Biography of Jan Kopinski

"Kopinski is one of Britains few authentic voices on saxophone" ..Hi-Fi News and Record Review

Jan is a saxophonist and composer who has followed a personal and singularly independent path. He specializes in improvisational music drawing on jazz and influences from Eastern Europe and contemporary music. For 20 years he has led a successful contemporary jazz group, PINSKI ZOO, regularly touring the UK, Europe, New York and Poland, playing at major jazz festivals, concerts and jazz clubs .
He has recorded several radio and TV broadcasts, 11 albums and several singles on various record labels, including live recordings from concerts in Poland, Austria, New York and UK.
PINSKI ZOO -“ a compelling power unique in English jazz”- The Wire
‘Jan Kopinski GHOST MUSIC’ features music from many of his commissions for visual work, with a distinctive evocative and personal sound.
-“ Ghost Music will convince doubters that Kopinski is one of Britain’s few authentic voices on saxophone” – Hi-Fi News & Record Review

Jan composes and performs to visual performances/film. Commissioned by The Arts Council of England to compose and perform music to accompany the screening of “Zemlya”(Earth), an early classic Soviet silent film,toured in 2004 and the resulting cd EARTH is available on this site.
A recent research and development award to study further in Poland led to collaborationswith Polish pianist/composer Wojtek Konikiewicz.. KOPINSKI & KONIKIEWICZ recently toured Poland and UK and a new CD – ZONE K- (Slam CD252)
Jan's first power-fusion outfit PINSKI ZOO is still operating to critical acclaim and has a 2006 double cd available - AFTER IMAGE
Musical interests ranging from Eastern European folk , John Coltrane , harmolodics, Penderecki and Szymanowski all drive Kopinski o seek new ways of bringing elements together in the various projets he works on.

-“Kopinski’s raw spookily hollow and haunting saxophone sound….this is music of character and bite” – The Guardian