ROD OUGHTON
DRUMMER COMPOSER EDUCATOR
"Oughton has established himself as an important member of the UK Jazz scene as both a player and a writer" - The Jazz Mann
“Oughton is 100 per cent talented as both drummer and writer” - Jazz Journal
“Oughton is a young London drummer with considerable technical proficiency, and a composer and bandleader of promise” - All About Jazz
Rod Oughton is an English drummer, composer and educator, currently based in London.
Current projects include Tomorrow's New Quartet, Imperfect Bread, OK Aurora, Tom Ridout Quintet and Sargento Pimienta.
As a sideman, Oughton has played all over the UK and Europe, as well as in Saudi Arabia, Dubai, Cuba and Brazil. He has toured with former Buena Vista Social Club member Javier Zalba, legendary British pianist Huw Warren and Irish pop sensation Hudson Taylor. Notable venues include Ronnie Scott’s, the Bimhuis and Cadogan Hall, and notable festivals include Love Supreme, Latitude and BST Hyde Park. He has also performed on London’s West End.
As a bandleader, Oughton runs OK Aurora and Tomorrow’s New Quartet, which both have albums released on the Ubuntu Music label. His compositions have been played on BBC Radio 3, BBC Radio Wales, Jazz FM and London Jazz Radio, and he was awarded “Editor’s Choice” by Jazzwise Magazine; the UK’s preeminent Jazz publication.
Oughton studied at the Royal Academy of Music (Junior Department), and completed a Bachelor’s degree at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama with 1st Class Honours. He recently completed a Master’s degree at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam, which has included a semester at EMESP Tom Jobim in São Paulo, Brazil. His teachers have included Gregory Hutchinson, Nenê, Jeff Williams, Martin France and James Maddren.
Oughton has worked as an Associate-Educator for the National Youth Jazz Orchestra, and has delivered Jazz workshops for schools and music services all over the UK. He co-leads the West Sussex Youth Big Band and the Wilshire Music Centre ‘Saturday Jazz’ programme. He is also an in-demand peripatetic teacher, and has formerly taught the children of Penelope Cruz & Javier Bardem, Paul Weller and Dido.
Oughton is also a D’Addario artist, and endorses Pro-Mark drumsticks and Evans skins, as well as Ludwig Drums and Bosphorus cymbals.