's a snatch of one of the performances:
2002

Prom at the Palace

On Saturday 1 June 2002, the Big Buzzard Boogie Band were among the performers at Buckingham Palace for the Queen's Golden Jubilee Celebrations.