Ski Oakenfull
Dominic '"Ski" Oakenfull' is an English music producer, keyboard player, and educator. His nickname "Ski" was given by his bandmates in The K-Creative who named him after the dance music artist Adamski. for pointblank Music School.
Career
Collaborations
Ski Oakenfull was a member of The K-Creative, who signed to Gilles Peterson's record label Talkin' Loud in 1991, and their single Feed The Feeling / Three Times A Maybe reached #58 in the UK Singles Charts in 1992. After the group disbanded, Oakenfull was a member of Raw Stylus, and then played keyboards with Galliano until 1997, and again on their 2024 album Halfway Somewhere. He has also performed with Incognito, Kylie Minogue, The Bays, and Milton Jackson.
Solo work
Oakenfull released his debut album Life Changes in 2000. Muzik rated it 4/5 and praised its mix of house, disco, soul and jazz-funk music styles. All Music rated it 3/5, and described it as "bringing back to life one of club/dance's most trendy circuits dating back to the early '90s." The album featured single Where Did The Love Go?, and Fifths, with the latter becoming the most played unplaylisted track on MTV Europe at the time. He also produces and releases music under the alias Ayota, a project that explores ambient, downtempo, and Japanese-influenced electronic soundscapes, blended with field recordings and vocals. The project's debut album, Helicopter Cuts, was released in 2007 on Third Ear Recordings in Japan where it became the Tower Records ambient album of the year.
Education work
In 2012 Oakenfull began teaching at pointblank Music School, and later became a Certified Trainer of music production software Ableton Live. He is now Head of Education and Curriculum at the school, where he oversees the design and management of its music degree programmes. Oakenfull is also widely recognised for his in-depth breakdowns of iconic tracks known as 'deconstructions' which he often presents live at festivals and conferences such as IMS, Sonar+, ADE, and AVA.
Record label
Oakenfull is also label manager and owner of Primaudial Records, an independent label he founded in the early 2000s to release his own material and selected projects by other artists. The label has served as a platform for Oakenfull's creative output, ranging from house to ambient and jazz.