What I Do

I'm a violinist, musician, presenter, producer, writer, teacher, coach, speaker, researcher and entrepreneur.

Here are some of the things I do. If you'd like me to do them for you, get in touch!

Session Recording

I scrape on a wooden box and record noises that you can use to influence other people's emotions.

Live Performance

I scrape boxes and make noises in big rooms in front of lots of people.

Broadcast & Media

I scrape boxes, make noises and say things on Radio, TV, and Livestreams.

Orchestra

I scrape boxes on stage with lots of other box scrapers.

Film & TV

I scrape boxes, make noises, move about and occasionally say things whilst being followed by a film crew.

Teaching & Coaching

I teach people how to make noises by scraping on boxes. I also help other box-scrapers to self-reflectively develop their own noises.

Violin Coaching for Actors

I guide actors on how to realistically fake good box-scraping on the big screen.

Presenting & Speaking

I say words out loud in front of lots of people to make them think about things in different ways.

Conducting & Musical Direction

I wave my hands about in the air a lot whilst other people make noises.

Production

I make sense of super-chaotic complexities and bring them all together at the right time in the right place.

Workshop Leading

I engage hearts, minds and bodies through musical activities that open people's minds to new concepts and ideas.

Corporate Things

I make noises and experiences and other things that help big companies to inspire their people and customers.

Research

I use annoyingly long words to scope out precise meanings of complex academic issues, generate semi-useful insights, then run out of patience and fail to publish anything.

Past Work

As a violinist, I've had the pleasure and privilege to contribute to the work of many established artists and groups, including...

My brother Thomas Hewitt Jones the composer, and my longtime friend and creative partner David Worswick (ex-London Symphony Orchestra), who I met when we were both undergraduates at the Royal Academy of Music in London.

David and I (and pianist Daniel Swain) also toured for many years for Live Music Now (the organisation founded by Yehudi Menuhin and Ian Stoutzker). They do amazing work and if you don't know about it, you should check it out.

Years-long collaborations with Ramallah Orchestra/Al Kamandjati, Ramzi Aburedwan, Peter Sulski, Guildford Symphony Orchestra (Darrell Davison), and several other regular freelance collaborations with conductors and orchestras in the UK.

Recording and session work for Deltron3030 with Gorillaz/Jamie Cullum (including a live show at Glastonbury Festival), Massive Attack (Live With Me), Ed Sheeran (Divide album), Andrea Corr (Ideal World), Mitch Winehouse, The Kooks (Sway), Elton John (Royal Academy Tour), and many classical groups and orchestras.

Countless festivals and concert series performances especially in the UK ... I've completely lost track of where and how and what but at some point I'll go through my archive and add some details here but festivals included Gregynog, Swaledale, Henley, Spitalfields, and many music societies and concert series and similar things.

Project work has been a major part of my performance life, and some of the most interesting collaborations that I've been part of have included Towards Silence with the Medici Quartet and Sir John Tavener, and Green Hill with Antony Pitts and Tonus Peregrinus. With Antony and Drew Balch, we recorded extensively for projects in Palestine including Who Is My Neighbour? and other work that hasn't yet been released.

For years, I did lots of freelance orchestra and chamber orchestra things, mainly in London and Southeast England (especially at places like St Martins in the Fields and Smith Square in London). I've now completely lost count of how many times I've performed Vivaldi's Four Seasons, Bruch's Violin Concerto and the Bach Double, but ... hey, if you need a short notice stand in, it's worth giving me a call ...

I was associated for quite a long time with SFO outfit Classical Revolution in London and Berlin, and we ran many memorable club nights in London's Soho. At one point we wound up backing the Jazz Mafia's Brass, Bows and Beats on a tour that included the Newport Jazz Festival in Rhode Island. Epic musicians.

On stage/screen I've worked directly with several major opera stars, and on set for Kenneth Branagh, Judi Dench, and others. The art of 'standby' - listening and watching great artists at work - has taught me more than any degree I ever did!

Platforms

Indirectly, via random production companies, I have contributed to the output of ...

... plus most major UK and several European/American broadcast networks, and quite a lot of random media projects for productions for channels and concert halls and arts festivals and film companies and other things ...

Clients

Good souls in many reputed organisations have repeatedly persuaded their accounts departments to release hard currency in exchange for my expertise, including ...

Simon Hewitt Jones c/o 1st Floor Studios, 41 Whitcomb Street, London, WC2H 7DT, United Kingdom

T: +44 (0)20 3051 0080, E: info@simonhewittjones.com