Cassie Kinoshi

Cassie Kinoshi is a Berlin / London-based composer, arranger, and alto-saxophonist, as well as bandleader of eleven-piece ensemble seed. Her work breaks the boundaries between contemporary classical music, jazz, improvisation, and visual arts, notably film, theatre, and television.

Cassie’s production credits include Park Avenue Armory NYC (Euphoria), National Theatre (Top Girls, dir. Carolyn Churchill), the Globe Theatre (The Tempest, dir. Sean Holmes), BalletBoyz (England on Fire, Bradley 4:18), and the Southbank Centre (The Nutcracker, dir. Drew McConie). She has previously been a member of Nerja and Kokoroko, but now focuses on her role as a composer.

The recipient of a Mercury Prize nomination and an Ivors Academy Award, Cassie explores a vibrant range of themes through her music, from nature and cultural heritage to speculative futures and the collective human experience. She has been commissioned by major orchestras and ensembles including the London Symphony Orchestra, London Sinfonietta, and BBC Philharmonic. A Southbank Centre Associate Artist from 2025-28, Cassie was also Artist-in-Residence for the London Unwrapped Festival at King’s Place, driven by a deep interest in audio-visual and installation-based performance.

The writing and the organisation of the piece are excellent. Transitions from the full ensemble passages to the small group interactions are extremely well handled…

– UK Jazz News on Cassie Kinoshi’s four-part piece gratitude, written for her flagship large ensemble seed., also featuring turntablist NikNak and the London Contemporary Orchestra.

Education and outreach remain integral to her practice. Cassie has led workshops, community ensembles, and youth collaborations – including arrangements and direction for EFG London Jazz Festival’s She is Jazz: Womxn Make Music.

2026 sees the premiere of her work The Monster Trilogy as part of the Opera Forward Festival, followed by a tour of the Netherlands. Manchester Collective also performs a new commission ARTEFACT/AUTOMATON on their UK tour and the Sphinx Collective plays her work stillness: two meditations at the Aldeburgh Festival.