Lewis Benzies is a jazz musician and composer from the Inverurie area.
Born into a musical family in Aberdeenshire, Lewis has a strong musical heritage as his Grandfather was a pianist in the Aberdeen jazz scene and his Mother is a singer.
From a young age Lewis was exposed to jazz as an artform and followed in his family’s musical footsteps by taking piano lessons at seven and bass lessons when he was 13.
At school in Inverurie, Lewis excelled in music before going on to study music at college.
Lewis decided music education was not for him but carried on to teach himself through the Schillinger System of Musical Composition.
Having composed music and performed in jazz gigs Lewis moved to Edinburgh for a few years where he met many of the musicians involved in his debut album Mosaic.
As a composer, Lewis has been inspired by a wide range of different music genres and artists from Stevie Wonder and John Coltrane to Herbie Hancock, Bartok and Stravinsky.
Influences from these artists can be found on Mosaic, which has a soulful and textured sound with hints of famed jazz trumpeter Miles Davis's electric period.
Lewis released Mosaic in December and has plans for seven more albums, working with a range of musicians on these projects.
He is now heavily involved in promoting Mosaic, having played in gigs in and around Aberdeen including the Moray Jazz Club in Elgin, The Bottle Cap and The Blue Lamp.
He plans to tour jazz festivals in and around the UK to promote his music and hopes to develop a long and illustrious career in the music industry.
by Laura Merchant
1. Anticipation 05:37
2. Light and shade 07:20
3. Turning Point 03:20
4. Reflections 07:54
5. The Source 07:02
6. Third Time 06:53
7. Momentum 04:55
8. Helix 03:07
9. Shifting Sands 04:52
10. Five on eight 03:07
11. Kaleidoscope 06:38
Jonathan Green: Trumpet
Gordon McNeil: Tenor sax
Huw Rees: Rhodes, clavinet, synth
Paul Mills: Drums, timbales & cowbell (11)
Craig Scott: Guitar (11)
Miles Benzies: Drums (11)
