THEO MAY MUSIC
Theo May's New Album - Alive In The Forest Of Odd
"The dynamic is strong yet offers up space, it’s clever and clean ..... handled with delicious detail." - Steve Day, 2024
"Progfans might love this a lot, and there’s also classical music and jazz-fusion parts, so a really healthy fresh mix of aforementioned styles all throughout the album." - Gabor Kleinbloesem STRUTTER'ZINE
"A strong new release. The music borders on modern classical with Bulgarian folk influences. Beautiful." - Dereck Higgins online vlog
High octane and fiercely frenetic tunes inspired by Bulgarian folk dances contrast with dark and mysterious soundscapes and melancholic and lyrical pieces. Odd Unit’s first album is a weaving of vibrant and rich musical tapestry pieces that encapsulated many of Theo’s earliest influences. Theo states that “…getting variety into the suite of music was of paramount importance, so some of the pieces draw heavily on the sound world of the avant-garde and make use of experimental soundscapes, whilst others are immediately listenable, groovy and have strong ties to folk and modal jazz music.”
It is music of fierce intensity, featuring variety and scope of musical territory that will appeal to listeners from a wide range of musical backgrounds.
credits
Release date January 10, 2024 on Discus Music
Featuring Theo May: Violin and Compositions, Gustavo Clayton Marucci: Bb and Bass Clarinets, Will Bracken: Piano, Ali Watson: Double Bass, Alex Temple-Heald: Drums. With Francesca Brito & Jan Halen: Violins on Tracks 3 & 5, Cubby Howard: Cello on Tracks 3 & 8, Daniel Swani: Flute on Tracks 4, 10, 11.
Theo May’s Odd Unit
My original music for Odd Unit is a rich weave of the Jazz, Folk and Classical music which has always surrounded and inspired me- it’s difficult to pigeon-hole easily into any one genre, but people seem to be struck by its energy and enjoy the way it sits at the crossroads of musical paradigms they know and love.
Though led by my violin playing, it is the stellar line-up of young players from the London jazz and classical scenes who are responsible for the sound of the band.
High octane and fiercely frenetic tunes inspired by Bulgarian folk dances contrast with dark and mysterious soundscapes and melancholic and lyrical pieces. For Odd Unit’s first album, I wanted to weave a vibrant and rich musical tapestry of pieces that encapsulated many of my earliest influences.
For me getting variety into the suite of music was of paramount importance, so some of the pieces draw heavily on the sound world of the avant-garde and make use of experimental soundscapes, whilst others are immediately listenable, groovy and have strong ties to folk and modal jazz music. It is music of fierce intensity, but hopefully featuring variety and scope of musical territory that will appeal to listeners from a wide range of musical backgrounds. - Theo May
Theo May by Rupert Barker
Theo May Bio
Theo was born in the late 1990s surrounded by the rivers, cornfields and hedgerows of the north Wiltshire countryside. Inspired by his father’s love of jazz and extensive collection of music, he began teaching himself to play the violin at the age of 4. Formal training in music came much later, first at the southwest music school in 2009 and then in 2015 at the Purcell school of music in less than rural Watford. Following two years at the Purcell school, Theo studied composition at the Royal college of music in London with classical composers Mark-Anthony Turnage and Errollyn Wallen.
Growing up, Theo’s musical development was guided and supported by the legendary late Keith Tippett and his wife Julie, who Theo’s father had come to know in the 1980s and Theo was immersed in Jazz, free improvisation, folk and predominantly modern and contemporary classical music. This wide range of musical influences continues to inform and inspire his musical voice today.
His first major project will be the launch of his band Odd Unit, a quintet featuring music college graduates from London, playing all original compositions of Theo’s on their 2023 album ‘The Forest of Odd’. In addition to this, he is also working on an album of semi-freely improvised pieces with his father Greg entitled ‘Sound Islands’ as well as a new suite of new pieces for string quintet. In addition to his passion for composing, playing and band leading, he is also an instrument designer and builder and occasional palaeontologist with a lifelong passion for nature, art and craft.