Five-Way Split

Biography

Five-Way Split is a jointly-led band formed in 2020 featuring some of the finest contemporary jazz musicians in the UK, fronted by renowned trumpet star Quentin Collins and Greek saxophone phenomenon Vasilis Xenopoulos. The rhythm section features the golden touch of pianist and composer Rob Barron, virtuosic bassist Matyas Hofecker and dynamic drummer Matt Home.

“Five-Way Split is a group of some of the finest contemporary musicians on the UK circuit who make a strong case for bebop and hard bop being a vital force in 21st century jazz” Nick Lea, Jazz Views

The band’s vision is to carry on the lineage of groups like Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers as well as mirroring the New York contemporary-bop scene. From this inspiration, the band presents a sound that respects the tradition of the hard-bop era whilst also bringing it up to date for today’s audience. With an extensive repertoire of carefully crafted and imaginative original compositions by each member , along with hip, swinging material by greats like Jimmy Heath, Cedar Walton and Horace Silver, Five-Way Split delivers a night of the best swinging and soulful music in town.

“Barron, Collins and Xenopoulos have collectively achieved a poised sound that is very
pleasing indeed” Peter Vacher, Jazzwise

The band members have collectively have worked with the likes of Al Jarreau, Kyle Eastwood, Stacey Kent, Harold Mabern and Barry Harris. They have played sold out shows at London’s Ronnie Scott’s & 606 Jazz Club, Pizza Express Live, as well as UK Jazz festivals like Swanage & Battersea. Their debut album “All The Way” was released in March 2023 on Ubuntu Music, and contains mostly original compositions by the band as well as a couple of choice arrangements of classic jazz standards.

Line-up:

Quentin Collins – trumpet
Vasilis Xenopoulos – saxophone
Rob Barron – Piano
Matyas Hofecker – Bass
Matt Home – Drums