Iain Ballamy Quartet feat. Huw Warren
Iain Ballamy – saxophones
Huw Warren – piano
Nick Pini – double bass
Mark Whitlam – drums
Listed between Chet Baker and Count Basie in Geoffrey Smith’s BBC publication ‘100 Jazz Greats’, Ballamy has a rare and beautiful sound on the tenor saxophone, both captivating and instantly recognisable. He’s truly one of the best…
Since emerging in the early 80s as wonderkid soloist with Loose Tubes, Django Bates and Bill Bruford’s Earthworks, he has established himself as a player and composer of note on the world’s jazz stages. He has also premiered concertos as featured concerto soloist with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic and BBC Philharmonic Orchestras.
Past highlights include concerts and recordings with Gil Evans, George Coleman, John Taylor, Cedar Walton and Hermeto Pascoal.
His remarkable quartet features world-class pianist Huw Warren, the marvellous bassist Nick Pini and Mark Whitlam, a uniquely versatile and gifted drummer.
The telepathic relationship with Warren is noteworthy and long-standing. The pair first collaborated when the pianist depped in Loose Tubes; together, later, they forged the sublime and unexpected trio Quercus with folk legend June Tabor, releasing two masterful albums on the ECM label, and appearing in the Jazz At The Arena series in Wolverhampton in 2015 to a sell-out audience. Boasting both effervescence and gravitas, Warren is a distinctive composer and bandleader in his own right, sharing with Iain a devotion to Pascoal and other Brazilian composers.
Ballamy’s own catalogue also includes three recordings for ECM with his experimental, electronica-laced outfit Food, plus hugely influential albums in his own name dating back to the brilliant 1989 release Balloon Man, showcasing his trademark tricky and often witty compositions.
His concert repertoire covers a great range and his programme will include past and present original works plus some unexpected re-workings of some classic songs that inspired his musical journey.
This gig replaces the original booking of Iain with Stian Carstensen, who has had to withdraw due to illness.
www.ballamy.com
Photo by Brian Homer
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