Shirley Smart Trio
Eclectic jazz/world music threesome

“..some of the most inventive use of the cello I’ve heard for some time.” Kind of Jazz

Shirley Smart’s trio draws on an eclectic background to bring together her jazz, blues and world music influences. She is joined by John Crawford, one of the UK’s leading jazz pianists, who shares her interest in Latin and world influenced jazz, and by long term collaborator and flamenco master Demi Garcia Sabat on percussion. Their first album ‘Long Story Short’ was released in 2019 to critical acclaim.

‘ a superb set –  a sound world that is at once rooted in the ancient and traditional musics that it draws from in an utterly contemporary manner that also incorporates modern jazz.”: Jazzwise 

Shirley Smart is recognised as one of the UK’s most versatile and creative cellists – being equally at home and well versed in jazz and Middle Eastern music, as well as classical music.

Originally trained under Raphael Wallfisch at the Guildhall School of Music, and Janos Starker in Paris, she subsequently moved to Jerusalem, where she remained for 10 years, studying and performing a wide variety of musical traditions from the North Africa, Turkey and Middle East. She was also highly active on the jazz scene, working with artists including Avishai Cohen, Omer Avital and Yasmin Levy. Since returning to the UK, she has quickly become known as one of the most creative cellists on the music scene and has worked with many leading jazz and world music groups, including Antonio Forcione, Mulato Astatke, Gilad Atzmon, Neil Cowley, Julian Ferraretto, Robert Mitchell, Maya Youssef and Alice Zawadski.

Shirley Smart: cello

John Crawford: piano

Demi Garcia Sabat: drums/percussion

​“Smart’s playing is particularly remarkable throughout. She readily demonstrates a wide range of techniques incorporating an understanding of improvisation drawn from a jazz background and her extensive knowledge of Arabic maqam..” Songlines