About Ian McGuire
From learning to play the Hammond organ at 14 years I have been a budding musician all my life but only joined my first band in my forties 2001 onwards. Since then I've been a gigging musician, performing as a keyboard player and backing vocalist, notably as a founder-member of popular Bristol covers band Tundra since 2006 and in 2024 adding a side project called Close Encounter, performing as a guitar duo.
At the end of 2025, when Tundra disbanded and Close Encounter ended, I launched as a solo act performing as Solo Encounter. This was a natural transition and an opportunity to perform with both keyboards and guitar and widen my musical offering to include popular synthesiser hits as well as traditional country and 'decades' guitar hits.
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I perform in pubs, bars, clubs and for private events in South Gloucestershire, Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and the quieter suburbs of Bristol. This gives you a clue that I prefer to bring my music to cosy country pubs rather than busy city centre bars!
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To give fullest sound during my performance I am accompanied by professional backing tracks supplying bass, drums and a few extra instruments to compliment my playing - this combination ensures my show is a rich musical experience of a wide variety of over 300 songs from genres ranging from country, to '60's, '70's '80's and '90's and even a few 'crooner' style songs! Please click here for my full set list - although I craft sets to suit each venue I am quite happy for venue hosts to specify which songs from my list they would like me to perform.
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As a new name on the local music scene it takes time to build up my gigs, and indeed I am happy for it to grow organically. Feedback from from venues and customers alike is nevertheless very positive with praise for my vocals being regularly received.
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Many of my local fans know me as 'The Owl Man' as I was a locally known British Owl Specialist and Wildlife Educator for 25 years working as 'Wild Owl', appearing on TV, radio and in various printed media over the years and giving hundreds of public talks as a professional speaker, so in one way or another I have always been 'on stage'. (check out my Wild Owl TV You Tube Channel if you like wildlife)
These days I like to let my music do the talking!
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Ian
