Andy Findon is Europe's most recorded flute player who can be heard
on countless movie and TV soundtracks, alongside albums for a long list
of international artists. His own releases include groundbreaking and
innovative premieres, including his own arrangements of work by composers
such as Michael Nyman. Andy is the longest serving member of The Michael
Nyman Band, playing baritone saxophone and flutes on Michael's soundtracks
and concert tours since the early 1980's.
Other formative influences were gained working for well known British
Dance Band leaders Joe Loss, Nat Temple, Eric Delaney and Sidney Lipton
whilst and shortly after studying at the Royal College of Music, following
membership (as principal flute) of The National Youth Orchestra. He
was also a founder member of the Myrha Saxophone Quartet with John Harle
in the late seventies.
Thus, although training originally as a classical flautist, these experiences
led his career to diversify, covering almost every musical genre, duetting
with Pat Metheny, playing with artists such as Stevie Wonder, Joni Mitchell,
Tony Bennett, Cilla Black, The Beach Boys and Katherine Jenkins to name
but 5 widely contrasting performers. Andy also appears regularly performing
works by Karl Jenkins and other successful composers, such as Hans Zimmer,
performing the solo Duduk in live performances of his Gladiator movie
score. In 1998 Andy performed tin whistle live in the interval act at
the Eurovision Song Contest in Birmingham and was Mike Oldfield's recorder
player (in Dulci Jubilo) at the 2012 Olympics Opening Ceremony.
Among many appearances in London's West End theatre, he has worked on
shows and projects for Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber, notably featuring on
The Beautiful Game, Bombay Dreams (by Indian composer A.R Rahman) and
recording Sir Andrew's "Variations" theme tune for The South
Bank Show alongside his brother, Julian. Andy played on the movie soundtracks
of musicals, including Phantom Of The Opera, Sweeney Todd, Cats, Evita
and Mama Mia. He appeared on the 25th anniversary DVD performances of
Sir Cameron Mackintosh's Les Miserables and the 2009 DVD of Chess at
The Royal Albert Hall.
He is in the iconic, award winning (BBC Radio 2 Best Live Act 2012)
"folk-rock" band The Home Service, the legendary "medieval
prog-rock" band Gryphon and plays regularly with the major London
Symphony orchestras as well as chamber orchestras and groups across
the capitol. He is a close collaborator with pianist/composer Geoff
Eales and is pioneering Geoff's significant flute repertoire with the
album "The Dancing Flute".
Andy is also known as London's foremost "ethnic" instrumentalist,
performing on a kaleidoscopic array of unusual woodwind instruments,
alongside the more common instruments of the flute, saxophone and clarinet
families. He has contributed extensively to the “Spitfire”
sample library with work on both orchestral and ethnic instruments,
including the release of the "Rare Flutes" package. As
a composer, he has produced and performed hundreds of music "library"
tracks which are played across the media regularly.
Andy is a "Pearl Flutes International Artist" and the proud
owner of the platinum flute built for Geoffrey Gilbert in 1950 by Charles
Morley.
For a full list of credits please click here
Andy Findon is a "Pearl Flutes International Artist"