Andrew Downing is a double bass player, composer, bandleader and cellist living and working in the creative music community in Toronto. Called a "21st Century Voyageur" (Geoff Chapman, Toronto Star), Andrew finds himself in some of the more interesting cross-genre musical situations in the Canadian music scene.
His most recent musical project is a seven-piece chamber ensemble in which Andrew's cello is joined by Aleksandar Gajic (violin), Joe Phillips (double bass), Kevin Turcotte (trumpet), William Carn (trombone), Peter Lutek (bassoon and clarinet) and David Occhipinti (guitar). The album also enlists the help of Quinsin Nachoff (clarinet), Jesse Zubot (violin), Tania Gill (celeste, pump organ) and Mark Duggan.
As a composer, Andrew's style is influenced by artists such as Igor Stravinsky, Duke Ellington, Olivier Messiaen, Bill Frisell and Charlie Haden with a healthy dose of country music, Turkish music, Jazz and The Blues. In addition to writing for his own group, he has composed or arranged music for The Prince George Symphony, The Art of Time Ensemble, Toca Loca, The Urban Arts Brass Ensemble and Runcible Spoon.
