Lauren WHARTON (Singer)
Born into a family of musicians and singers, Lauren's passion for music began at an early age. After studying music theory and piano for 5 years, Lauren taught herself to play the guitar in her teens.

She then formed a band called Lightness, consisting of a guitarist, bassist and drummer, where she sang and accompanied herself on guitar and piano. The group covered pop/rock classics and wrote some folk/rock influenced songs. The garage band adventure lasted 4 years.

In 2013, Lauren joined the reggae band Monkey Tree (a group of 7 to 9 musicians, including brass, percussion and drums) alongside her older brother, singer and guitarist, as a backing vocalist.

She recorded two albums of nursery rhymes for children in 2016 and 2019. Lauren joined Quintessence in October 2022, working alongside accomplished professionals to perform covers that are both rhythmic and sensitive.

Her musical influences include British pop, alternative rock and jazz.

Lena (Singer)
began her musical education by learning the piano at the age of 8 and started singing at the age of 10.

At the same age, she won her first singing competition, which inspired her to enter other competitions. Thanks to her participation and victories, she found herself appearing on television (mainly for France 2) representing young French talent singing in French.

Lena is equally at home as a lead singer and backing vocalist, in a wide range of languages; French, of course, but also English, Spanish, and Italian among others.

She has also sung backing vocals and lead vocals on several radio-programmed compilations: House Music (King Of House, Moonlight with Sandy Vee), French R&B (Maradja, Matt Houston), Dance Hall (Jessy Matador) and Electro House (Tom Snare, Art Meson, Miss Ketty).

Lena enjoys singing backing vocals both in the studio and live. Together with her partner in crime Jérôme Nigou, two years running in Lyon, they accompanied British and American funk stars of the 80s (Gayle Adams, Ladies of Skyy, Ronnie Canada, The Cool Notes, and Total Contrast to name but a few).

Lena has been honing her musical eclecticism for a number of years now, performing in France and abroad with groups such as Elixir, Miss Mina & Friends, Shine Live Band and so on.

"I had been working with Jérôme Nigou for quite some time when he asked me to join the Quintessence vocal project. This very simple musical approach (5 voices + piano) allows me to enrich my way of constructing five-part harmony, without a safety net(!) in front of an attentive audience.
What I like about this demanding polyphonic work is that it requires us to listen carefully to each other, to be extremely precise without artifice. In a way, it's just as precise as studio work. So my encounter with QUINTESSENCE was an obvious choice for me.
We wanted to give meaning to our harmonies on well-chosen standard tracks and give the public an idea of something that’s simply beautiful".

Jérome NIGOU (Singer)
discovered West Coast music at the age of 17, listening to ToTo, Michael McDonald, Christopher Cross, Bill LaBounty, Kenny Loggins...

He fell in love with all the voices, the incredible melodies, the great vocal harmonies, the sound of the Fender Rhodes and the incredible groove.

In 1994, he met Laurent Dencausse, a very talented singer-guitarist from Toulouse, when they studied English together at university and they have been great friends ever since.

They formed a band and covered the Beatles, Christopher Cross, Toto, the Doobie Brothers, Earth Wind & Fire, Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson... The duo still exists today! Jerome sings in several bands where he covers the songs of his "models". Especially since 2006 in the group H.U.M. with some excellent musicians.
Jerome released an eponymous album of West Coast compositions in 2009, which included a cover of a ToTo hit, 'Out Of Love', accompanied by François Latry on piano.
The legendary Bobby Kimball (original lead singer of ToTo) emailed him about his performance: "This is a truly gifted performance of Out Of Love ...".

Jerome performed the song live in 2012 with Jean-Michel Byron, who wrote and first recorded the song! Composing is an important part of Jerome's artistic career as he has worked as a songwriter and performer with many French and international artists such as Ted Llido, Magoo, Tom Hansen and Orion 2.0 among others.

"When Phil Wharton asked me to take part in the Quintessence project, I was more than enthusiastic. I love taking on new challenges and the idea of 5 people singing accompanied only by a piano was a challenge that lived up to my expectations. We started by choosing songs we liked, then working out the harmonies, creating new arrangements and rehearsing again and again to be as accurate as possible.
We had to listen to each other, learn to breathe and make the right inflections at the same time...
We've done a kind of musical goldsmith's work to give the audience something real and authentic in a musical world that is all too often fake."

Laurent DENCAUSSE (Singer)
Thirty years of singing and playing guitar, from raw rock to sweet pop, on stages as varied as his repertoire.

After years of singing just about everything, he recently took the plunge and wrote, composed and arranged his own album and became 'Random Koslow'.

In addition to the album, the last few years have been rich in stimulating projects, giving him the opportunity to work with some of the best musicians in the world, including H.U.M., Big Band Brass and Woodfolk. This year's premieres of Quintessence and the Timeless Toto Tribute have been the reward for those years of learning, allowing him to give his best to these two formidable groups.

"Vocal work has been a common thread throughout these years of music. Because there is no more intense emotion than the feeling of voices in harmony, covering your skin like a fabric with changing reflections. So to be part of the Quintessence adventure is something of an achievement. It's been such a pleasure to build up this repertoire; demanding, yes, but so carnal, so organic, so free of mask and artifice, and to be able to offer it to the public is without doubt the greatest reward of all".

Phil WHARTON (Pianist / Singer)
A passionate pianist and singer who has been immersed in music since childhood. He started in church folk groups, where he discovered his passion for singing.
His musical journey led him to write two award winning musicals in Scotland, which demonstrated his creative talent and ability to tell stories through music.
He also studied piano at the Toulouse Conservatoire, developing his technical skills. Over the years he has accompanied a number of well-known French singers, enriching his musical experience.
Quintessence is a new challenge : one piano and 5 voices.
A varied and demanding repertoire, but always with a lot of fun and a great sense of togetherness on stage.
The group's aim is to share fantastic songs with their audience and create unforgettable musical moments.
Phil loves music; it’s a big part of his life and his preferred means of communication.

"I am delighted to take you on this musical journey through the world of Quintessence."