Sam has an active interest in both popular and classical music. He is currently developing The Memes - a soul/dance project and Summer Dreams - an ongoing compositional project that combines minimalism and improvisation. His piece "4G", for violin and piano, was a finalist in the 1992 Cornelius Cardew composition prize.
more...

Shanshai

Biographical Notes

After a year as a professional poker player he decided to concentrate on a career as a contemporary jazz bass player, writing for several of his own groups.

From 1969 -1972 he studied double bass at the Royal Academy of Music where he became a proficient chess player, as well as developing some interest in classical music. At the age of thirty he dropped out of music to pursue his interest in mathematical philosophy. Sam studied at the London School of Economics, received his doctorate in 1987, and then returned to music as a full-time composer.
Selected Works

Selected Works

• Octophobibone for solo trombone and computer programme. Octophobibone was first broadcast on BBC Radio 3's Mixing It. It has since been recorded for Unknown Public, UP04 (Musical Machinery).
• Transfigured Lunch Hour for computer, recorded on Unknown Public, UP07 (The Netherlands Connection).
• Etude Brutus 27 recorded on 54 Music Miniatures, volume 2 (Discus 5 CD), part of the open-ended Etude Brutus sequence. A two-tier construction. Tier one: generic virtual keyboard improvisation (Everything you wanted to know about Cecil Taylor, but were afraid to ask). Tier two: 3-D cut and paste (Some things you didn't want to know about William Burroughs but were told anyway).
• Birds Are Odd - a song written for and performed by The New London Children's Choir.
• Thirty-nine songs for Humphrey the Bear - an Australian television series for children.
• Gentler Fire - a large scale work for solo piano.
• PQ1 - four movements for piano quintet.
• Strange Attractor - for four soprano saxophones.
• Now The Rain and Heading For A Broken Heart - two songs on the Amnesty International CD (July, 1997)
• Wanderers Through The Night, Xmas Again and Millennium 3000; three commissioned full length shows for children.
• ETUDE BRUTUS (90 mins.) performed at Huddersfield music festival for SAN.

• Shulamite Requiem for electronic choir.
• If You Believe in Xmas song broadcast by Classic FM over Xmas 1998 and 1999 and performed in concert by New London Children's Choir.
• NU-AGE for solo violin and tape.
• The Trombonist from Shanghai written for and performed by Alan Tomlinson at Colourscape festivals.
• Revelations score for film of the same name.
• The Unquestioned Answer for string quartet and tape.
• Square Replacement movement for string quartet
• Janusberg 5D Electro-Symphony
• Henry Miller Bone Concerto concerto for tape and improvising trombone
• Swimming twelve movement electronic piece (2002)
• Dancing with the Boys at DD's Jazz Funk CD (2002)
• A Piece for the Wicked concerto for piano and electronics (2004)
• KOBO for oboe oboe + tape. Played by Katherine Pluygers at London Wind Festival 2004
• Von Entropicalto Memes concerto for trombone + pre-recorded elecronics (2006)
• Entangled Pairs (2007) Largescale performance piece (40') for trombone, dancers, electronics and tape. (In collaboration with Frank Herbsleb - Danish trombonist and improvisor)