Ean Gidman was born in Manchester (UK). His love of music was obviously passed on at the cradle - his grandfather was a famous horn player in England. So it was then quite natural that he went on to study horn (and also flute which he had in the meantime also taken up) in London. He was the youngest ever to have studied there. Then along came the saxophones - he plays tenor, alto and soprano - which then turned out to become his favourite instruments. It was also during this time that his talents for composing and arranging were discovered. After studying he went over to Germany as a professional musician with the British army where he toured Europe for a few years. Since then he has played in a variety of bands and groups covering a wide range of musical styles. A few years ago he was also asked to work as a teacher at the

School of Music in Euskirchen (Cologne). This is also the home of the famous German Army Big Band, so it was destined to happen that some of the retired members from the legendary “Günther Noris Big Band” along with some still active musicians got to hear about Ean and his musical talents and incorporated him into numerous jazz, swing and blues formations. Ean also performs as a sideman with the recording artist Andrea Held, for whom he also writes the arrangements for all the live performances. On the theme of arrangements, Ean has just recently been booked as the resident arranger for the reknowned Ardo Orchestra, who are the accompanying orchestra on the WDR TV shows, in particular for the Dusseldorf Carneval. With so many activities taking place in continental Europe, Ean has his base near Cologne in Germany.

saxophon