Collection: Jackson, Jonathan

Jonathan Jackson began playing the trumpet in primary school and later switched to the clarinet. After discovering the Beatles, he took up the guitar and played in various bands, all of which he was thrown out of. At university, where he studied geology, he composed some very bad songs and equally bad solo guitar music. After graduating, he lost interest in the electric guitar and started classical guitar lessons, continuing to write amateurish pieces in imitation of Liszt and Schumann and transcribing a lot of their music for guitar.

In the late 1980s he became interested in Japan, especially its literature and folk music. Some of his arrangements (Nine Japanese Folk Songs) were published by Ricordi, and Lemoine accepted his Trois Pièces du Folklore Japonais. His composing became less terrible, and with the help of Angelo Gilardino, three guitar works were published by Bèrben (Blue Caprices, Quattro Fughette, Suite).

From 1996 to 1998, he studied with the Indian composer John Mayer at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, graduating with an MA in composition. He pursued further post-graduate studies at the University of Wales, Bangor, focussing on music technology and electroacoustic music.

In 2010, Jonathan Jackson moved to Japan, where he now lives.