Mo Nazam
Biography
Autumn 1998 sees the release of the long awaited album from one of the Uk’s premiere guitarists,Mo Nazam.Recorded live in front of a capacity crowd at Londons world famous Royal Festival Hall and featuring the fantastic mix of Jazz,Asian and Rock music that Mo has become known for ,this Cd heralds the arrival of a major composer and guitar virtuoso to the world stage.
Born in Pakistan, Mo grew up in the UK where he was exposed to music and art from all over the world,ranging from the Bollywood film scores of his childhood to the rock,soul and jazz that are the foundations of the contemporary music styles found in one of the worlds most vibrant cities. Mo took up the guitar at age 15 and started playing in local bands right away.Since then he has gone on to play with some of the most prestigious musicians and bands in England,including :
The Pasadenas
The Jazz Warriors
Steve Williamson
Orphy Robinson
The Mondesir Brothers
Keith Waite
Percy Sledge
Tom Browne
In 1995 Mo decided to form his own group focusing on the concept of mixing all his diverse influences ,from Jimi Hendrix to Ravi Shankar by way of Miles Davis.The debut tour of The MO NAZAM GROUP proved to be a huge success,receiving praise from the public and critics alike.Combining passionate playing with melodic,flowing compositions the group have played at many prestigious events such as the Soho and Bracknell Jazz festivals and two concerts at the Royal Festival Hall,one of which was opening the show for jazz legends Al DiMeola, Stanley Clarke and Jean Luc Ponty.
In 1996 Mo was asked by the Maya Dance Company to compose music for their new work."Jantrik" was conceived by Piu Bannerjee and Mo composed three new pieces for Piu to choreograph to.The debut performances were in February and the work drew rapturous praise from audiences and the media.
In early 1997 Mo was commissioned by the Soho Jazz Festival to write a new composition to be debuted at the '97 Festival,held in late September.Established for 12 years the Soho Jazz Festival is an internationally renowned event and this was the first time that a new piece of music has been especially written for the festival.The piece highlights the variety of cultural and musical styles that Mo has been involved with as a musician,composer and avid fan.
Mo's career as an innovative composer is just another facet of his growing reputation as an exciting musician and his innate talent for combining his cultural roots with the sounds and feels of the '90's makes him an artist at the forefront of modern music.
Mo Nazams
Cosmosis
CoinciDance productions is proud to announce that 1998 will see the launch of a new project led by acclaimed guitarist/composer Mo Nazam : COSMOSIS will feature a blend of Jazz,Indian,Space Funk and contemporary Dance idioms in a mind-expanding way.Mo's new direction promises to be an exciting continuation of the innovative sound established by his band in the two short years since its debut.
!997 saw the band go on to great success,performing live in venues and festivals across the country and on national TV. Amongst the highlights were a blistering set at Ronnie Scotts in Birmingham during the Birmingham International Jazz Festival and a superb performance at Londons Portobello Festival where the band played on a a lovely warm summers evening to a rapturous crowd of over 700 in tiny Portobello Green.Mo also had the privilege to be commissioned by the Soho Jazz Festival (with the help of the Arts Council of England) to write a new piece for this prestigious and internationally renowned festival.The work ,entitled "Welcome To Utopia" ,made it's debut in front of a capacity crowd,receiving critical acclaim for it's daring use of diverse musical styles and intense passion.This important and innovative composition will be the focus of future concerts by MO NAZAM and COSMOSIS.*
The band also made their national TV debut in 1997,playing live on BBC2's "Network East" arts magazine programme.They performed the song "Forgive Me" (with a special line-up featuring guitar,vocals,tabla and bass ) garnering a phenomenal response with the Network East offices receiving a record number of calls from a delighted public.The band will also be performing at the press launch for "Network East Live '98", an arts and lifestyle show at the NEC which will feature music fashion and fillum.
If you would like to discuss bookings,live dates ,tapes or if you'd like to receive a rather irregularly published COSMOSIS newsletter please contact us by email in the first instance:
With more festival ,concert and TV appearances planned for !998 the future looks so bright we gotta wear shades!
* Just in case you 're wondering : "COSMOSIS" is a combination of two words: "cosmos" and "osmosis".Make of it what you will......
Now that I've had my fill of Mo Nazam's life TAKE ME HOME!!!!