THE Ollie West Band is to perform live at Alton Assembly Rooms next month.
Based in Manchester, the six-piece jazz/pop band is run by former Alton College student and talented musician Ollie West, who is studying at the Royal Northern College of Music.
Formed three years ago at Aton College, the band toured first with college musicians, all of whom are now at top music and drama conservatoires around the country and, according to Ollie, “are doing really well for themselves”.
A composer as well as a performer, Ollie says he “loves doing both”.
“But if I had to pick one I’d probably say composing as it was my first love and no matter how strenuous the song-writing process can be, the end product is always worth it,” he added.
A “huge fan” of classical music, especially impressionist composers such as Debussy and Ravel, Ollie also enjoys jazz.
“I think elements of both those genres come through in the music we play.
“Obviously the other members of the band have totally different musical backgrounds as well, so watching them interpret the songs I write is always interesting.”
And he added: “Probably the best way to describe our sound is pop fusion. There’s definitely elements of jazz, world, funk, soul and even classical in the music now, but it’s all based around pop.”
While the band’s line-up has changed since its Alton College days, and it has been a while since Ollie last played in Alton, he is “really excited” about returning to his old haunts.
“It’s very cool to be doing a headline show in a venue that we’ve all watched so many great performers and shows come through.”
His performance at the Assembly Rooms will form part of his Portraits album project.
The band now consists of Ollie West (keyboards, vocals), Ashley Garrod (bass), George Nicola (guitar) and Pete Leaver (drums), and they will be joined by Tom Balch, Will McGahon, John Hutchinson and Jody Smith on violins.
The performance on Wednesday, February 8, starts at 7.30pm and tickets, priced £6 and £5, are available online at bit.ly/olliewestportraits.