Celloman are a band led by cellist and session musician

Session musician

Session musicians are instrumental and vocal performers, musicians, who are available to work with others at live performances or recording sessions. Usually such musicians are not permanent members of a musical ensemble and often do not achieve fame in their own right as soloists or bandleaders...

 Ivan Hussey. Their music is described as a fusion of world

World music

World music is a term with widely varying definitions, often encompassing music which is primarily identified as another genre. This is evidenced by world music definitions such as "all of the music in the world" or "somebody else's local music"...

, jazz

Jazz

Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...

 and classical

Classical music

Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...

 with African and Middle Eastern rhythms

History

Ivan Hussey's musical career began when he joined the Reggae Philharmonic Orchestra at the age of 17. During his time with them, he appeared on two of their recorded albums and took part in tours of Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

, Jamaica

Jamaica

Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...

 and Europe

Europe

Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

. He then became a session musician, playing cello for recordings by Take That

Take That

Take That are a British five-piece vocal pop group comprising Gary Barlow, Howard Donald, Jason Orange, Mark Owen and Robbie Williams. Barlow acts as the lead singer and primary songwriter...

, The Spice Girls and Mick Jagger

Mick Jagger

Sir Michael Philip "Mick" Jagger is an English musician, singer and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist and a founding member of The Rolling Stones....

 amongst others, and also toured with Duran Duran

Duran Duran

Duran Duran are an English band, formed in Birmingham in 1978. They were one of the most successful bands of the 1980s and a leading band in the MTV-driven "Second British Invasion" of the United States...

 and Gabrielle

Gabrielle (singer)

Louisa Gabrielle Bobb is a multi-platinum selling, BRIT Award winning English singer, who records under the name Gabrielle. Gabrielle began her career temping during the day and singing for free in London clubs at night...

 in 1993 and 1994, respectively
More recently, he has worked with Bebel Gilberto

Bebel Gilberto

Bebel Gilberto is a Brazilian popular singer often associated with bossa nova. She is the daughter of João Gilberto and singer Miúcha. Her uncle is singer/composer Chico Buarque...

, Leona Lewis

Leona Lewis

Leona Louise Lewis is a British singer and songwriter. Lewis first came to prominence in 2006 when she won the third series of the British television series The X Factor....

, Gallows

Gallows

A gallows is a frame, typically wooden, used for execution by hanging, or by means to torture before execution, as was used when being hanged, drawn and quartered...

, Incognito

Incognito (band)

Incognito is a British band, as well as one of the members of the United Kingdom's acid jazz movement. Their debut album, Jazz Funk, was released in 1981, with thirteen more albums following, the last of which, Transatlantic RPM, was released in 2010....

 and currently tours with Natacha Atlas

Natacha Atlas

Natacha Atlas is a Belgian singer known for her fusion of Arabic and Western electronic music, particularly hip-hop. She once termed her music "cha'abi moderne" . Her music has been influenced by many styles including Arabic, hip hop, drum 'n' bass and reggae.Atlas began her career as part of...

.

Celloman began in 2001 with the release of Aquador on Ivan Hussey's own independent record label Jambila Music (formerly SPI). They have since gone on to release a further three albums and have played many gigs around the UK and Europe, including four appearances at Glastonbury Festival

Glastonbury Festival

The Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts, commonly abbreviated to Glastonbury or even Glasto, is a performing arts festival that takes place near Pilton, Somerset, England, best known for its contemporary music, but also for dance, comedy, theatre, circus, cabaret and other arts.The...

 between 2002 to 2006, Exit Festival, Womad

World of Music, Arts and Dance

WOMAD is an international arts festival. The central aim of WOMAD is to celebrate the world's many forms of music, arts and dance.-History:...

,Sauti za Busara and Glade Festival.

Members

Celloman's lineup for live performances generally consists of the following members, sometimes accompanied by guest performers:

• Ivan Hussey - Cello, Vocals
• Cosimo Keita - Drums
• Oroh Angiama - Bass
• Oli Savill - Percussion
• Samy Bishai - Violin
• Rosa Ullman - Keyboards

Guest vocalists and instrumentalists commonly appear on Celloman's recordings; such as on the single, Streets Paved With Gold, which featured The Urban Soul Orchestra

Urban Soul Orchestra

The Urban Soul Orchestra is a "collective of session musicians which numbers anything from four to 40 players, and is run by violinist and arranger Stephen Hussey." The Independent said of Urban Soul Orchestra: they are a "contemporary string ensemble with a repertoire of funky arrangements".Their...

, as well as Shaun Escoffrey on lead vocals.

Discography

• Sharptown (2009)
• Streets Paved With Gold EP (2007)
• It's All An Illusion (2003)
• Maya (2002)
• Paparai EP (2002)
• Aquador (2001)