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Andrew Hunter

I'm an educator and jazz lover based in Cambridge, England

About Me

Although I've always liked jazz, I really came to it properly in the last ten years. Since then, the more I listen and absorb, the more I realise is still to be discovered in this vast field of artistic endeavor. I'm drawn not just to the music, but to the stories and the characters behind the music; the challenges and the struggles, the artistry and innovation. The improvisatory nature of jazz means that, unlike any other form of music, every note is a contribution to a conversation between musicians communicating in a sublime language that we as listeners understand, at best, some of. I am an amateur guitarist and proud member of the Cambridge Jazz Coop, where I've learnt to appreciate the incredible complexity of jazz harmony. That leaves me even more in awe of musicians who inhabit those deep waters as if they were born to them, swimming through the music with grace, freedom and beauty. I think that, once you have learned to love jazz, nothing else comes close.

My Jazz Story

I love jazz because of the richness of the rhythm and harmony; the constantly changing interplay between the musicians; the beauty and the bluster. No matter how well you know a track, there is more to discover with every listen. I was first exposed to jazz when a friend played me Rhapsody in Blue. That soaring clarinet line in the first bars...wow. The best show I ever attended was Julian Lage at the London Jazz Festival 2022. As a guitarist myself, I appreciate his exquisite control over the instrument. The first jazz record I bought was Out to Lunch by Eric Dolphy. I didn't know it was ground breaking - I was 13. I thought all jazz sounded like that and I loved it.