Dennis Armitage


Dennis Armitage was a British pianist, saxophonist, composer, arranger, and painter. He was a member of the Hazy Osterwald - Sextett and mainly played the saxophone, although he learnt to play the piano at an early age.

Life

Armitage was born in Leeds, United Kingdom in 1928 and received piano lessons at the age of seven, performing at important events in Leeds at the age of fifteen. A year later, he would perform in his first big band.
While serving in World War II, Armitage was a member of the band of the Buff Regiment, touring England for two years. In 1951, he moved to Zurich, Switzerland and became a member of the Hazy Osterwald - Sextet. He toured with them internationally, gaining him and his group popularity. This lasted for fifteen years when he decided to work as a soloist, composer, and arranger, as well as working for various radio and television companies. As a composer, Armitage created several compositions for brass bands. He later worked as a jazz pianist in the Lucerne Festival and held jazz events in Lucerne. Armitage also recorded an album with Ueli Staub.
It was in those television productions that, in 1983, he met Marc Reift, a swiss music teacher, composer, producer, conductor and publisher. After meeting Reift, Armitage has published hundreds of arrangements and compositions with the "Editions Marc Reift".
However, Armitage's life wasn't restricted to music - he was also an artist under the pseudonym "Darmi". It is apparent that his works of art have a connection with his career in music.