Arun Ghosh is a British-Asian clarinettist and composer.
Conceived in Calcutta, bred in Bolton, matured in Manchester and now living in London, Arun Ghosh’s musical vision and vocabulary reflects his rich geographical heritage.
His Indo-Jazz Sextet play original music of South Asian origin with a contemporary jazz attitude,rocking urban beats and the passion of punk. Sweet and timeless melodies give birth to soaring improvisations and raag explorations, driven by a heady mix of dub-reggae bass, tabla trickery and ferocious drum explosions.
This band rocked the Southbank at their debut gig at the London Jazz Festival in November 2007 – http://www.youtube.com/camocivision – and has since lit up the British jazz scene with intense and cathartic performances at clubs, festivals and melas in London and around the country.
Arun Ghosh released his debut album “Northern Namaste” on camoci records in 2008 to critical acclaim. The album has UK retail distribution through Harmonia Mundi. The opening track on “Northern Namaste” entitled “Aurora” also appears on Gilles Peterson’s compilation album “Brownswood Bubblers Three”.
Following the success of his official “homecoming’ album launch at Contact Theatre, Arun performed to packed audiences and rave reviews at:- Brighton’s Great Escape Festival, London’s Vortex, the City of London Festival, Streatham Festival and to a sold-out crowd at London’s Pizza Express Soho Jazz Club.
Appearing at the Manchester Jazz Festival, Arun’s IndoJazz Sextet was deemed “gig of the festival” by patrons of Matt&Phred’s Jazz Club, and a streamlined Arun Ghosh Quartet fired up the Indo-Electronica tent as part of the year’s London Mela.
Two performances at the London Jazz Festival 2008, saw Arun Ghosh’s bands playing to a sold-out audience at the Purcell Room, Southbank in a double-bill opposite Rudresh Mahanthappa Quartet plus a capacity crowd at Ray’s Jazz Cafe at Foyles.
2009 was another exciting year for Arun Ghosh. Highlights include a high octane performance at the jazzahead festival, Bremen that took European jazz promoters by storm, a sold-out show at Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club in August, and his role as Musical Director and performer with Malian legends Amadou and Mariam at the Manchester International Festival. Arun has also been writing and recording new material for his second album, due for release in Autumn 2010.
Alongside his performance activity, Arun maintains a healthy composition and education workload, particularly in the world of theatre, in addition to collaborating with other musicians, writers, poets, filmakers and dancers.