Jason Swinscoe (musical director), Phil France (double bass), Tom Chant (Saxophone), Stuart McCallum (guitar), Ivo Neame (piano), Richard Spaven (drums)

The Cinematic Orchestra (TCO) was founded by bass player and guitarist Jason Swinscoe back in 1999. The Scottish Londoner had a great fondness for jazz bass, rhythm sections and film soundtracks. After he started to work for the Ninja Tune record label, The Cinematic Orchestra began. He gathered some adventurous jazz musicians around him. Their debut album immediately caught the public’s attention and was voted number one by the Gilles Peterson Radio One Show. The album emphasized the ‘cinematographic’ aspect of the band.

On their second album Every Day listeners heard the orchestral side of the band. A much more sophisticated recording, this has an uncompromising approach. For the album, Swinscoe collaborated with bass player Phil France. Every Day was old jazz for the nu-jazz generation.

They were asked to write a new soundtrack Dziga Vertov’s avant-garde movie from 1929: Man With The Movie Camera. This was for the opening events in Porto, the European Capital of Culture in 2001. The soundtrack was released along with the movie in 2003.

In 2004, Swinscoe moved to Paris and in 2006, he went to New York which had a significant impact on his creativity and music. “ The dynamic of a city changes the energy and the pace of things, especially music.” In Paris he started to work on the album Ma Fleur with contributions by Fontella Bass, Patrick Watson and Lou Rhodes. The point of departure for the album were the emotions which accompany the course of life from birth till death. Later on, The Cinematic Orchestra recorded another soundtrack for the Disney nature film, The Crimson Wing: Mystery of the Flamingos. Recently, they presented The Cinematic Orchestra Compilation in the prestigious Late Night Tales series.