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Byron Wallen
By the late 90s his work was receiving world wide attention and his fluent trumpet, firmly rooted in the jazz tradition, could be heard performing with a myriad of artists such as David Murray, Andrew Hill, Butch Morris, Ralph Moore, Billy Higgins, Eddie Henderson, Wynton Marsalis, Herlin Riley, Freddie Hubbard, George Benson, William Orbit, Toumani Diabate, Brice Wassy, Lonnie Liston Smith, Ronnie Laws and Chaka Khan. His trumpet has also appeared alongside African pioneers such as Hugh Masekela, Manu Dibango and Amampondo. One of the most versatile and dynamic voices on the British jazz scene, he has performed with rap outfits such as The Roots, Digable Planets and Us3. The Windrush Gala Concert in 2001 saw Byron work with Mica Paris, Caron Wheeler, Shola Ama, Roland Gift, Desmond Dekker, Janet Kay and Grace Jones. The concert was staged as a culmination of a remarkable season of programs by the BBC.
He has collaborated and recorded with Talvin Singh on the Mercury prize award-winning album “OK” for Island Records (2000); Craig David, laying down brass parts and soloing on the title track “Slicker Than Your Average” (2002); and Courtney Pine on the albums “Back in the Day” (2000) and “Devotion” (2003).
Byron's film and TV appearances include The House of Elliott (1996), the Paramount picture The Talented Mr. Ripley (2000) in which he played a jazz trumpeter, the Stephen Fry film Bright Young Things (2003) and De- Lovely, The Cole Porter Story (2004). His Kudu horn can be heard in the Warner Brothers film Troy (2004).
The past few years have seen Byron perform with World Music artists Baaba Maal and Cheikh-Lo (2005) and a host of jazz legends: Bobby McFerrin (2005); Sam Rivers (2006); Andrew Hill tours (2006
Awards
For Byron’s fourth album, Meeting Ground (2007), featuring Gnawa master musician Boujemma Boubul, he received nominations for Best Band and Best Album in the 2007 BBC Jazz Awards and Best Jazz Act in the 2007 MOBO Awards. In 2017, Wallen received the coveted Paul Hamlyn Award for Artists.
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