biography
An unusually versatile and open-minded musician and composer, David Snell had early musical experience as a military bandsman. Shortly after, he took up the harp and would later become one of the instrument's leading exponents becoming famed for his creative, progressive approach and sheer virtuosity. He excelled not only in the field of classical music, but notably as a harpist in the worlds of jazz and pop music, subsequently becoming the first-call player for any jazz or pop recording session requiring this instrument.

His first professional post was as harpist with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, later joining the orchestra of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. During the 1960s, 70s and 80s he combined these activities with freelance playing for various London session orchestras, and in this capacity he has contributed to many film and television scores and chart successes. Snell's extraordinary musical versatility also saw him playing in the groups of respected jazz musicians such as Johnny Dankworth, appearing on the saxophonist's 1963 album 'What The Dickens!' alongside the cream of Britain's jazz talent including Tubby Hayes, Kenny Wheeler and Ronnie Scott.

Another area Snell was particularly active in was library music, composing many incidental scores for use in television, radio and film productions during the 1970s and 80s, for companies including KPM, Bruton Music, Parry and Josef Weinberger. In a similar manner to the music of American harpist Dorothy Ashby, a large percentage of Snell's library compositions from this period incorporated jazz-rock rhythms of the 1970s. While working for the music libraries he also played on the recordings of manu of the era's leading musical directors and arrangers such as Alan Hawkshaw, Keith Mansfield and John Cameron (it was Snell who played harp on Cameron's beautiful score for Ken Loach's 1969 film 'Kes').

Today, Snell still works as a busy professional musicician at the highest level, ranging from his duties as a conductor with The London Symphony Orchestra, The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and The Orchestre de Paris to conducting the scores for films including Çider House Rules', 'Emma' and 'Chocolat'.

In Davis Snell's work are heard, as in Dorothy Ashby's and Corky Hale's, the true benchmarks of jazz: block chords; single-line melody playing with subtle left hand comping; altered and substitute harmonies, comping or 'feeding' the chords as a guitarist or pianist under a solo instrument: fee-flying improvisation in the blue-note style of a fine jazz guitarist or pianist (the timbre of these instruments can be heard throughout his jazz appoach).