Notice: John has written for the Incorporated Society of Musicians on the emerging field of online real-time music (ORM), and recently supplemented this with an extensive introductory video series.

Remote recording

John is set up for remote, high-quality recording of electric bass, fretless bass, upright bass and occasionally accordion. Available gear includes:

• Nordstrand electric basses: 4 string, 5 string, fretless
• Flatwound and roundwound electric bass strings (Thomastik, DR)
• Quality upright bass with Thomastik and Pirastro strings
• Aguilar preamps, Audio-Technica microphones, various effects boxes
• Waves Audio processing plugins.

How?

Get in touch, discuss what needs to be done, agree a rate and send your track(s). You will receive John’s recorded tracks in your preferred audio file format, raw or with some mild processing as you choose.

John can work from a score or by ear, create a bass line from scratch, or closely follow an existing guide line. He has enjoyed working in a wide variety of genres and has a patient, professional approach to recording.

Teaching

John is a friendly, articulate and patient teacher of:

• Electric and fretless bass
• Jazz and improvisation 
• Musicianship: theory, harmony, aural skills (ear training), sight reading, piano for non-pianists, etc.
• Using Sibelius

John is based in South East London and can travel. He is also happy to teach remotely, and has a high-quality home setup and fast internet connection to facilitate this.

Rates are available on request.

“Just one lesson with John has helped me understand and structure my jazz improvisation. I am using this approach in my practice and am already playing with more confidence.” — Nick, student 

Arranging, transcription, score preparation

John has arranged for big bands and smaller ensembles in a variety of styles. His work has been performed by Bohemian Caverns Jazz Orchestra, Morgan Brothers Big Band, Leeds University Union Big Band, Tom Sharp Jazz Orchestra, King Groovy and many others.

Having worked at the leading notation software company Sibelius, and served as a copyist for the 9 to 5 UK Tour, John is able to offer good-quality copying and score-preparation services.

He also creates custom arrangements for amateur or school ensembles which may require unusual instrumentation or a careful balance of difficulty levels.