Corey Mwamba

Who is Corey Mwamba?

Corey Mwamba creates music using vibraphone, dulcimer, electronics and small instruments. His music contains elements of jazz, folk from different countries, and electronica. Corey was born in Derby and has lived there most of his life, with stops in London, Mufulira in Zambia, Southampton and Birmingham. He has a Chemistry degree and is virtually self-taught in music, having made the decision to take up vibraphone in his late teens after seeing a picture of Orphy Robinson in a book and taking five lessons with the orchestral percussionist Lewis Dyson. Mwamba's first playing experiences in music were with totally improvised music , the blues and trad/swing. Since then Corey has moved across the various boundaries of jazz and improvised music, working with the Tomorrow's Warriors, Andy Hamilton, the Master Drummers of Africa, Pat Thomas, Orphy Robinson, Lol Coxhill, Robert Mitchell, Tony Kofi, Steve Lawson, Scanner, Quantic, Arun Ghosh and many others. Corey was selected for an Arts Council Decibel commission in 2004; went through the PRSF/Jerwood Foundation's Take Five initiative in 2006; and was nominated for the BBC Jazz Awards Innovation category in 2008. Corey's educational work combines his interest in science (he has a Chemistry degree) and the world with music. He has worked with Creative Partnerships in Derby, Leicester and Oxford. He has also led community workshops and performed talks on the science of sound in many schools and cultural centres.