Anatole Muster

Doors 7:30 PM, Music 8:00 PM - 1 set of music

Line-up: Anatole Muster - Accordion Hugo Piper - Bass guitar King Ike-Elechi - Drum kit

About: Anatole Muster is in the process of re-defining what the accordion can do, and is actively bringing the instrument to a wider audience. The most obvious sign of that desire to experiment and innovate is what audiences see at his live shows: he plays not just the traditional button accordion, but also two additional instruments: a Laptop keyboard, and MIDI-controlled “breathalyzer” synth, a brand new invention that he has co-developed with engineer Elio Fistarol.

He is also building a global network of close collaborators with a wide range of musical leanings, from LA heavyweights Kiefer and Louis Cole to Tennyson from Canada and Matthew Field (Beatenberg, M Field) from South Africa, while also keeping a foot in jazz and fusion through leading bassists such as Hadrien Feraud from France and Federico Heliodoro from Brazil. Many of these important and formative connections have come from meeting people via Instagram messaging, and then discovering and gradually developing shared musical enthusiasms - “Internet culture shaped me,” says Anatole Muster.

His two albums have seen a rapid progression and a strengthening of his musical identity: after the release of “Wonderful Now” in early 2024, Muster found that it was the sections where he had been boldest in experimenting that received the most enthusiastic responses, which encouraged him to go for “the sound I really want to hear”. So the 2025 album ‘hopecore’ is a veritable tour de force. He skates effortlessly through hyperpop, 80s jazz fusion, Midwest emo, plugg, Brazilian jazz...and yet the style, the vibe which emerges – uplifting, optimistic, making light of complexity – is unmistakably Anatole’s.

He emerged in summer 2025 with first class honours degree from his time as a student on the jazz course at the Royal Academy of Music in London, an experience which above all gave him the chance to work with teachers who have mentored some of the most creative new voices in music, and who reinforced and encouraged his individuality.

As Anatole Muster’s collaborations develop, a distinctive, expressive, and perhaps above all joyous musical voice is emerging, and getting noticed. His total streams across all platforms approach ten million, and the audiences at recent live shows – two sold out shows at Ronnie Scott's, Rio Montreux Jazz Festival, a completely full Jazz Cafe album launch... – have been “genuinely excited” by this “crazy talent”.

Promoters and critics are noticing too: - “His unique way of blending this instrument with contemporary and urban sounds gives the accordion a new lease of life, and adds a fresh edge to his music, sometimes taking it into pop, soul or electro territory.” (Viviane Rychner Raouf, Montreux Artists Foundation) - “His effervescent playing really shines.” (Jazzwise). - “He knows how to communicate joy.” (UK Jazz News)