Stuart McCallum

Stuart McCallum

Stuart McCallum is a British jazz guitarist from Manchester whose work spans jazz, electronic and experimental approaches, with a strong emphasis on instrumental music. He is associated with jazz fusion and is known for combining guitar playing with loops, effects, production and composition.

Career

McCallum comes to prominence through his work with The Cinematic Orchestra, which he joins in 2004. He performs on and contributes to the writing of the group’s albums Ma Fleur and Live At The Royal Albert Hall, and also contributes to the soundtrack for the Disney nature documentary The Crimson Wing. He also records a remix of Radiohead’s Exit Music For A Film for the compilation Exit Music: Songs For Radio Heads.

He is one-half of the duo The Breath. He also records as Stuart McCallum & Mike Walker and as Sean Foran & Stuart McCallum.

Solo work and collaborations

McCallum releases solo albums including Stuart McCallum, Echo Architect and Distilled. Distilled is described as his third solo album and draws together his experience in guitar playing, production and composition. His music uses electric and acoustic guitars alongside electronic and acoustic drums, double bass, keyboards, synths, percussion, harp, celeste, strings, woodwinds and horns.

He records with Ari Hoenig, Tim Garland and Don Weller, and performs with Kenny Wheeler, John Surman, Mike Gibbs, Gwilym Simcock, Laurent Robin and Laurent De Wilde. He is also invited to take part in the PRSF artist development scheme Take Five in 2007, and later receives workshops with John Surman that lead to a commissioned suite for Manchester Jazz Festival for John Surman, McCallum and a 10-piece chamber ensemble.

Other work and recognition

McCallum works with the British artist Linder on several projects over a two-year period. Their collaboration includes The Dark Monarch, performed at Tate St Ives in 2009 and documented in a Tate DVD and book, and The Darktown Cakewalk, a 13-hour improvised performance at the 2010 Glasgow International Festival. That performance leads to a nomination for Best Music in Theatre in Scotland from the Scottish Theatre Critics Association. He also collaborates with Linder on a visual soundtrack for the launch of Distilled.

He writes a new suite for Manchester Jazz Festival in 2010 for solo performance, and the performance is later included in BBC Radio 3’s Jazz On 3 Best Of 2010 review show.