“As a toddler, it made sense to arrange pots and pans on the floor and hit them with various wooden spoons” – Since this early memory Torin has not gone a day without being involved with music in some manner. At the age of seven he made the natural progression from pots and pans to learning the drums and by the age of thirteen he had completed grade eight with distinction. It was at this point that Torin was accepted into the junior department of the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire and studied Jazz in the context of a small group under the tuition of Percy Pursglove and Mike Williams.
While studying Jazz drumming at the conservatoire, Torin began playing the guitar at the age of fourteen, inspired by musicians such as Jimi Hendrix and David Gilmore. Torin set out to play blues on the guitar, this lasted for a few years (including a period where he joined a grunge/rock band on guitar).
Despite becoming passionate about guitar, Torin continued to love playing drums, and at the age of sixteen, he had the honour to attend the National Youth Jazz Collective summer school where he was part of a small band coached by Gareth Lockrane and Cleveland Watkiss. Here, Torin also had the opportunity to play with the legendary Dave Holland.
At the age of seventeen, Torin was playing the guitar more and more. Due to the influence of the music that was being exposed to him every Saturday by Pursglove and Williams, Torin was moving away from the blues and began to start learning how to play Jazz on the guitar. This ultimately led to a fascination with harmony that resulted in Torin applying to the Conservatoire on guitar.
Since his studies began at The Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, Torin has had the the privilege to perform with top UK Jazz musicians such as Ross Stanley and Soweto Kinch. Torin has received tuition and attended masterclasses from the likes of: Jerry Bergonzi, Gilad Hekselman, Mark Guiliana, Arnie Somogyi, Mark Hodgson, John O’Gallagher, Mike Williams, Jeff Williams, Percy Pursglove, Jez Franks, Fred Baker, and Chris Montague.
Torin Davies 