All gigs take place at:
East Hastings Sea Angling Association
The Stade, Hastings, TN34 3JF
Doors open 7.45 for 8.30 start.
Tuesday 9th July
Hasting Big Band directed by Pete Hurt
Pete Hurt, Rob Leake, Jason Yarde, Greg Heath, Chris White
and Amy Leake: Saxes, Flutes and Clarinets
Graeme Flowers, Andy Baxter, Neal Bland, Martyn Van Galen: Trumpets
Mike Hext, Tim Wade, Rosie Wilcock, Phil Baxter: Trombones
John Donaldson: Piano Will Collier: Bass
Nick Smalley: Drums Phil Capone: Guitar
The stage will be full to the brim for this sensational gig by the 17-piece Hastings Big Band under the direction of the legendary British saxophonist, composer and arranger Pete Hurt (last seen at Jazz Hastings with Henry Lowther’s Still Waters in April). Pete has had a stellar career as a saxophonist but is perhaps most revered by his fellow musicians as a composer and as an arranger much influenced by the great Gil Evans. He has worked with many large ensembles, notably the BBC Big Band, and wrote the arrangements for the hit musical “Five Guys Named Moe”.
He’ll be leading a truly star-studded line-up, including on trombone Mike Hext, the first ever winner of the BBC’s Young Musician of the Year Award. On drums will be the much-sought-after Nick Smalley, a recent DFL.
There will also be some familiar faces from our very own Hexagonal, including Jason Yarde and Greg Heath on sax, Graeme Flowers on trumpet and John Donaldson on piano.
Tuesday 6th August
ODETTE
Odette Adams: Vocals and acoustic guitar
Kartik Raghunathan: Violin and vocals
Matt Chandler: Acoustic guitar
Dave Jones: Bass
Eric Ford: Drums and percussion
Odette’s first album, “A Shake Of The Hand” received this glowing review from Sunday Times music critic Clive Davis: “… a chain of sun-kissed original numbers full of the verve and energy of R & B but with none of its bombast or cliches”.
The style and spirit set by the album is given life by Odette’s wonderful band, with whom she has already completed two well received tours of Jazz venues and Arts Centres throughout the UK.
In a genre-obsessed world, Odette gives us some release into a free-er style that incorporates folk, jazz, world music and other influences from her very wide musical taste. Brand new songs will be introduced in this engaging live performance alongside established material.
Lyrically, Odette writes about everyday life from a more profound perspective and explores her passion for inner and outer well-being. If you’re a fan of Joni Mitchell or Erika Badu, you will love this! Not to be missed!
Tuesday 3rd September
LOUIS MOHOLO-MOHOLO’S FOUR BLOKES
Louis Moholo-Moholo: Drums
Jason Yarde: Saxes
Alexander Hawkins: Piano
John Edwards: Bass
An intriguing evening with the venerable South African drummer Louis Moholo-Moholo and his quartet Four Blokes, featuring longtime collaborators Jason Yarde (well known to Jazz Hastings devotees), Alexander Hawkings and John Edwards.
Born in Cape Town in 1940, Louis has been a seminal figure since his emergence with the legendary Blue Notes in the 1960s. Since then he’s played with classic line-ups such as Brotherhood of Breath and his own bands Spirits Rejoice and Viva La Black.
That last band became the first black group to tour South Africa, sponsored by the British Council, as the end of Apartheid and freedom became imminent and irreversible.
The other three ‘blokes’ in the quartet are also at the cutting edge of modern creative jazz. We know Jason as a highly sought after musician; Alexander and John have equal international reputations.
“Listen to the …quartet to understand how, in this music, the individual and the collective can simultaneously attain equal importance: a most elevated state of being” wrote one critic.
Tuesday 1st October
TWO OF A MIND
Chris Biscoe: Baritone Sax
Allison Neale: Alto Sax
Simon Thorpe: Bass
Matt Fishwick: Drums
Saxophonists Chris Biscoe and Allison Neale formed Two of a Mind to explore afresh the freewheeling, wonderfully melodic interpretations of standard material recorded 50 years ago by Gerry Mulligan and Paul Desmond on the classic albums Blues in Time and Two of a Mind.
Reflecting the line-up of the originals, the new band is a quartet of baritone and alto sax, bass and drums. It evokes the spirit of these classic recordings while giving free reign to the
personalities of the musicians.
Multi-instrumentalist Chris Biscoe has featured on baritone sax with such big bands as Graham Collier and the New York Composers Orchestra. American born altoist Allison Neale’s beautifully crafted lines evoke the spirit of Paul Desmond and Art Pepper, with whom she has a particular affinity.
They will be joined by bass player Simon Thorpe, well known to Jazz Hastings from Hexagonal. And by drummer Matt Fishwick, who has played in the UK and USA with Scott Hamilton, Jim Mullen, Anita O’Day and many others.
Tuesday 5th November
JIM RATTIGAN’S PAVILLON
Jim Rattigan: French Horn
Martin Speake, Andy Panayi and Mick Foster: Saxes
Percy Purseglove, Steve Fishwisk and Robbie Robson: Trumpets
Mark Nightingale and Sarah Williams: Trombones
Hans Koller: Piano Dave Whitford: Bass
Gene Calderazzo: Drums
Jim Rattigan is a rare thing in jazz: a French horn player – not many of them about – who for the last 19 years has also headed and composed for his own 12-piece group called Pavillon, each member of which can safely be described as “a player of note”.
He studied at Trinity College of Music and the Royal Academy of Music and for six years was a member of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. But during that time he was also always playing jazz.
He founded Pavillon in 2000 and has since recorded five albums. A sixth is in the pipeline. In 2016/17, the band enjoyed a highly successful Arts Council tour.
In a review, Dave Gelly in The Guardian described Rattigan as “a composer with a canny approach when it comes to combining the sounds of various instruments. The distinctive voice of the horn becomes familiar as it weaves among the saxophones and trumpets and takes its turn among the soloists.”
Tuesday 17th December
O’HIGGINS AND LUFT PLAY MONK AND TRANE
Dave O’Higgins: Tenor sax
Rob Luft: Guitar
Scott Flanigan: Organ
Rod Youngs: Drums
Jazz v
eteran Dave O’Higgins and young “firebrand” Rob Luft will lead a quartet featuring Thelonious Monk compositions (expect some rarely heard ones!) and tunes played by John Coltrane with especial reference to his choice of standards in the 1950s.
Both Monk and Trane were “modernists”, but also steeped in swing and the rich tradition of the beboppers. Dave and Rob intend to respect this lineage whilst putting their own mark on it. Expect some swing, fun, grooves and moods from this exciting new collaboration.
Dave has worked with some of the world’s finest musicians, including Jimmy Smith, Nancy Wilson, Peggy Lee, Stephan Grapelli, Jamie Cullum, John Dankworth, Cleo Lane and Frank Sinatra.
Rob, a 25-year-old Londoner, was named “Breakthrough Act of the Year” in last year’s Jazz FM Awards and was nominated “British Jazz Musician of the Year” in the Parliamentary Jazz Awards 2018.
They will be joined by Irish keyboard player Scott Flanigan and American drummer Rod Youngs, last seen at Jazz Hastings in February.