Xenia Porteous

Fast and furious improvisation on a knife edge is violinist Xenia’s idea of a fun night out.  Her career to date has included several TV and radio credits including with the BBC and ITV.  She’s performed at the O2 in London and the Royal Albert Hall, and plays regularly in a number of musical styles from classical to disco.  She’s a member of gypsy jazz quartet Hot Club Gallois, and has taken part in several collaborations for Brecon Jazz Festival with musicians from Wales, the Czech Republic and Argentina.

Although Xenia grew up with the violin she didn’t study at music college, believing the pressure of earning a living from music would take away the joy of playing. In 2013, in what she calls ‘a kind of pre-mid-life crisis’, she resigned from a comfortable finance job and escaped to South America for six months where she realised that music was too important to be just a hobby. She set up as Xenia Violin on her return and has been performing and recording ever since. When she’s not playing she enjoys dancing Argentine Tango and raising her family.

xenia@xeniaviolin.com

Women in Jazz