Roo Geddes

Roo Geddes is a multi-instrumentalist, composer, and teacher from Glasgow, Scotland. He is fluent in a wide range of genres and is active within many musical communities. In June 2021, he graduated with 1st class honours from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and is currently enrolled in post-graduate study of jazz. 

 

The grandchild of professors at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Dance, Roo has been exposed to a rich tradition of Classical music his entire life with some of his earliest memories including exploring the magic of music at the piano with his grandfather. As a soloist he gave his concerto debut with the Glasgow Schools’ Symphony Orchestra, playing the Bruch Violin Concerto before performing É. Lalo’s Symphonie Espagnole with the Glasgow Symphony Orchestra in 2019. He is a passionate chamber musician and performs at competitions and festivals across Europe with his String Quartet and Piano Quintet. He has given concerts in venues from Buckingham Palace to the Albert Hall with several of Europe’s leading youth orchestras including the Joven Orquesta Nacional de España’, the Internationales Jugend-Sinfonieorchester Bremen, and the National Youth Orchestra of Scotland. Roo is also a dedicated composer and his work has been performed by institutions such as the Scottish Ensemble and the National Centre for Excellence in Traditional Music (Sgoil Chiùil na Gàidhealtachd).

 

Jazz has played a key role in Roo’s musical development in recent years. After studying with Mario Caribe and Paul Towndrow he has performed with ensembles including the Scottish jazz collective ‘Fat-Suit’ and his gypsy-jazz quintet ‘Romacaleo’. His Americana and Roots band ‘Awkward Family Portraits’ are heavily influenced by music of the Swing era and have just finished recording their second album, due to be released later this year.        

 

Roo first found his love for folk music when attending a fiddle camp on the Isle of Skye aged 11. He committed to developing this passion and has been heavily accoladed by competitions including the Glasgow Fiddle Championships (2015, 2016, 2017), the Rotary Young Musician of the Year (2016), The Niel Gow Scottish Fiddle Awards (2017), and the Scottish National Fleadh (2017). His Duo ‘Roo and Neil’ combine their shared experience across Classical and traditional Scottish music to create original music for fiddle and accordion. Their compositions are inspired by landscape and people, and by how music can evoke a sense of place and community. Their music was selected as a winner of Fèis Rois’ ‘In Tune with Nature’ competition and they were honoured to receive the Danny Kyle Award in 2021.

 

Roo is also involved in various outfits in the Bluegrass and Rock scenes including the ‘Black Denims’ and ‘Jonny Mac and The Faithful’ with whom he has toured many of the largest venues in the UK including the Manchester Area and the SSE Hyrdro, playing with acts such as Rod Stewart, Michael Ball and Alfie Boe. They will release their newest album with Decca Records later this year.

 

With a Distinction at Diploma level from the ABRSM in music teaching, Roo is in high demand as an educator and is employed by the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland', ‘St Leonards International Continuum School’, ‘Fèis na h-Apainne’, and the ‘Village School of Music’ as their Violin Instructor. He also enjoys working closely with private pupils in piano and composition. Teaching resonates profoundly with Roo and he wrote his most recent dissertation on the implications of a teaching practice on learner effectiveness.

 

Roo is passionate about exploring different artistic media and expanding his perspective as an artist. He has choreographed improvised music with modern dancers and works closely with the artist and painter Laurie O’Dowd, exploring the relationship between visual and auditory art. Laurie and Roo will host an exhibition in 2022 displaying twelve pairs of paintings and violin sonatas. There will be multiple live performances of the music throughout the duration of the exhibition.

 

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