Pinewood Saxophone Quartet
The Pinewood Saxophone Quartet unites four London-based saxophonists whose talents span a wide range of orchestral playing, chamber music, jazz, West End musicals, and film music. Kyle Horch has made several recordings as a classical recitalist, and has worked with many orchestras including the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, Royal Opera House, as well as the chamber ensemble ‘Counterpoise’, the ‘Art Deco Trio’ and the ‘Flotilla Quartet’. Jazz saxophonist Mark Allaway began his career playing with the Itchy Fingers quartet and has recorded several CDs as a lead artist. He also composes music for theatre, film, and TV productions, including for the award-winning West End production Singular Women, and for the film Chasing Chekov which won the LA BAFTA award for ‘Best Short Film’. Andy Tweed toured widely for many years with Saxtet, has played in the pit orchestras for West End musicals such as Les Miserables and Matilda, and he has also worked frequently with jazz musicians Mike Westbrook and Karen Street. Tom Law is equally at home in classical and jazz styles, performing with groups as diverse as the Aurora Orchestra and the Alex Mendham Orchestra.
The Pinewood players share a love of film music and are inspired by the affinity between the Hollywood and London film industries. In addition to drawing upon the repertoire legacy of the great Hollywood Saxophone Quartet of the 1950s, the Pinewood Quartet creates its own arrangements and also incorporates jazz improvisation into its performances. The quartet take their name from the famous Pinewood film studios near London, where the ‘James Bond’ movies are made.
The quartet's CD recording, Hooray for Hollywood, released in 2024. The programme includes great cinematic songs like "Hooray for Hollywood", "That's Entertainment", and "Over the Rainbow", a set of Burt Bacharach songs used in films, music by Neal Hefti and Michel Legrand, Jack Marshall's Goldrush Suite which was written for the Hollywood Saxophone Quartet, and more.
Testimonials and reviews
"Thank you for a breathtaking and memorable concert last night. All the audience reaction has been most positive and enthusiastic and people were bowled over by the group’s virtuosity, your wonderful choice of music, and the skill of the arrangements... I am only too happy to help spread the word about how excellent your show is." - from the organizer of 'Air in G' concerts at Box Village Hall, Gloucestershire
"The London-based Pinewood Saxophone Quartet plays an enjoyable programme of music from classic Hollywood films.... the arrangement of Debussy's La fille aux cheveux de lin is charming, with the delicate soprano high above the other three saxophones voiced closely in their middle and low registers... the arrangement of Girl Talk has a gorgeous alto solo that weaves its way through beguiling chord changes... Don Ashton's arrangement of Over the Rainbow proves to be a highlight of the album, with a freshness of approach that makes us see this standard in a new light. It begins unobtrusively with just the tenor stating the melody, but then opens up to beautifully seductive chords from the whole quartet. You find yourself irresistibly swept up in the magic of a familiar tune transformed, with unexpected and delightful harmonic and melodic twists." - from a review of the PSQ's recording, "Hooray for Hollywood" in Clarinet and Saxophone magazine
For more information about the Pinewood Saxophone Quartet, please contact Kyle Horch via the contact page.