Sam Dunn’s playing style balances the old and the new, informed by the language of the greats that went before him, but with an ear for contemporary improvisation and harmony. In November 2022 he was commissioned to write and perform music for the London Jazz Festival, with the Wandsworth Jazz Orchestra. In April 2022 Sam was one of the tutors and performers at the 31st North Wales International Jazz Guitar Weekend. Sam is a regular performer at jazz clubs including Ronnie Scott’s, the 606, Peggy’s Skylight and many more across the UK and beyond. In 2020 he led a trio for a series of gigs in Valencia, and recently performed in Cologne with Judy Carmichael, with whom he also toured Australia and played at the Legnano Jazz festival in Milan.
Sam plays with a veritable who’s who of British jazz, including Alan Barnes, Dave Newton, Michael Garrick, Al Wood, Dave O’Higgins, Simon Spillett, Nadim Teimoori, Kate Peters, Jamie Taylor, Jon Shenoy and many more. He also plays with singer-songwriter Nina Clark, in her Alpha band, whose album has just been released. Sam plays in gypsy jazz band ‘The Hot Club of Jupiter,’ and Karen Street’s quartet, and in ‘The Clock Winders.’
Sam recently accompanied Canadian bassist Olivier Babaz for an instructional video shoot for ‘Discover Double Bass.’ He is a graduate of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama (MMus Jazz) and Leeds College of Music (BAHons Jazz) and welcomes enquiries from prospective students, both online and in person. He is also the jazz guitar tutor at the Purcell School.
He plays a Sonntag Allegria, a gypsy guitar made by Rob Aylward, a 1966 Gibson ES175, a Collings i35lc, Benedetto Bravo Deluxe and a K-Line Telecaster. He uses a Mambo Amp, and for louder gigs a Fender GB Deluxe. He uses Thomastik Infeld strings and Hawk picks.
