Any Swing Goes

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Band Leader

Glenn Dunn (MD, vocals)
Glenn studied at Chetham's School of Music before graduating at the University of Warwick, where he made his debut in the world of swing depping on piano for the best-selling recording "Big Band 1991". A founder member of ASG, he has been unable to shake off the role of Musical Director which he endeavours to combine with an altogether more sensible day job as a commercial property lawyer.

Vocals

Alexandra Howlett (vocals)
Alex, who, when she sings 'I've got you under my skin', has been known to reduce grown men to whimpering messes, came from a musical family where both parents were opera singers. She was therefore always destined to head into the world of local politics, becoming mayor of Wandsworth at the age of 21. (Truly. Most of the band don't believe it either.) When rallying South Londoners with the aid of Mozart's Queen of the Night aria didn't work out, she realised her long held ambition of singing with one of the world's greatest swing bands. And breeding. (Her merry brood now numbers three, and 'I'm breastfeeding!', is a constant, and tiresome, excuse for not showing up at rehearsals.) Her most memorable moment? Singing 'I get a kick out of you' at a wedding 'with child', only to have the aforementioned deliver, right in the middle of the song, precisely the type of blow that might lead to the main refrain. (Ed: if you don't get that, neither do we. A trumpet player wrote it, though, so that's OK.)

Saxes

Aaron Liddard (lead alto sax)
"Sounds great!" Jools Holland
"The funkiest white guy in town." Robert Fordjour (Courtney Pine band)
Aaron Liddard has performed with Prince, Maceo Parker, Mike Philly, Amy Winehouse, Beverley Knight, Nik Turner, Kym Mazelle, and Rose Royce on live performances and TV shows including The Sharon Osborne Show, GMTV, The Chart Show, Top of the Pops 2, Later with Jools Holland, The BRIT Awards, and An Audience with Amy Winehouse. He is featured in promotional videos for Amy Winehouse (Rehab) and Beverley Knight (Queen of Starting Over), Amy Winehouse's documentary DVD, and played on Amy's The Specials recordings. Aaron also produced an album with esoteric big band LjC which has met critical aclaim - "A miraculous debut album" (Evan Parker) - and his compositions have been used in promotional trails including Doctor Who.

David Fairfield (alto sax)
Multi-talented is not a fair description of this boy's talents. Neither is multi-faceted, multi-hued, or multiplied; it is just that when he starts playing and singing [at the same time !] you would think that there was more than one of him in the room and wish that there wasn't. Wit, raconteur, saxophonist, clarinettist, basso-profundo, stunt double for David Suchet, chef, pilot, lawyer, yachtsman, balloonist and part-time miner, this lad can boogie too.

Emma Hendron (alto sax)
After playing in various concert and swing bands in her native Scotland, the bright lights of London proved too tempting to resist. On moving to the Capital, Emma played with Saxophony (an all-sax quartet). However, so impressed was she after seeing yet another scintillating performance by Any Swing Goes at the 100 Club, she immediately wanted to join the sax section - and here she is.

Tom Smyth (tenor sax)
Tom, who joined ASG in January 2005, has played a variety of musical instruments in the past, but without any particular distinction. After many years he has settled on the tenor sax, which he fits around his day job with a "major accounting firm". Tom cites his influences as the great "Texas tenor" players, particularly Illinois Jacquet, Arnett Cobb and Buddy Tate.

Zoë Tribello (tenor sax)
The sax player's dream - beautiful tones and fabulous shoes.

Cyriel Diels (tenor sax)
The proof that everything is cyclical. Born and raised in the Netherlands, started to play the sax at age 7, his first Big Band at 12, ventured into soul, jazz, funk and punk, now returning to his roots with ASG.

Trumpets

Simon Taylor (lead trumpet)
Born in Yorkshire, Simon's journey began with brass bands and forming the Doncaster Youth Jazz Orchestras then onto the heady heights of touring and recording with NYJO. After a stint at Leeds College of Music, Simon set about global domination through playing all around the world on cruise ships for 15 years. After deciding the USA wasn't worth dominating, Simon based himself back in London playing with various bands, regularly knocking out the tunes with The Congo Faith Healers.

Greg Smith (deputy trumpet)
Spawned in the darkest depths of Africa, Greg first started blowing a horn in the form of a vuvuzela. After taking a couple years break from playing, he migrated to London in search of "the groove" and found it in ASG. Occasionally, he can also be seen skanking-it-up in a circus ska band in random dives around London Town.

Dan Cliffe (trumpet)
Dan managed to hold a trumpet by the age of 8, and has made steady advances in his playing since then, now proficiently pushing all 3 valves in several combinations. Having made memorable noises in Harrogate Youth and Cambridge University Jazz Orchestras, Dan brings a playing style to ASG somewhere between sublime and ridiculous. When he's not blowing hot air, Dan spends his days trying to cool the planet to save baby polar bears.

Andreas Gertsch (trumpet)
Andreas is originally from a small town in Switzerland called Burgdorf. He grew up in this idyllic environment and learned to play the alphorn and the trumpet from the local trumpet guru. After finishing his studies, he decided it was time to see how bigger cities work - and so he moved to London. Even though in good old time's air carriers didn't charge for checking in bags, Andreas couldn't afford to bring the oversized alphorn. He had to leave it behind and came to London with only his beloved trumpet. Shortly after arriving, he found the ASG big band, his new musical home and has been playing there since. Once in a while, if you listen carefully, you can hear him eliciting the trumpet alphorn sounds from his home far away...

Jonathan Richards (trumpet)
A stowaway smuggled into the country in the freezing hold of a BA plane, kept alive only by the buzzing of his lips which warmed his colonial soul. He blows horn and conjures up the sounds of his homeland - screeching galahs, hissing snakes, and the like, but also the mellowness of the koala, to whose permanently half-stoned state, he duets sublimely. Eats fruit and leaves and plays hot jazz.

Trombones

Ben Cater (trombone)
Ben was very involved with the Hull music scene and also at the University of Warwick where he was awarded a music performance scholarship. There followed a 10-year spell of musical inactivity before joining Lawyers' Music orchestra and the fantastic ASG all stars. By day, he is one of the partners at the Cycle Surgery and by night he plays his 'bone with his eyes shut whilst riding a unicycle. Obviously talented.

Carter Holloran (trombone)
Another colonial masquerading as a musician just to get into the country - in Carter's case it worked as he can blow as hard as he can bluff.

John Taylor (trombone)
John originally began playing brass aged 7 (lucky parents), is often referred to as "that guy who plays the trombone" and has worked as legal advisor for employers ranging from waste companies to accountants. Having experienced a range of musical styles he enjoys hearing others' reaction to his playing, so long as this feedback is printable. Other comments are either recycled or don't count. John does not agree with those people who believe that trombones can only play two dynamics - on and off.

Rhythm

Dominic Hall (guitar)
Eons back his long flowing locks and mandatory heavy jumper and thick cold won him a place in Ye Olde English Morrismen on rhythm pig bladder. A bad hair year or two later he cranked up his first electrified guitar to the sounds of early grunge when he played with the now dead Boys from the Crypt. Punk came and went, as did the hair colourants and gels and the mighty Zobb Brothers - darlings of the Horticultural Punk Scene, and the roots of his day job at Spencer-Hall Gardens. A dodgy period in his career saw him sporting ponytail and white suit as he funked his way through the disco & RnB years with Matt & The Vinyl Silks, and The Real DeeBees. By now almost completely bald he graduated at the Musicians Institute in Wapping with a diploma in Very Fast Jazz Fingering. 'The Count von One-to-three' as his is affectionately known these days, is the oldest member of Any Swing Goes, his head often outshining his polished guitar and sparkling performance.

Anthony Robinson (guitar)

Stan Hadjivassilev (deputy bass)

Peter Wright (bass)
Cut his teeth playing the bass with his school Big Band, so has decided to play with his fingers instead. Draws inspiration from Herbie Flowers and tone from an ironing board.

Vince Dunn (drums)
"The man who keeps the beat so sweet"
"You can see why his playing has been so revered"
These are quotes from various artists who have worked with him. Over the last twenty-five years Vince has played, recorded and toured with an impressive and diverse clientele from Cleo Laine and Courtney Pine to contemporary RnB Pop Artists such as Pharell and Blue Controll. Vince is currently with ASG and continuing to freelance with an exhausting gigging schedule and his own teaching programme. He plays the drums rather well too.