Born July 19, 1980 in Northamptonshire, England, Tom Arthurs graduated from City University, with a degree in music. Arthurs' trumpet playing soon began attracting attention on the London jazz and improvised music scenes. Winning the Peter Whittingham Award helped consolidate his burgeoning reputation. A member of the F-IRE Collective (Fellowship for Integrated Rhythmic Expression), Arthurs has been associated with Timeline and Robert Mitchell's Panacea in the integrated presentation of music, language, and movement. Among other musicians with whom Arthurs has worked and sometimes recorded are Pete Wareham and Barak Schmool (saxophone), Chartwell Dutiro (mbira), and Pete Lockett (percussion). He has also been associated with Kenny Wheeler, Norma Winstone, Bosco De Oliveira, and the salsa band Merengada. Arthurs, who draws inspiration from a very wide range of musical thought from early Miles Davis to traditional musical forms from other lands, has continued to extend his studies with, among others, Dave Douglas and Joe Lovano. In 2004, Arthurs worked with Toronto-based drummer Joe Sorbara in BluePrint and Squash Recipe. Other bands of his include Thirsty Ears and the quintet Centripede, whose acclaimed debut CD featured a selection of his original compositions. Arthurs' work exudes a lively spontaneity and for all its complex and often daunting musical directions, an air of infectious playfulness is layered pleasingly over the artist's consummate musicianship. ~ TiVo Staff, Rovi