James Banner – solo

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James Banner delivered a performance of striking intensity, his double bass erupting into sound and immersing the audience in the present moment. His solo playing unfolded like a sonic cosmos—vivid, intricate, and brimming with endless tonal fragments. Each note resonated with warmth and astonishing depth, revealing a spectrum of textures and colors. Banner remained an unobtrusive yet transformative force, his instrument weaving effortlessly through the collective sound. A performance of rare artistry, lingering in memory long after the final note.
Izumi Yamamoto, Archives Sonores

about/bio

James Banner, improvisor-composer based in Berlin, presents a sonorously rich improvised solo bass programme exploring long forms and short bagatelles, grating scordatura and aggressive tidal movements that come as much from his punk and heavy metal background as the improvised and contemporary experimental music scenes of which he is now a part. In March 2022 he self-recorded, designed and released his debut album digitally and on limited edition cassette and CD, which was featured in a profile by SWR2 (German national radio), and in the years since has been touring Europe performing solo and collaborating with local artists.

As an improvisor and soloist he has also been invited to be part of sound installations, festivals and performances with artists and collectives such as Outernational’s Songs of Wounding (with Mariana Sadovska), PODIUM Esslingen (#bebeethoven Festival), IMPULS Festival (Leipzig/Halle), Paula Doepfner (for the trees to drop), Berliner Festspiele (Miya Masaoka: Cubistics) and many more. He is also active as an instigator of original improvised music projects, commissions new pieces and collaborates with composers – in 2023 he workshopped/premiered works by Nick Dunston, Yaz Lancaster and Jamie Elless, presented his workshop on creating music for solo bass and improvising musicians at Leeds Conservatoire and Sheffield University, and premiered a new work by composer James Thomas.

concerts

2026 – EU TOUR TBA

2ND SOLO RELEASE TBA

booking

email info (at) jamesbanner.com

Releases

Upcoming: solo bass vol 2 (2025)

Live video

student workshop pieces

The workshop composing for double bass and improvising musicians has been presented at Leeds Conservatoire and Sheffield University. Students spend an intensive period (usually 1-2 days) working on instrument specific techniques and ideas, interpretation of material and the specifics of composing for improvisers. The result is AV documentation of their pieces plus a live performance. Please contact me if you’re interested in hosting this workshop at your institution.

online workshops / commissions / contemporary repertoire

In 2023 James commissioned Yaz Lancaster, Nick Dunston and Jamie Elless to compose solo bass works. The pieces were workshopped in accessible format online and then premiered in Berlin. This project was enabled through the GVL scholarship. James also continues to perform and record existing contemporary solo bass repertoire in order to continue the life of pieces beyond their first performance.