Dinosaur

An eclectic jazz collective from London known as Dinosaur pushes musical boundaries under the direction of trumpeter and keyboardist Laura Jurd. Her longtime collaborators, among them keyboardist Elliot Galvin, bassist Conor Chaplin, and drummer Corrie Dick, form the core of the group. Their sound blends inventive jazz elements drawn from 1970s fusion, indie-folk traditions, and broad contemporary improvisational styles. Jurd, who earned a degree from the Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance in London, gained recognition as an instrumentalist by winning the Parliamentary Jazz Award in 2015. Esteemed ensembles including the Ligeti Quartet, BBC Orchestra, and Northern Sinfonia have commissioned works from her. Before establishing Dinosaur, Jurd put out two well-received solo recordings that included contributions from several future band members. The ensemble's first release, Together, As One, arrived in 2016 and received a nomination for the Mercury Prize.