Background information From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

She has composed music for films, including her sister Gaylene Prestons most recent film "My Year With Helen" and the Theme to ABC TV's "Australian Story", which was used for the title sequence from 2000 to 2006. She has been a member of bands, including Midge Marsden's Country Flyers, Coup D'Etat (with Harry Lyon) and, in Australia, The Tribe. Originally classically trained, she has released over ten solo albums, often featuring her boogie-woogie piano playing. She sang lead vocals on the Coup D'Etat single No Music on my Radio.

She worked with theatre cooperative Red Mole, alongside their backing band Red Alert. Her work was documented by Sam Neill in the film Red Mole on the Road. 

Preston has composed music for films such as Illustrious Energy and Home by Christmas, as well as music for 'hundreds of documentaries'.

In 1988, she received the Best Music award at the New Zealand Listener Film and Television Awards for her score for Illustrious Energy. She has collaborated with her sister, filmmaker and director Gaylene Preston, for example composing the score for Gaylene's film Home By Christmas.

In 2016, Jan Preston broke both of her wrists in an accident, but they have now healed and she continues to tour Australia and New Zealand with her band Jan Preston's Boogie Circus.

Background information From www.janpreston.com/about-jan

I was born in Greymouth on the remote West Coast of the South Island of NZ. Our family had little resources or opportunity, but I grew up in an era where people would gather around the piano and sing together. From when I was very young I played piano while everybody sang along or played tea chest basses, eggbeaters, combs, violins, even an old saxophone. I had an Auntie who played honky tonk style, and heard Winifred Atwell along with early rock n roll on our old Columbus Radio in the kitchen. Playing piano from the moment I could reach the keys, and being spurred on by my older sister and brother who both played, I studied classical very seriously, becoming a star student, passing all my grades with distinction and gaining a very prestigious place (one of 4 students from the whole of NZ) to study a 5 year classical piano degree at Auckland University. Although I loved classical music, by the end of the degree I wasn’t happy to be a concert pianist or, more likely, a piano teacher.

So I cut off my hair, and moved to Wellington where I experimented with different styles of music, working in an independent theatre group and then rock bands. In 1980 my band, “Coup D’Etat” had a No. 1 hit with the song “Doctor I Like Your Medicine”, after which I moved across the Tasman to Sydney, playing in bands and piano bars as well as writing music for films. It was some years later before I found my own voice, as a boogie piano player and songwriter. So here I am, still resident in Sydney, but constantly touring to play festivals, concerts and shows around the world, (even a recent trip to China), and I am grateful for the success and musical path I have found. I am still enormously passionate about music and have so much more to play, sing and write!

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