Home » Member Page

Orphy Robinson

Orphy Robinson MBE. Robinson is an award winning multi Instrumental musician who specialises on Vibraphone & Percussion.

About Me

Orphy Robinson MBE.

Robinson is an award winning musician who specialises on Vibraphone & Percussion. The winner of the 2017 Jazz fm Awards “Live Performance of the year’ for his Bobby Hutcherson Songbook project. Robinson was awarded an MBE for “services to music” in the Queen’s birthday Honours list in June 2018.

In 2015 he received a top 12 placing in the Critics Poll for the Jazz magazine Downbeat in ‘Vibraphonist of the year’ category. The first time a musician from the UK has achieved this accolade. One of the few musicians from the UK to have been signed to legendary record label ‘Blue Note,' where he released 2 albums and 2 EP’s to great critical and international acclaim.

Winning numerous industry awards since the early 1980s while also appearing on various chart topping music that have been awarded Platinum,Gold and Silver Discs.

Orphy was a member of the acclaimed early 1980s Brit Funk band ‘Savanna’. He soon became an in demand session musician. In the mid 1980s he was a founder member of ground breaking Jazz big band “The Jazz Warriors” he also recorded and toured internationally with Courtney Pine on his sophomore album and tour. He was also featured player on the first wave of Acid Jazz albums in the early 1990s. Since the 1980s Robinson has worked with numerous high profile Jazz & Classical artists including virtu-oso Violinist Nigel Kennedy since 2009 appearing on three albums to date.

Robinson has appeared as a guest soloist or session musician on over 100 albums Robinson a Producer, Composer & Music Director has written for Orchestras, Film, TV, Opera. & Con-temporary Dance. Robinson Co produced the latest solo album “Cage Street memorial: The Pilgrimage” by celebrated American Vocalist Carleen Anderson. To date the album has received three prestigious nominations for various Industry awards.

Robinson recently produced an EP for the Brazilian artist Monica Vasconceles, The New album for Classical violinist Nigel Kennedy “Kennedy meets Gershwin” & is in the Producer chair for the Award winning Uk Jazz Vocalist Cleveland Watkiss MBE, for his upcoming “UK All Stars” album. He has also produced the 2018 release of the Iranian/British Vocalist Alya Al Sultani’s latest album “Love and Protest” .

Robinson tours alongside Carleen Anderson as her Musical Director. He also co-leads the ground break-ing Avant Garde / Free jazz group “Black Top” with the 2014 Paul Hamyln Foundation winner Pianist Pat Thomas. Black Top were 2016 nominees for the “Digital initiative” award” in the Jazzfm Awards. In recent years Robinson has been a guest radio presenter on various radio stations such as Resonance Fm, Jazz Fm, Solar Radio & Worldwide Fm.

He now presents the popular weekly Jazz show “Jazz Joint Duke Box” on Delite radio. He has also on occasion been invited to Dj at the Opening and closing events for the London Jazz festival & at the popular “Summer Soulstice” festival.

Alongside Cleveland Watkiss he Dj’s occasionally for their “Duke Joint & “Dub Club” Events. Mixing Jamaican Dub music with big band Jazz. He currently serves as a Trustee on the board of NYJO & the “Warriors International“ He sits on the Jazz Executive committee of BASCA and serves on the main BASCA Board. Has served on the judging panels for the Ivor Novello Awards, British Composers awards, & Help Musicians UK.

My Jazz Story

I love jazz because... it's ever evolving, and i'm forever learning. I was first exposed to jazz... Through my father's music collection that included Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, Duke Jordan, Ella Fitzgerald. I met... Claude Deppa, the South African Trumpet player in my teens in London, who became my mentor and introduced me to not only the music termed Jazz but many more genres and styles of music from around the World. The best show I ever attended was... Too many to recount here. However rest assured that there will be many more in the near and distant future. The first jazz record I bought was the first step on a great and inspiring journey. My advice to new listeners... There's a lot of brilliant music and great musicians out there, so I hope that your musical journey will never end. This is not a 100 metres sprint but a Marathon! Peace, love and rice for all.