Christopher Hobbs studied with Cornelius Cardew at the Royal Academy of Music, London from 1967-69. In 1968 he founded the Experimental Music Catalogue, which was for some years the sole source of scores of British and Amercian experimental music. As the youngest member of the Scratch Orchestra at the time of its inception (1969) he designed its first concert in 1970.
He was a member of AMM 1968-71, of the Promenade Theatre Orchestra 1970-73, of the Hobbs- White Duo 1973-76, of the Hartzell Hilton Band 1987-89, and director of Assembly 1996 to date.
He has worked with fellow composers John White, Gavin Bryars, Michael Nyman, Christian Wolff, Cornelius Cardew, Brian Eno, Howard Skempton and Michael Parsons among others, performing throughout Europe and in the USA.
From 1973-91 he was Director of Music at the Drama Centre, London. From 1985 he has lectured part-time at De Montfort University, teaching piano, composition, music history, music in dance, improvisation, jazz, and the history of the musical, as well as directing various instrumental and percussion ensembles. He has held a variety of guest lectureships and residencies.
Apart from playing his own music and that of his contemporaries he has long been associated with the work of Erik Satie. In 1971 he gave a performance of Vexations with Gavin Bryars which has come to be regarded as a classic, and in 1989 he gave the first performance this century - and possibly ever - of the complete music for Le Fils des Etoiles (recorded on London Hall records).
