SOLD OUT - Beats and Pieces + KAIROS 4TET BRIT JAZZ FEST DOUBLE BILL! Wednesday 3rd August

Great double bill with the Manchester based The Beats & Pieces Big Band, a 14 piece contemporary jazz ensemble led by Ben Cottrell and drawing on Loose Tubes, Radiohead, Matthew Herbert and more, in an adventurous, award-winning re-definition of the big band’s possibilities.

Playing opposite tonight are Kairos 4Tet - a free-flowing contemporary music quartet led by saxophonist Adam Waldman and featuring the sublime pianist Ivo Neame, bassist du jour Jasper Høiby and drummer Jon Scott plus special guest, London-based, Swedish singer Emilia Martensson– together they play melodic, rhythmically compelling modern jazz.

Biographies

Ben Cottrell : musical director

Sam Healey, Ben Watte, Anthony Brown : saxophones

Owen Bryce, Nick Walters, Graham South : trumpet

Simon Lodge, Tim Cox, Paul Strachan : trombone

Patrick Hurley : piano/Rhodes

Anton Hunter : guitar

Harrison Wood : bass

Finlay Panter : drums

The Beats & Pieces Big Band is a 14 piece contemporary jazz ensemble based in Manchester. The band released their debut EP in December 2009 on Efpi Records, an independent label run by three of the band members, and have performed across the UK to consistent acclaim. In March 2011, Beats & Pieces were named as the winners of the European Young Artists’ Jazz Award, part of the Burghausen International Jazz Festival in Germany. Winning the competition ahead of 4 other finalists from across Europe led to a gala concert alongside Chick Corea and Gary Burton, which was recorded for broadcast on German national TV and radio.

1.       Ben Cottrell            - leader

2.       Ben Watte              - saxophone

3.       Sam Healey            - saxophone

4.       Anthony Brown      - saxophone

5.       Tim Cox                   - trombone

6.       Simon Lodge          - trombone

7.       Paul Strachan        - bass trombone

8.       Owen Bryce            - trumpet

9.       Graham South       - trumpet

10.    Nick Walters          - trumpet

11.    Patrick Hurley        - keyboards

12.    Anton Hunter         - guitar

13.    Harrison Wood       - bass

14.    Finlay Panter          - drums

15.    Najia Bag                - vocals

“They couple gale-force collective energy and confidence to startlingly original material (most of it by its rising-star leader Ben Cottrell) that acknowledges big-band traditions while radically modernising them.” John Fordham, The Guardian

“Their performance would have reassured anyone who wonders whether the big band tradition can connect with a twentysomething audience that knows its Radiohead but thinks that Stan Kenton is probably a window-cleaner in Coronation Street” Clive Davis, The Times

“Beats & Pieces is to the big band tradition what Polar Bear is to the saxophone led quartet” London Jazz Festival

“If ever there was a big band that sounded perfect for the 21st century young person, Beats & Pieces is it” Peter Bacon, thejazzbreakfast

Growing from an initial meeting in early 2008, the band were invited to open the Manchester Jazz Festival later that year on the strength of a two track demo recorded at that very first rehearsal. In the autumn following their first gigs, the band were shortlisted for the Peter Whittingham Award for new and innovative work in jazz, a prize previously won by some of the brightest talents in the UK. Since then, the band have performed across the UK, notably on two highly successful tours in Summer 2010 and November 2010, and made their debut at the legendary Ronnie Scott’s Club in London in January 2011 in a sold out gig that received glowing 4-star reviews in both the Guardian and the Times. The Beats & Pieces EP has been listed in the monthly charts in Jazzwise magazine on several occasions, and tracks from the EP have been played nationwide on BBC Jazz on 3 and Jazz FM.

The members of the group are drawn from some of the most exciting and in demand young musicians active in the UK today. Most have played together in a variety of different contexts for many years, and came together from a shared need and desire to perform contemporary large ensemble repertoire which fully embraces their broad musical influences. In addition to the jazz canon, these also include the music of groups such as Polar Bear, Led Bib and Troyka; of groundbreaking larger ensembles such as Loose Tubes, Colin Towns? Mask Orchestra and the Matthew Herbert Big Band; and of revolutionary popular artists such as the Beatles, Radiohead and Björk.

The format of the band is an adaptation of the traditional big band line-up, consisting of 3 saxophones/reeds, 3 trombones, 3 trumpets, piano/Rhodes, guitar, bass and drums, as well as a laptop musician manipulating the sound of the band live in real time. All charts are originals by musical director Ben Cottrell, specially composed and arranged with the unique characteristics of each musician in the band in mind.

The band’s founder and musical director, Ben Cottrell, was chosen as one of 8 young creative musicians from across the UK to participate in the 2010/11 edition of the prestigious Take Five professional development scheme. The scheme is produced by Serious and funded by the Jerwood Charitable Foundation, the PRS for Music Foundation, Arts Council England and the Musicians’ Benevolent Fund, and its alumni includes musicians at the forefront of contemporary British jazz.

The Beats & Pieces Big Band is grateful to the Musicians’ Benevolent Fund for its support for their recent trip to Germany through an Ensembles and Groups Award

KAIROS 4Tet with special guest EMILIA MARTENSSON

“Under the leadership of saxophonist Adam Waldmann, Kairos 4Tet have found a melodious medium between traditional Jazz and the forward facing nature that typifies so much young British Jazz. The band’s compositions are open and accessible, but there’s no compromise when it comes to intuitive, intelligent playing and adventurous arrangements” MERCURY PRIZE RECOMMENDS

"Back with his fantastic second album 'Statement of Intent', tenor and soprano sax man Adam Waldmann's extremely able crew of bassist Jasper Høiby, pianist Ivo Neame and dark horse drummer Jon Scott, are all reaping the rewards of two years hard gigging. A formidable yet flexible unit, Kairos 4tet make free flowing contemporary music that packs melody, rhythm and high flying improv into a tightly wound whole. Hence you're as likely to leave whistling one of their many refreshing tunes as you are to be impressed by the group's compelling interplay and imaginative solo skills.****" JAZZWISE MAGAZINE

‘Statement of Intent’ is the hotly anticipated second release from Kairos 4tet - an album that has something to say by a band with a truly distinctive identity and vision. Their widely acclaimed debut ‘Kairos Moment’ was described by Jazzwise Magazine as “one of the most assured and melodically potent debuts of 2010” while BBC Music declared Kairos 4tet as “a powerful new voice in British jazz”. Now, after 2 years on the road and firing on all cylinders, Kairos 4tet are have released their second album ‘Statement of Intent’ on “the UK’s premiere Jazz label”, Edition Records to even greater praise with 4* reviews including MOJO Magazine, Time Out, Jazzwise Magazine and The Irish Times.

Kairos (καιρός) is an ancient Greek word meaning the right or opportune moment (the supreme moment). The ancient Greeks had two words for time, chronos and kairos. While the former refers to chronological or sequential time, the latter signifies a time in between, a moment undetermined in which something special happens. What the special something is depends on who is using the word. While chronos is quantitative, kairos has a qualitative nature. Kairos 4tet was born out of a desire to explore times past, present and future, creating music with a sense of space, between the competing worlds of written melody and in-the-moment improvisation. The band play the distinctive compositions of their leader and saxophonist Adam Waldmann, who has been described as "a young master in the making" by Time Out and a "precociously talented composer and player" by AllAboutJazz.com. Despite comparisons to some of his musical idols including Wayne Shorter, Charles Lloyd and former teacher Julian Arguelles, Waldmann's unique voice and approach on his instrument make him "one of the most distinctive saxophonists in the UK" according to the Manchester Evening News, while John Fordham of The Guardian stated in his 4* review that "Waldmann's luxurious tenor sound and poised phrasing are both tradition-rooted and restlessly contemporary”. In 2010 he was selected by world renowned Jazz and World Music promoters Serious for their groundbreaking initiative Take Five, joining the ranks of previous esteemed participants including Soweto Kinch, Seb Rochford, Kit Downes and Jules Buckley.

Statement of Intent sees Waldmann reunite with vocalist Emilia Mårtensson, owner of one of the most seductive and expressive voices in British Jazz. She is featured on the gentle waltz ‘The Calling’ to which she penned lyrics as well as the "beautifully haunting" ‘Maybe Next Year’, whose bespoke words come from the scribe of writer, director and star of stage and screen, Rupert Friend.

Kairos 4tet are a band passionate about the political, social and cultural issues that surround our everyday life. They strive to make music in an honest and personal way that somehow reflects the complex times in which we are living. These intentions resonate throughout Statement of Intent, from it’s bold opening title track – a rallying call for the positive reappropriation of political spin, on the funky dedication to comedian and activist Bill Hicks ‘Hicks’ to the hypnotic ‘Philosophy of Futility’, a term coined by the economist Paul Nystrom, that speaks of certain forms of cynical marketing. By way of contributing to the campaign to raise awareness of referendum on voting reform that took place on May 5th 2011 in the UK, Waldmann made the bonus track ‘Yes In May’ (a lively, urgent composition named after the campaign of the same title) available as a free download from www.kairos4tet.com

It is certainly not all politics though! The odd-metre groove laden ‘Me and You, 100°’ is an ode to a drunken friend’s conversation with a kettle; the multi-layered ‘Box Set Anti-Hero’ a take on the bizarre dream state induced by watching too many episodes of ‘The Wire’, while ‘Simpler Times’ is a wistful look at nostalgia.

Statement of Intent is the latest document of the journey of a band who are intent on telling their own story. A wide range of listeners have been drawn to Kairos 4tet’s music – be it jazz-heads, students or simply open-minded music lovers in search of something different. The band are now surging forward, continuing to hit hard, making a lasting impression.

THE MERCURY PRIZE RECOMMENDS "The set goes deeper than its widely praised successor 'Kairos Moment', with greater space given to individual solos and the band... sounding ever more dynamic in their musical dialogue."

* * * * MOJO MAGAZINE "...this superb group are terrific players inspired by thoughtful compositions. Waldmann's themes have a strength and clarity, underlined by his own calm, understated delivery"

METRO "Waldmann's troupe have resisted the zeitgeist to make music that is resolutely acoustic and unapologetically lyrical....Waldmann has a melodic gift as a writer and considerable grace as an improviser"

AllAboutJazz"....full of energy, inventiveness and melody, demonstrating a maturing musical sensibility, and placing the band fairly and squarely in the top flight of the UK jazz scene....Statement Of Intent is exceptional."

* * * * THE IRISH TIMES "...a superb group whose increased solo strength continues to be reinforced by intensely focused interplay... remains fresh and, for all its contemporary feel, accessible."

* * * * MANCHESTER EVENING NEWS "Adam Waldman is one of the most distinctive saxophonists in the UK...The Kairos Statement impresses with its sure sense of artistic purpose"

* * * * Time Out "Statement of Intent melds lush classical-ish harmonies with adrenalised improv, shimmering beats and purposeful grooves to bewitching effect...This is smart music that isn't trying to impress but does simply by its sheer quality, enticing you into the warmth of Waldmann's world"