Espree

ABOUT ESPREE

Espree was formed in 1995 by five young funky musicians who wanted to break away from the world of dreary soulless quickstep function bands that were playing the circuit. Since then Espree has had a wealth of performing experience from Weddings in remote Scottish Castles to New Year’s Eve parties on the beach in Dubai. We are one of the UK longest running award winning party bands who have a proven reputation for professionalism reliability and great value for money performed by some of the most sought after and talented musicians in London.

Outstanding flexibility is the hallmark of Espree. Delivering everything from a solo cocktail pianist and jazz trio’s or quartet’s for lounge music over reception or dinner to a regular five-piece party band right up to an eleven-piece big band complete with brass section percussion and three vocalists.

Espree are one of the most flexible and versatile bands around and are suitable for any type of event including weddings corporate functions out-door festivals awards ceremonies and international events and can arrange their sets and band size to suit.

A sound engineer and complimentary DJ are provided as standard to any booking no matter how small and you can also use the Espree Duo - two female singers performing as a cabaret or ABBA tribute act - either as a stand alone act or in conjunction with a band booking again completely FREE OF CHARGE with any band booking.

Espree can also perform easy listening/jazz music during dinner or reception drinks and the can perform as a trio quartet or quintet - this can be booked to perform before the bands main sets at an additional cost.

Espree’s repertoire includes music from artists such as Kool & the Gang Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson & The Jackson 5, James Brown, Sister Sledge and Jocelyn Brown through to more contemporary artists including Jamiroquai, Moloko, Robbie Williams, Amy Winehouse and Joss Stone - they can even throw in the odd Bon Jovi tune!!. Their material is so universally popular that Espree have performed all over Europe and as far a field as the Middle East and Hong Kong.

MEET THE BAND

John Meaney – Musical Director/Keyboards
John has been a piano player from an early age, he has a natural ability to know what will sound good and what will work for the band, in his current role of Musical Director he was a great addition to the Espree team. Although a great keyboard player, John’s style is primarily piano based, funky, cool and jazzy. Over the years John has worked with artists such as Suzi Quatro, Percy Sledge, Steve Harley and the Cockney Rebel, T Rex and French Superstar David Hallyday– he also runs his own successful production studio is a mean pool player.

Suzanne Miller – Lead Vocals
After studying theatre arts at the London Academy of Music and Drama, Suzanne began her career in musical theatre, performing for a number of years in West End stage productions before going on to support chart acts Alison Moyet and The Pet Shop Boys whilst working as an in-house session singer for EMI. During her singing career she has toured extensively along with session recordings for Radio and TV. Forming and running Espree has become a fulltime occupation for Suzanne and her powerful voice and easy going personality go hand in hand to make sure your night will be fun and filled with some serious partying.

Richard Finch-Turner – Bass Guitar & Backing Vocals
Richard has been a professional musician for 25 years, from childhood he was moved by the songs of Motown that his mum would play in her car, he believes it was hearing the bass-lines from those great songs that influenced his choice of instrument. Driving, funky, melodic bass-lines are his trademarks. He has worked with members of King Crimson and Level 42, and has played in musical situations from heavy rock to Arabic "rai" music. Richard is also an accomplished singer, having been trained as an operatic baritone and he also teaches singing at college and school.

Mike Connolly - Drums
Mike has been occupying the drum chair of Espree for 5 years now. His sense of groove, his impeccable timing and metronomic tempo are perfect for a party band like Espree. With Mike’s driving beat underpinning the music, the dance floor is never empty for long. Varying in style from jazz to rock, his drumming style always has a great feel and sense of swing.

Chris Thorn - Lead Guitar
Chris was the first person to join Suzanne’s new band Espree when it was formed in 1995. Chris has been involved with several originals projects over the years, including the Jazz Hearts and jazz singer Liane Carrol. He has a very unique approach to guitar playing and can always be counted on for interesting interpretations of classic songs.

STYLE - GENRE - VERSATILITY

Espree is a five piece band consisting of guitar bass keyboards and drums plus one female singer. They perform all the classic dance floor fillers with exceptional energy. However the band is also able to offer the following additional services:

Brass Section
The Espree brass section are fantastic musicians who collectively have played with some of the biggest names in the music industry. For amazing solos and the feel of a ‘real’ band you just cannot beat having a brass section and ours are second to none!

Solo Cocktail Pianist
Why not utilise the musicians who are within the band to add some extra pizzazz to your special day? Our Musical Director is also an awesome pianist and would be available to perform cocktail piano over reception drinks or dinner. He is also available to perform for your wedding ceremony and after ceremony drinks with a mixture of easy listening and classical pieces.

Dinner Jazz
Our Dinner Jazz set (aptly named Groove Armadillo!) specialise in background music with a difference going against the traditions of "Beard Jazz" and favoring a much more funky perspective perfect for a younger generation and the more individual event. The set includes songs by Jimmy Smith, Marvin Gaye, Herbie Hancock, Headhunters and Incognito. Can be booked as a trio, quartet or quintet with female vocals.

Female Cabaret or Tribute
Consisting of either two girl singers or a male and female singer, The Espree Duo is a popular choice for smaller venues and budgets. Having performed at corporate and private events all over the UK as well as regular 10 day hotel contracts in Europe, the Espree DUO is designed to appeal to any age range audience at any venue. The Espree Duo can perform a huge variety of different sets for your event including Swing & Jazz, The Swinging 60’s, Disco Dancing 70’s, ABBA, Jewish Music, Musical Hall & West End Theatre and a Modern Pop Party Set.

DJ
We provide, as a complimentary service, a professional DJ on every single one of our band bookings no matter how small the band or the event.
Our DJ’s are brilliant as not only do they liaise with the clients prior to the event with services such as Song Request Forms but they also play to the audience so you wont get Auntie Mavis dancing to ‘Your Sex is on Fire’!
The Espree DJ service will come with a radio microphone for speeches and as all our DJ’s also double up as crew for the main band there is no second lot of speakers and equipment taking up room and they work with the band to ensure that requested songs are not doubled up and announcements are made on time.

The Espree DJ really is an essential party of your booking and as its FREE there is no need to worry about this or indeed any part of your booking with this fantastic band.

UPGRADE OPTIONS TO CONSIDER

* Additional musicians, singers and dancers
* Jazz Quartet (instrumental) up to 1.5hrs over reception and dinner
* Jazz Quintet (instrumental) up to 1.5hrs over reception and dinner
* Jazz Quintet with female vocalist up to 1.5 hrs over reception and dinner
* Solo cocktail pianist over reception and dinner
* Solo sax player with backing over reception and dinner
* Female cabaret or tribute before, in-between or after band set (45mins)
* Larger 5000 watt or 10,000 watt PA system with crew
* Additional lighting and FX
* Staging
* Dance floor including black and white and interactive
* Starlight backcloth
* Projection and surround sound speaker system
* Theming and dressing of stage area

PAST CLIENTS INCLUDE:
Madame Tussauds
Thorpe Park
BG Group
Ogilvy & Mather
Silver Leaf Productions
BMW
BT
British Airways
Buckingham Palace
Instinct Events
Thames Luxury Charters
INEOS
Royal Bank of Scotland
Savoy Place
Hotusa Hotels (Spain)
McCarthy & Stone
Deutsche Bank
Legal & General
Pegasus Events
JP Morgan
Centrica
BALPPA
Clever Media
Accenture
Victoria Park Plaza
Sizer
BCCA
Kingston Business School
The Mermaid Theatre
DHL Europe
The Hotel Radisson SAS (Amsterdam)
Luttrellstown Castle (Dublin)
Orange, NHS Trust
Virgin Holidays
Botanical Gardens (Birmingham)
GlaxoSmithKline
Hampton Court Palace
The Metropolitan Police
The Ritz Hotel (London)
The Hilton Hotels
L’Horizon Hotel (Jersey)
Café de Paris (London)
The Fashion Café (London)
Formica, Harrods
The Natural History Museum
SONY
Mandarin Oriental Hotel
IKEA
Plus many, many more

WHAT THEY SAY ABOUT ESPREE
The band were excellent – we had such a fantastic event and are delighted that the band are now being booked for our charity, The Maria Curie Cancer Care.
Warren Vaughan, McCarthy & Stone
Five Lakes Resort, Essex

Everyone enjoyed the band, they got people up and dancing. is the third time that we have used the band and would not hesitate to use again or recommend to others.
Maria Mills, Ashford & St. Peters Hospital NHS Trust
The Hilton Hotel, Surrey

Excellent as always
Louise Baldock – Senior Event Manager, JP Morgan, London
Old Billingsgate, London

We have had letters from guests who said that it was the best industry event that they have attended in years
Formica
Madame Tussauds, London

The band were excellent and couldn't have been more friendly. I don't think there was ever a shortage of people on the dance floor at any point.
IKEA
Airport House