Simon Brewin

Born into a musical family, Simon Brewin was started on the piano at the age of about 2 and was writing music at 6. Fascinated by music, he would often listen to his father’s classical records for hours. He moved onto brass instruments at 8, playing in his local scout band. At 16 he switched to guitar. He studied classically for a year, then took lessons with composer and session musician Steve Dodds (Mica Paris), as well as studying Rock Metal and Intermediate guitar courses at the Guitar Institute in London. At 22 he attended Berklee College of Music in Boston for 2 years on the Performance Studies course, studying different styles, music theory, sound reinforcement, composition and film scoring. He graduated with the Berklee Certificate having made the Dean's list for Excellence every semester. On returning to the UK he played regularly in and around London with various rock bands, the jazz-funk improvisational group the Kings Cross Project house band and formed the jazz-funk band Mobius with Otto Williams (Ray Charles, Chaka Khan, Amy Winehouse). On moving to Brighton he formed the jazz duo Indigo, making two appearances on BBC Southern Counties Radio and recording the album “Old, New, Borrowed and Blue”. "Being the instrumentalist in the duo really helped develop my technique and groove skills". At this time he also studied keyboards with renowned pianist Terry Seabrook (Cubana Bop). The late noughties saw Simon shift focus towards the bass. "As I have matured musically I've got more into groove and the sound of the bass. The bass performs a very important role in the band and I love the opportunities this brings". In 2012 he acquired his 6 string fretless bass, made by Bernie Goodfellow of GB Guitars. "I love the tone of the fretless and the scope it allows for expression. The Spitfire is a truly wonderful instrument with an incredible sound.". He also plays synth bass, offering a whole different palette of sounds for funk, pop and dance. He works with a wide range of bands in genres across pop, blues, rock, jazz, funk, ceilidh, ecstatic dance and even beat poetry, as far afield as Denmark and India. He can regularly be heard with Licence to Ceilidh, The Beta Rays, as a "gun for hire" standing in a the last minute with various function bands and at the funk jam night he runs The Brighton Groove Project His studio session credits include critically acclaimed albums by The John Lake Trio, The Broadway project (Memphis Industries/XL Records), "Mutable Music" and "Drum Travel" (with James Asher and Sandeep Raval), "Down The Line" (With The Drawtones and Derek Nash) and The Beta Rays releases. He is the musical director and brass arranger for the funk soul band The Beta Rays and composes and records his own material in his studio. Simon's compositions take form in a variety of genres including classical, folk, funk, dance, indie, nu jazz and ambient/chill out. His library music compositions have been used in various productions including the ITV series "Edge of Heaven". As a teacher, his students have gone on to have successful careers in music, playing the Albert Hall and supporting Level 42, and with numerous studio credits including Tinie Tempah and Rose Royce. Simon cites his influences as both varied and very numerous. "During my journey of becoming a musician I have been inspired by so many different people at different times. I would go through a technique phase and be listening to really technically masterful players, then at other times I would be inspired by more spacial and emotional music. Ultimately I enjoy anything with melody, groove and soul, in any genre!". Looking to the future Simon reflects "I'm looking to move forwards all the time. I am really driven by my passion for music, whether in the studio or live, composing or playing covers and I am constantly striving to improve my skills and knowledge."