The Cambridge Buskers were a duo of

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

musicians, whose career began in the late 1970s and were subsequently called The Classic Buskers. They performed classical music humorously using many instruments, costumes and props. Michael Copley and David Adam Gillespie (Dag) Ingram met when they were students at

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

. According to the liner notes of their first recording, their musical association began when they found themselves at

Blackfriars station Blackfriars (), also known as London Blackfriars, is a central London railway station and connected London Underground station in the City of London. It provides Thameslink services: local (from North to South London), and regional (Bedford ...

without enough money for the fare to get home. In an attempt to raise the money from passers-by, they played ''

The Entertainer ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...

'' and ''

Eine kleine Nachtmusik (Serenade No. 13 for strings in G major), K. 525, is a 1787 composition for a chamber ensemble by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791). The German title means "a little night music" and is one of Mozart's most famous works. The serena ...

'' for a while, until they were asked to leave by a London Transport official. Subsequently, they gained international success with their performances and many recordings, and performed in over 20 countries and in 15 languages until September 2016, when they disbanded after an incident in Shanghai. It is reported that at one point a

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

comic strip was written about them. Ian Moore (now known as Ian de Massini), another Cambridge University graduate who is also an organist, conductor, composer and singer (formerly in King's College Choir, Cambridge), was the accordionist for the latter part of the Buskers' history. The Classic Buskers wrote their own arrangements, primarily of classical works by famous composers. Ian Moore played

piano accordion A piano accordion is an accordion equipped with a right-hand keyboard similar to a piano or organ. Its acoustic mechanism is more that of an organ than a piano, as they are both aerophones, but the term "piano accordion"—coined by Guido Deir ...

, used his voice, and occasionally other percussion instruments or props. Copley played a variety of woodwind instruments, including

flute The flute is a member of a family of musical instruments in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, producing sound with a vibrating column of air. Flutes produce sound when the player's air flows across an opening. In th ...

recorder Recorder or The Recorder may refer to: Newspapers * ''Indianapolis Recorder'', a weekly newspaper * ''The Recorder'' (Massachusetts newspaper), a daily newspaper published in Greenfield, Massachusetts, US * ''The Recorder'' (Port Pirie), a newsp ...

ocarina The ocarina (otherwise known as a potato flute) is a wind musical instrument; it is a type of vessel flute. Variations exist, but a typical ocarina is an enclosed space with four to twelve finger holes and a mouthpiece that projects from the bo ...

, and

crumhorn The crumhorn is a double reed , double reed instrument of the woodwind family, most commonly used during the Renaissance music, Renaissance period. In modern times, particularly since the 1960s, there has been a revival of interest in early mu ...

Discography

Some of these LPs were released under different titles in different countries. *''A Little Street Music'' (1977) *''Between Pub & Podium'' (1977) *''Not Live From New York'' (1979) *''Another Serious Album'' (1981) *''Soap Opera'' (1982) *''Music Abbreviation 101'' (1983) *''The Cambridge Buskers Handel Bach'' (1985) *''The Explosive Sound of The Cambridge Buskers'' (1985) *''The Cambridge Buskers Collection'' (2007)

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...

(Aust) Classics 480 0136 (4 CD compilation. Over 130 tracks, mostly from the above LPs)

References

External links

Official web site

Further information and photos
{{authority control English musical duos English buskers Musical groups from Cambridge Musical groups from London

Buskers Street performance or busking is the act of performing in public places for gratuities. In many countries, the rewards are generally in the form of money but other gratuities such as food, drink or gifts may be given. Street performance is pr ...

Musical groups established in the 1970s