Christian Garrick - Film & Television Music Composer

Chris Garrick is an improvising violinist and a composer with an international reputation. He was born in Guildford in 1971 and began violin aged five, but first moved through piano and drums before settling, at sixteen, on the violin fulltime. His father, the pianist and composer Michael Garrick, gave him a valuable early insight into jazz music whilst on the classical side he gained equal inspiration from the heroic recordings of the great Russian virtuoso Jascha Heifetz. But it was jazz that prevailed and by eleven he was performing with Johnny Dankworth and Cleo Laine, and jamming with Nigel Kennedy!

He studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London from 1989 to 1994 and became the first jazz musician ever to be awarded their highest accolade - the DipRAM. Now based in the Pyrenees Orientales close to Prades with its annual Festival de Pablo Casals, he charts a multi-musical life in jazz, pop & rock, gypsy, tango and film. His solo violin can be heard on various soundtracks including those of Chicago, Moulin Rouge, Chocolat, Big Fish and Tomorrow Never Dies.

He has worked and recorded with many different artists including Julian Joseph, Bireli Lagrene, Dolly Parton, All About Eve, Simon Mulligan, Angelo Debarre, Luka Bloom, Szapora, Caesari Cremonini and Brian Ferry. He has made tours of the Far East and Australia with guitarist John Etheridge in their critically acclaimed Tribute to Stephane Grappelli. In 2001 he toured Israel with Cleo Laine and the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. He also leads his own quartet - the Christian Garrick Quartet - with David Gordon on piano, Tom Hooper (drums) and Ole Rasmussen (double bass). In 2004 the CGQ teamed-up with Barry Wordsworth and the BBC Concert Orchestra at St John’s Smith Square for a special gala performance at London’s Genius of the Violin Festival.

In October 2005 Chris performed Astor Piazzolla’s Four Seasons for Buenes Aires with the Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra. In January 2006 he became the first jazz violinist to appear on the cover of the internationally renowned string players magazine The Strad. He teaches jazz violin at the Royal College of Music.

"Chris Garrick is the best young violinist in jazz today."
The Observer

"Chris Garrick is simply the most accomplished and expressive jazz violinist on today's jazz scene... consistently inventive." Charles Alexander

"That was great maestro…do you play any viola?"
Nigel Kennedy

Recordings

• The Secret Light Show D6 006 (1996)
• Different Strokes audio-b ABCD10 (1999)
• Four Spirits Flying Blue Whale FLY 1 (2001)
• Marzipan Flying Blue Whale FLY 2 (2003)
• Firewire Flying Blue Whale FLY 3 (2005)

Website: www.chrisgarrick.com