Thursday 17 | 8.30pm
Charles Gayle / Han Bennink
Living in Downtown Manhattan since the 1960s Charles Gayle is a saxophonist, pianist, nowadays also a double bassist, sometimes a clown and radical musical performer yet still a man of great humility. It is sometimes hard to predict what he will do on stage. This is also true for legendary Dutch drummer Han Bennink, whose first recording was with Eric Dolphy in 1964. These two acclaimed performers have now found each other as duo partners – two free spirits who keep alive the idea of what jazz was once supposed to be.
Saturday 19 | 8.30pm
Coax Collectif Night
A night dedicated to bands from the French COAX stable; one of the most cutting edge and groundbreaking collectives currently working out of Europe, including bands such as Q.
IRèNe
IRèNE’s compositions and concerts are comparable to a cinematic drama, mixing contemporary experimental jazz with alt rock and electronic music. IRèNE also just recently won the extremely prestigious National Jazz competition at La Défense (best band & best composition).
Metal-O-Phone
Founding member of the COAX Collective, MeTal-O-PHoNe take jazz, gamelan, rock, improvised and repetitive music for inspiration. If Steve Reich joined Battles this is probably what it would sound like.
Sunday 20 | 7.00pm
Mopomoso
Daniel Thompson, Javier Carmona
Will Connor
Rising guitar star Daniel Thompson presents a new percussion-based trio with Javier Carmona (drums) and Will Connor (percussion). Intelligent detailed and engaging.
Motsol
The London debut for established Norwegian duo, Ståle Liavik Solberg (drms/perc) and Stine Janvin Motland (voice).
Tom Chant, Pablo Rega
Barcelona-based duo Tom Chant (sax) and Pablo Rega (guitar) in another London debut playing music that is both fiery and intense and covering the whole dynamic range.
Scatter
Favourites at festivals around Europe, but rearely heard in the UK – four of the best UK improvisers put together by guitarist Dave Tucker with Pat Thomas (piano), Phil Minton (voice), and Roger Turner (drums/perc). Sonic pyrotechnics of the highest order!
Steve Beresford, Satoko Fukuda
A highly rated and much loved duo, Steve Beresford (piano) and Satoko Fukuda (violin) make a welcome return to The Vortex. A perfect closing set to warm the heart and feed the mind – Imaginative, inventive and full of spirit.
Monday 21 | 8.30pm
Evan Parker, Peter Evans, Okkyung Lee
This trans-Atlantic, trans-generational trio first played together as part of Evan Parker’s 2009 residency at The Stone in New York. Cellist Okkyung Lee is well known for her dramatic technique, which incorporates a love of noise and elements from the outer fringes of contemporary composition. Her fearless attitude and voracious appetite for new musical situations has led to collaborations with John Zorn, Ikue Mori, Thurston Moore, and many others. Peter Evans has reconfigured the trumpet in the same way Evan Parker did the saxophone, revealing new sonic possibilities and future directions for the instrument. Together, their extraordinary instrumental techniques are transmuted through collective improvisation into music rich in imaginative and emotional resonance.
Tuesday 22 | 8.30pm
Ken Vandermark Fire Room
Ken Vandermark / Paal Nilssen-Love / Lasse Marhaug
A tempest of jazz-noise erupts on the Atavistic debut from Fire Room, a trio project between long-time collaborators Ken Vandermark (tenor and baritone saxophones), Paal Nilssen-Love (drums) and Lasse Marhaug (electronics). As core members of the initial lineup of Powerhouse, as well as numerous other adventurous small and large groups, these musicians know each other well. The telepathic vibe necessary to make free music really work is tested and expanded upon throughout, given Marhaug’s penchant for moodier, darker, yet still explosive forays on an array of vintage, contemporary and custom pieces of electronic gear.
Wednesday 23 | 8.30pm
Ken Vandermark Fire Room
Ken Vandermark / Paal Nilssen-Love / Lasse Marhaug
Saturday 26 | 8.30pm
Keith & Julie Tippett – couple in spirit
Keith and Julie Tippett are acknowledged as two of the most distinctive and original musicians in jazz and improvised music. They have worked together in larger ensembles such as Centipede, The Ark, Dedication Orchestra, Tapestry and Minafric, Viva la Black, as well as smaller ensembles such as Ovary Lodge, Mujician, The Dartington Improvising Trio, Dreamtime and a myriad of duos and trios with musicians from around the world. They have also won acclaim from the world of contemporary classical music with commissions from and for the Composers Ensemble, the Kreutzer and Elysian String Quartets, the BBC singers and the Apollo Saxophone Quartet. As they enter their 42nd year of marriage and making music together they perform tonight an evening of spontaneous composition; the architecture being complete only when the last note has drifted into silence.
