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Bebop Spoken There

Trevor Mires: ''My mum is a Dean Martin fan: I'm not, so I would grab my skateboard and get out of the house whenever I heard "Everybody Loves Somebody, Sometime." ". (Jazzwise, April 2025).

The Things They Say!

This is a good opportunity to say thanks to BSH for their support of the jazz scene in the North East (and beyond) - it's no exaggeration to say that if it wasn't for them many, many fine musicians, bands and projects across a huge cross section of jazz wouldn't be getting reviewed at all, because we're in the "desolate"(!) North. (M & SSBB on F/book 23/12/24)

Postage

17957 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 17 years ago. 278 of them this year alone and, so far, 34 this month (April 14).

From This Moment On ...

April 2025.

Sun 20: Paul Skerritt @ Hibou Blanc, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free. Vocalist Skerritt working with backing tapes.
Sun 20: Salty Dog @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 7:00pm. Free. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Sun 20: Spilt Milk @ STACK, Exchange Sq., Middlesbrough. 7:00-9:00pm. Free. Nolan Brothers (vocal harmonies).
Sun 20: Tweed River Jazz Band @ The Barrels Ale House, Berwick-upon-Tweed. 7:00pm. Free.
Sun 20: C.A.L.I.E @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.

Mon 21: Newcastle Record Fair @ Copthorne Hotel, Newcastle. 10:00am. Going in search of the Buddy Bolden cylinder…
Mon 21: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.

Tue 22: Abbie Finn Trio @ Newcastle House Hotel, Rothbury. 7:30pm. Coquetdale Jazz.

Wed 23: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 23: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 23: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. CANCELLED!

Thu 24: Mary Coughlan @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead. 8:00pm. £33.80. Blues, jazz etc.
Thu 24: Darlington Big Band @ Dorman’s Club, Middlesbrough. 8:30pm.

Fri 25: Vasilis Xenopoulos & Paul Edis @ The Lit & Phil, Newcastle. 1:00pm. SOLD OUT! Duo performance.
Fri 25: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 25: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 25: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 25: Andrea Vicari Trio @ The Gala, Durham. 1:00pm. £8.00. Vicari (piano); Andy Champion (double bass); Russ Morgan (drums).
Fri 25: Jason Isaacs @ STACK, Exchange Sq., Middlesbrough. 4:00-6:00pm. Free. Vocalist Isaacs working with backing tapes.
Fri 25: Red Kites Jazz @ Land of Oak & Iron, Winlaton Mill. 6:00-9:00pm. Free.
Fri 25: Vasilis Xenopoulos & Paul Edis @ Yamaha Music School, Blyth. 7:30pm. £15.00. at the door; £14.35. (inc £0.35 bf) online, in advance.
Fri 25: Struggle Buggy @ The White Room, Stanley. 7:45pm. Rhythm & blues.
Fri 25: Paul Skerritt Big Band @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead. 8:00pm. £20.30., £18.00. All-star big band.
Fri 25: Andrea Vicari Trio @ Traveller’s Rest, Darlington. 8:00pm. Vicari (piano); Andy Champion (double bass); Russ Morgan (drums). An Opus 4 Jazz Club event.

Reviewers wanted

Whilst BSH attempts to cover as many gigs, festivals and albums as possible, to make the site even more comprehensive we need more 'boots on the ground' to cover the albums seeking review - a large percentage of which never get heard - report on gigs or just to air your views on anything jazz related. Interested? then please get in touch. Contact details are on the blog. Look forward to hearing from you. Lance

Friday, November 03, 2017

Ushaw Ensemble @ The Jazz Café - October 31. A Jazz North East ‘Schmazz’ presentation.

Paul Edis (MD/piano); Andy May (Northumbrian pipes); Ed Cross (violin); Rob Walker (drums); Graham Hardy (trumpet/flugel); Paul Susans (double bass); Graeme Wilson (tenor sax/bass clarinet/flute).
(Review/photos by Ken Drew).


Durham-born Paul Edis was commissioned by Ushaw College in 2016 to write St Cuthbert's Suite, a musical account of the life of St. Cuthbert, and so The Ushaw Ensemble was created. Its world premiere took place on March 18 at Ushaw College and was also performed the following day in Durham Cathedral.
Tonight, we were to be treated to another world premiere. The anticipation of hearing Edis's St Cuthbert's Suite in the second set was heightened by the presentation of a more recent three part suite in the first set. An introductory piece, The Sound of Achill, enabled us to become accustomed to the line-up where the inclusion of violin and Northumbrian Pipes provided a significant folk component to the overall sound, together with compositional elements covering a wide range of musical styles from contemporary classical music to jazz improvisation, with many other influences in between.


First set: The Sound of Achill began fully charged - straight in. A very lively tune with Northumbrian pipes distinctly in the mix and solos from May, Cross, Edis and Walker. Very tight playing!
Here and Now and Gone Forever. The three-part, 30-minute piece, was glued together with segues which meant the music flowed seamlessly, giving little opportunity for applause, but the audience's keen attention made up for that. 
We were treated to very strong solos all round, a mix of instruments where flugel and bowed bass were used to good effect, a range of rhythms from gentle, though bluesy to lively.  Wilson gave an extended solo, playing as good as ever, if not bettering it here, and the suite ended with a thundering drum solo from Walker.
Overall - a very pleasant and lively sound with the often occurring distinctively shrill sound of the Northumbrian pipes. Never too much, just nicely evident throughout the 3 sections.

Second set:  St Cuthbert's Suite. So, how to review a performance which has such a broad range of musical styles and influences drawing upon influences from jazz, folk and classical music, written by a well-respected local musician, performed by some of the best musicians in the North East, and by invitation from Jazz North East?
Well, the first set was a revelation as to how accessible this ensemble can be, and a good fore-runner to this ‘more established’ piece.

The programme notes (two full sides of A4!) were quite detailed and very helpful, providing a brief historical background and an outline to the musical progression of the Suite, making a useful and meaningful contribution to the overall performance.  The main musical instruments in a particular section were highlighted and an outline provided of the compositional thinking behind what was being offered. As MD, Edis occasionally conducted from the piano, becoming quite animated for a short but obviously intricate section. 

Here's a recap of the 11 sections, showing that a lot of research, and compositional thought as gleaned from the programme notes, had gone into this commission.

St Cuthbert's Theme - carried by the violin
A Shepherd From Melrose - Northumbrian pipes bringing a distinctive air of Northumberland.
 3 A Vision – with slower dreamlike qualities.
The Indefatigable Evangelist - the main theme carried by pipes/flute/trumpet followed by improvisations, the piece ending with an abrupt stop.
 5 Solitude - Bass with bass clarinet. Then the main theme developed by trumpet & sax. This ends the first part of the suite with the violin restating the main theme.
Many Miracles - Introduced by the drums, then the main theme emerges from the pipes/flute and trumpet.
The Death of Cuthbert - based around the main theme, accompanied by pipes & flute, trumpet & tenor.
The Vikings - Cuthbert's resting place soulfully depicted by the double-bass then overtaken by the free and frantic sound of tenor sax & drums to very effectively depict the invasion.
Seven Years Wandering - escaping the Danish invasions, wandering for 7 years, indicated by a varying time signature.
10 The Wonder Worker of Britain - Following Cuthbert's death, the main theme recurs in a Messiaen-like style.
11 Dunholme (now Durham) - mainly improvised, and including references to birdsong along the riverbanks of Durham.

The audience was engaged and appreciative, with good applause at the end of the performance. Paul had suggested we could clap during the Suite were we inclined to do so, but this rarely happened due I feel to the likely intrusion into the flow of the piece.

Overall, the musical styles were well chosen for the mood for each piece. Edis cites influences from composers as wide-ranging as Ellington, Debussy, Ravel and Messiaen, but with strong themes and the inclusion of improvised sections, this makes for a robust and wide-ranging piece. A sensory delight in fact! 
As was noted in the publicity: "Paul Edis is pushing at instrumental and stylistic boundaries to create something distinctive and wholly beguiling." How true that is.
Ken, 

Afterthought: This would be a delightful piece to hear played in a bigger acoustic space with an acoustic grand piano, somewhere in Northumbria of course. How's about Durham Cathedral, Lanercost or Brinkburn?  How's about adding a multimedia slide projection to depict the history as it unfolds accompanied by a live performance of the whole Suite? And how's about complimenting that with the first Suite being part of a ‘Son et lumière’ show? Whatever the future for these pieces - think big! The compositions, the performance and the overall impact warrant it.

1 comment :

Hugh said...

Great ideas, Ken. The Cuthbert Suite was premiered in a bigger acoustic space, the piano was electronic though

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