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Joel Garthwaite graduated from the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama in 2006 and continued studying for his Masters degree at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama under the tutelage of John Harle and Christian Forshaw with the aid of EMI’s Music Sound Foundation.
Joel’s current performance work is centered on the award winning Lunar Saxophone Quartet, his duo with pianist Jennifer Scarisbrick and his collaboration with multi award winning percussionist Dave Danford. Other current projects include Entr’acte, a String Quartet and solo saxophone ensemble, Ludwig, a tribute to Beethoven through music and film, The Dave Stapleton Orchestra and the Welsh National Opera.
Over the last five years Joel has performed to distinguished names such as Dame Shirley Bassey, Sir Richard Attenborough and HM The Queen at venues including The Warehouse (Waterloo), The Barbican Centre, Wales Millennium Centre, and St. David’s Hall.
Strongly committed to introducing new repertoire to the pre-existing list of saxophone music, Joel has commissioned over 10 new pieces with the Lunar Saxophone Quartet since their formation in 2003 culminating in the albums ‘FLUX’ and’ Just Around the Next Corner’ both due for release in Spring 2008. In 2007 the LSQ launched the first ‘LSQ New Music Competition’, a new initiative to support new music by young composers. The winner of the competition will have their piece included in the
Quartet’s repertoire list and recorded on their latest recording project.
With Dave Danford, Joel has developed a set of original repertoire for saxophone and percussion by living composers. The Duo performs regularly throughout the UK and has a strong workshop based education programme.
In August 2007 Joel launched Staunch Music. The idea of the record label/publishing company was to allow the Lunar Saxophone Quartet to publish, record and release their commissions without the confines and pressures of larger record labels.
Staunch Music allows the LSQ to have complete control over their music whilst acting as a vehicle to promote and publicise other artists and composers associated with the group. The ethos of StaunchMusic is strongly based on delivering high quality products to our customers and making contemporary music more accessible to British audiences.
Joel is also in demand as an educator of the saxophone and currently teaches saxophone at Hampton School, London and Wellingborough School, Northampton.
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