Audrey Riley is an English cellist and string arranger, based in the UK.

Career

Riley trained at the

Guildhall School of Music The Guildhall School of Music and Drama is a conservatoire and drama school located in the City of London, United Kingdom. Established in 1880, the school offers undergraduate and postgraduate training in all aspects of classical music and jazz ...

with Leonard Stehn. She was a

cellist The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a bowed (sometimes plucked and occasionally hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually tuned in perfect fifths: from low to high, C2, G2, D3 ...

for

Virginia Astley Virginia Astley (born 26 September 1959) is an English singer-songwriter most active during the 1980s and 1990s. Her songwriting career started in 1980. Her classical training influenced her as did a desire to be experimental with her music. Alt ...

from 1983 to 1986 and a one-time auxiliary member of

The Family Cat The Family Cat were a British independent band, formed in Stoke Newington, London in 1988. Three members were originally from Cornwall, one from Plymouth and one from Southampton. Career The band played live for five years and recorded three ...

. She has been a member of the post-minimalist band

Icebreaker An icebreaker is a special-purpose ship or boat designed to move and navigate through ice-covered waters, and provide safe waterways for other boats and ships. Although the term usually refers to ice-breaking ships, it may also refer to smaller ...

since 1989, and a frequent

indie Indie is a short form of "independence" or "independent"; it may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Gaming *Independent video game development, video games created without financial backing from large companies *Indie game, any game (board ...

session artist. During 2002/03, Riley embarked on her own project, entitled 'A Change of Light', a collaboration between musicians, composers and visual artist Philip Riley, with Andrew Zolinsky (piano), James Woodrow (guitar), Nick Allum (

The Fatima Mansions The Fatima Mansions were an Irish rock band formed in 1988 by Cork singer/keyboardist Cathal Coughlan, formerly of Microdisney. Career The original line-up consisted of Coughlan, Nick Allum, Jonathan Fell, Zac Woolhouse and Aindrias O'Gruama. ...

The Apartments The Apartments are an Australian indie band formed in 1978 in Brisbane, Queensland. The band split up in 1979 but reformed in 1984 and continued until 1997, with a new version of the band forming in 2007. Based in Sydney, New South Wales, the ...

, Cathal Coughlan) and Rob Allum (

High Llamas The High Llamas are an Anglo-Irish avant-pop band formed in London circa 1991. They were founded by singer-songwriter Sean O'Hagan, formerly of Microdisney, with drummer Rob Allum and ex-Microdisney bassist Jon Fell. O'Hagan has led the group s ...

Turin Brakes Turin Brakes are an English band, comprising original duo of Olly Knights and Gale Paridjanian, and long-term collaborators Rob Allum and Eddie Myer. They had a UK top 5 hit in 2003 with their song "Painkiller (Summer Rain)". Since starting ou ...

) both on drums, to present music for cello in an expanded recital. New works have been written by composers Gavin Bryars, David Lang, Steve Hillier (Dubstar),

Mark Brydon Mark Errington Brydon is an English bassist, guitarist, composer, arranger, recording engineer, remix artist and producer best known as a member of the group Moloko. Previous work He comes from Sunderland, England, but established himself in ...

(Moloko),

Emma Anderson Emma Anderson (born 10 June 1967) is an English musician. She is best known for being a songwriter, guitarist and singer in the shoegazing/Britpop band Lush. Musical career Born in Wimbledon, London, the adopted daughter of a former army offi ...

(Lush), Cathal Coughlan, Piet Goddaer (

Ozark Henry Piet Goddaer (born 29 April 1970 in Kortrijk) is a Belgian musician, better known by his stage name Ozark Henry. , he has released nine studio albums under the name Ozark Henry. In 2001, he released the album ''To All Our Escapes'' under the nam ...

David Gavurin The Sundays were an English alternative rock band, formed in the late 1980s, which released three albums throughout the 1990s. The band's beginnings came with the meeting of singer Harriet Wheeler and guitarist David Gavurin while attending ...

, Harriet Wheeler (

The Sundays The Sundays were an English alternative rock band, formed in the late 1980s, which released three albums throughout the 1990s. The band's beginnings came with the meeting of singer Harriet Wheeler and guitarist David Gavurin while attending ...

) and Damian le Gassick. After many performances in art galleries and venues in the UK, the project was recorded in 2003/04 for a combined CD/DVD release, with a second series being subsequently developed. She took part in the first performance of a new work "Views", music by Cage, performing with the experimental Japanese violinist Takahisa Kosugi and the composer Christian Wolff, which toured throughout Europe in 2005-6. In 2014, Riley has joined London music college

The Institute of Contemporary Music Performance The Institute of Contemporary Music Performance (ICMP, formerly known as the Guitar Institute), is an independent music education provider located in London, United Kingdom. The school currently has two sites, one in Kilburn and another in Queen ...

, as the tutor for the arrangements classes.

Work

As an arranger and improvising session cellist she has recorded for two decades with numerous groups including

The Style Council The Style Council were a British musical ensemble, band formed in late 1982 by Paul Weller, the former singer, songwriter and guitarist with the punk rock/New wave music, new wave/mod revival band the Jam, and keyboardist Mick Talbot, previousl ...

(''A Stones Throw Away''),

The Smiths The Smiths were an English rock band formed in Manchester in 1982. They comprised the singer Morrissey, the guitarist Johnny Marr, the bassist Andy Rourke and the drummer Mike Joyce. They are regarded as one of the most important acts to emerg ...

('' Stop Me''),

Nick Cave Nicholas Edward Cave (born 22 September 1957) is an Australian singer, songwriter, poet, lyricist, author, screenwriter, composer and occasional actor. Known for his baritone voice and for fronting the rock band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Ca ...

(on ''

Tender Prey ''Tender Prey'' is the fifth studio album by Australian rock band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, released on 19 September 1988 on Mute Records. Produced by Flood (producer), Flood, the album was recorded during several sessions over the course of ...

''),

Dubstar Dubstar are an English indie-dance duo,Note: An American indie hip hop artist has released some tracks and video via the Internet under the name "Dubstar", but is not connected to the band in any way. performing songs with hints of Britpop, dre ...

The Cure The Cure are an English Rock music, rock band formed in 1978 in Crawley, Crawley, West Sussex. Throughout numerous lineup changes since the band's formation, guitarist, lead vocalist, and songwriter Robert Smith (musician), Robert Smith has re ...

The Go-Betweens The Go-Betweens were an Australian indie rock band formed in Brisbane, Queensland, in 1977. The band was co-founded and led by singer-songwriters and guitarists Robert Forster and Grant McLennan, who were its only constant members throughout it ...

, Lush, the

Smashing Pumpkins Smash may refer to: People * Smash (wrestler) (born 1959), professional wrestler * Moondog Rex, another professional wrestler who briefly wrestled as the original Smash, before being replaced by the above. * DJ Smash, DJ and music producer Art, ...

(for whom she conducted the

Chicago Symphony Orchestra The Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) was founded by Theodore Thomas in 1891. The ensemble makes its home at Orchestra Hall in Chicago and plays a summer season at the Ravinia Festival. The music director is Riccardo Muti, who began his tenure ...

strings) and Dave Matthews (for whom she conducted the

Seattle Symphony Orchestra The Seattle Symphony is an American orchestra based in Seattle, Washington. Since 1998, the orchestra is resident at Benaroya Hall. The orchestra also serves as the accompanying orchestra for the Seattle Opera. History Beginnings The orchestra ...

in eight of her arrangements for the album

Some Devil ''Some Devil'' is the only studio album by musician Dave Matthews. It was released on September 23, 2003 on RCA Records. It has been certified platinum by the RIAA, signifying over a million copies sold. The album features several guest musici ...

), as well as live and television appearances with many others. Most recently she has contributed her playing and arrangements to new albums by

Foo Fighters Foo Fighters are an American rock band formed in Seattle in 1994. Foo Fighters was initially formed as a one-man project by former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl. Following the success of the eponymous debut album, Grohl (lead vocals, guitar) re ...

(''

Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace ''Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace'' is the sixth studio album by American rock band Foo Fighters, released on September 25, 2007, through Roswell and RCA Records. The album is noted for a blend of regular rock and acoustic tracks with shifting ...

''),

Coldplay Coldplay are a British rock band formed in London in 1997. They consist of vocalist and pianist Chris Martin, guitarist Jonny Buckland, bassist Guy Berryman, drummer Will Champion and creative director Phil Harvey. They met at University Col ...

(''

A Rush of Blood to the Head ''A Rush of Blood to the Head'' is the second studio album by British rock band Coldplay. It was released on 26 August 2002 by Parlophone in the United Kingdom, and a day later by Capitol Records in the United States. Recording started after th ...

'' and '' X&Y''), Feeder (''

Yesterday Went Too Soon ''Yesterday Went Too Soon'' is the second studio album by Welsh rock band Feeder. It was released on 30 August 1999 on The Echo Label. ''Yesterday Went Too Soon'' entered the UK charts at #8, after a decent amount of critical success. The tit ...

'', ''

Comfort in Sound ''Comfort in Sound'' is the fourth studio album by Welsh rock band Feeder, released on 21 October 2002 and also the first to be released by the band after the suicide of drummer Jon Lee earlier in the year. The album was recorded at RAK Studio ...

'' and ''

Pushing the Senses ''Pushing the Senses'' is the fifth studio album by Welsh rock band Feeder. It was released on Echo, Liberation Music and PIAS on 31 January 2005 in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and Europe, while being released on Pony Canyon in J ...

''),

Muse In ancient Greek religion and mythology, the Muses ( grc, Μοῦσαι, Moûsai, el, Μούσες, Múses) are the inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts. They were considered the source of the knowledge embodied in the ...

(''

Absolution Absolution is a traditional theological term for the forgiveness imparted by ordained Christian priests and experienced by Christian penitents. It is a universal feature of the historic churches of Christendom, although the theology and the pra ...

'', '' Black Holes & Revelations'', '' The Resistance'' and '' Drones''),

Moloko Moloko () were an Irish-English electronic music duo formed in Sheffield, England, consisting of vocalist Róisín Murphy and producer Mark Brydon. Blending elements of electronica and dance music, they are best known for their UK top 10 sin ...

(''

Statues A statue is a free-standing sculpture in which the realistic, full-length figures of persons or animals are carved or cast in a durable material such as wood, metal or stone. Typical statues are life-sized or close to life-size; a sculpture t ...

'') and

Fightstar Fightstar are a British rock band from London that formed in 2003. The band is composed of lead vocalist, guitarist and keyboardist Charlie Simpson, guitarist and co-vocalist Alex Westaway, bassist Dan Haigh and drummer Omar Abidi. Generally c ...

('' Be Human''). She has worked extensively with dance companies including

Siobhan Davies Dame Siobhan Davies DBE (born Susan Davies; 18 September 1950 in London), often known as Sue Davies, is an English dancer and choreographer. She was a dancer with the London Contemporary Dance Theatre during the 1970s, and became one of its lead ...

, Royal Scottish Ballet and Random Dance. Since 2001 she has toured with the

Merce Cunningham Mercier Philip "Merce" Cunningham (April 16, 1919 – July 26, 2009) was an American dancer and choreographer who was at the forefront of American modern dance for more than 50 years. He frequently collaborated with artists of other discipl ...

Dance Company performing

Gavin Bryars Richard Gavin Bryars (; born 16 January 1943) is an English composer and double bassist. He has worked in jazz, free improvisation, minimalism, historicism, avant-garde, and experimental music. Early life and career Born on 16 January 1943 in ...

'Bi-ped' and the solo work for cello, 'One 8' by

John Cage John Milton Cage Jr. (September 5, 1912 – August 12, 1992) was an American composer and music theorist. A pioneer of indeterminacy in music, electroacoustic music, and non-standard use of musical instruments, Cage was one of the leading fi ...

, in Paris, Mullhouse, Berlin, Dublin, Reykjavik, Bergen, Hong Kong, Brazil and at The Barbican, London.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Riley, Audrey Year of birth missing (living people) Living people English session musicians English cellists Alumni of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama Women cellists Marc and the Mambas members