About Leon
As one reviewer once observed ‘being the best 5-string banjo player in the UK must be rather like being the finest cricketer in Virginia’. Leon Hunt has, for more than a decade, continued to confound that notion (and the many stereotypes that strive to confine the 5-string banjo to Bluegrass music) by making his living playing alongside some of the world’s top musicians from a number of musical styles, backgrounds and disciplines.
Since graduating from his ‘Music and Music Technology’ degree back in 2000 Leon has taken part in numerous ‘transatlantic’ projects and recordings, including Miles Apart (2004) Shuttle Diplomacy (2008) and Fishing Music (2009). These projects have included some of the biggest names in American traditional music; Viktor Krauss, Tim O’Brien, Stuart Duncan, David Grier and Matt Flinner to name a few.
Beyond proving his Bluegrass credentials, Leon has found himself in a diverse array of other musical settings; occasional live and/or recorded collaborations with Irish traditional music’s Michael McGoldrick, Lunasa, Cara Dillon, We Banjo 3 and Flook, African Kora virtuoso, Sekou Kieta, and English Folk singers, Kate Rusby and Seth Lakeman.
Leon has also enjoyed being part of several major theatre productions for The Royal Shakespeare Company, Birmingham Rep, and The New Vic (search the web hard enough and you’ll find a slightly disturbing picture of him in a powdered wig and tights!!!)
If all of the above name dropping means nothing to you then we’ll have to resort to that series of Anchor Butter commercials with the fuzzy felt cows, that was Leon too!