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Billy Marrows

Billy Marrows is a London-based jazz guitarist and award-winning composer. He leads the Billy Marrows Band, the Billy Marrows Big Band and a new chamber jazz ensemble Grande Família. Billy is a member of projects across a broad spectrum of the London jazz scene such as Huw V Williams’ Di-Cysgodion, OK Aurora and the Tom Ridout Quintet. He has toured in the UK and Europe with Chelsea Carmichael, the Tom Barford Group, Patchwork Jazz Orchestra and Tom Ridout and has appeared on a number of albums, including Amsterdam-based Sam Newbould’s Bogus Notus and Tom Barford's 'Bloomer’, released on Edition records.

With all proceeds going to World Child Cancer, Billy's debut album Penelope will be released on the 26th of January 2024, in memory of his mum Penny. The album features Billy’s new chamber jazz group, Grande Família, both as a 12-piece ensemble and in smaller combinations, interspersed with intimate solo guitar vignettes. The first single A Grande Família was released for Childhood Cancer Awareness Month and its video was premiered by JAZZWISE. Billy also has more music in the pipeline with the Billy Marrows Band, and played a sold out show with the Billy Marrows Big Band at The Vortex Jazz Club on the last day of the 2023 London Jazz Festival.

Billy won the 2019 Eddie Harvey Jazz Arranger of the Year Award as well as both the small ensemble and big band category of the Dankworth Prize for Jazz Composition in 2016 and 2018 respectively. His composition Genmaicha was released by Patchwork Jazz Orchestra on their record The Light That Shines and he has been commissioned to write compositions/arrangements for singer-songwriter Hohnen-Ford and Berlin based Fabia Mantwill Orchestra. He wrote a suite for his octet inspired by gamelan for the 2016 Lancaster Youth Jazz Commission and his music has been broadcast on BBC Radio 3 and JazzFM. In 2018, Billy studied with Vince Mendoza at the Metropole Orkest Arrangers Workshop in Holland; his arrangement of Man in the Mirror was performed at the Lantaren Venster Rotterdam by the Metropole Orkest and Becca Stevens.

An alumnus of the Royal Academy of Music in London, Billy graduated with a first-class degree in jazz guitar performance in 2017. During this time he studied improvisation and composition with many UK and international jazz luminaries including Mike Walker, Pete Churchill and Barak Schmool. Billy is also involved in a range of music education work including for Guildhall Young Artists, the National Youth Jazz Collective and is the jazz guitar lecturer at Morley College.

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6
Album Review

Billy Marrows and Grande Família: Penelope

Read "Penelope" reviewed by Neil Duggan


London-based guitarist and composer Billy Marrows brings us a new 12-piece chamber-jazz ensemble, Grande Família. It is a family affair with members of his extended family and a wider circle of close friends and musical associates making up the group. Their debut album, Penelope, is released in memory of Marrows' mother, Penny. Most of the music was written by Marrows as a surprise for his mother during her battle with cancer. All proceeds go to World Child Cancer, a charity ...

7
Album Review

OK Aurora: Only In Autumn

Read "Only In Autumn" reviewed by Chris May


Rod Oughton is a young London drummer with considerable technical proficiency, and a composer and bandleader of promise. With his octet OK Aurora, which prominently features singer Alina Miroshnichenko, Oughton aims to bridge the gap between jazz and what might rather patronizingly be called intelligent pop. Only In Autumn is the band's second release, following the self-produced EP Baby Zeza (2019). The intelligent pop part of Oughton's equation lies primarily in the lyrics, just under half of ...

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For debut album "Penelope"

"All proceeds go to the World Child Cancer charity which is an excellent reason for purchase, but the music is reward enough." -  ★★★★ and Editors Choice, Best New Jazz Albums, February 2024 - JAZZWISE (UK)

“The resulting album is a triumph...with his Grande Família project, Marrows has created a spectacular new ensemble.” Jazz Views (UK) 

"Gorgeous chamber jazz LP" Bandcamp Daily (US) 

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guitar, electric
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composer / conductor

Concerts

Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

Penelope

Self Produced
2024

buy

Only In Autumn

Ubuntu Music
2021

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L'Heroïsme

From: Penelope
By Billy Marrows

Videos

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