Jazz pianist Terence Collie announces new album DNA, out August 21

London-based jazz pianist and composer Terence Collie will release his new album, DNA, on August 21, 2026, through Adhyaropa Records. In an interview with UK Jazz News published August 17, Collie called the record, which explores identity, heritage and belonging, his "most personal work" to date.

Collie traced the album's origin to winning the MOBO Amplified Award with support from Help Musicians. "The catalyst was winning the MOBO Amplified Award," he said. "It gave me the opportunity to step back and think about what I wanted to do next." The term MOBO itself, and how it related to his own diverse ancestry, sent him researching his family history, including a third-great-grandfather who traveled from Scotland to the Seychelles in 1830, a story that became the basis for new compositions built around people, places and events from that history.

Collie said age and experience made the record possible now. "I think age has something to do with it," he said, adding that his previous album, the concept record Elements, taught him he could follow an idea without worrying whether it fit a category. "I'm on a roll," he said of his recent pace. "DNA is my fourth release since 2023."

On DNA he built strings into the group from the start rather than layering them over an existing piano trio, and added percussion to his lineup for the first time. "The grooves were as important to me as the textures," he said, describing percussion as another rhythmic voice alongside the piano, bass and drums.

His regular rhythm section, bassist Nick Lenner-Webster and drummer Ted Carrasco, plays throughout, joined by string players Ruth Elder, Clare Kennington and Jocasta Mudge of the London String Group and percussionist Cosimo Keita Cadore. Collie called the Seychelles memories behind the record more than a holiday destination: "I have very strong memories of going to the Seychelles as a child and spending time with my grandparents, uncles, aunts, and cousins," he said, memories that have become more important to him as much of that generation has since passed.

Collie launches the album at Crazy Coqs in Soho on September 10 with the Terence Collie Quartet and London Strings, then plays Kidderminster on October 2, Cardiff on December 3 and returns to Soho's PizzaExpress Live in May 2027. DNA will be available through Bandcamp, and readers can track it alongside other upcoming records on the release calendar or browse more of MusicSuey's jazz coverage.