Five Nick Ingman & The Czech National Symphony Orchestra

Composer, arranger, and conductor Nick Ingman's vast body of work bridges the gap between classical, pop, and film music, and he has worked with virtually everyone on the contemporary commercial music scene. Born in London, Ingman attended several schools in the city, including Westminster, where he met and worked with songwriter Andrew Lloyd Webber. An early song of Ingman's, "So Long Little Girl," was a pop hit in 1965. A year later Ingman began attending the Berklee School of Music in Boston, studying there for three years before returning to the U.K. in 1969, where he found work as an assistant to producer Norrie Paramor. Through Paramor he met Tim Rice and ended up writing several songs with him. Ingman went freelance in the early '70s and began a long association with the BBC, working as a staff arranger and conductor with the BBC Radio Orchestra. He also worked on arrangements for pop hits by the likes of Everything But the Girl, Sade, the Fine Young Cannibals, and other artists. In 1987 he joined the Jazz Department at the Royal Academy of Music, eventually establishing his own Commercial Music Department there. When British pop hit an upturn internationally in the 1990s, Ingman's arranging skills were much in demand, and he worked with such high-profile artists as Blur, Oasis, and Suede. His work on film orchestration also took off, and he was connected to such films as Shakespeare in Love and Captain Corelli's Mandolin, among others. As the 21st century began, Ingman worked with Radiohead on the group's influential OK Computer album and also contributed to projects by Madonna and Elton John, as well as the films Cold Mountain and Big Fish. Ingman has also produced countless easy listening titles for Bonneville, Greater Media, and the International Beautiful Music Association, which means it is virtually impossible to go anywhere in the known universe without the likelihood of hearing a Nick Ingman production. ~ Steve Leggett