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Bebop Spoken There

Abbie Finn: "Even though there's a lot of great work being done to promote women in jazz, I still come up against some attitudes! I pulled up at a recording session with my drums in the car and the studio owner said, 'I'm sorry, this space is reserved for the drummer!'" - (Jazzwise April 2023).

The Things They Say!

Hudson Music: Lance's "Bebop Spoken Here" is one of the heaviest and most influential jazz blogs in the UK.

Rupert Burley (Dynamic Agency): "BSH just goes from strength to strength".

'606' Club: "A toast to Lance Liddle of the terrific jazz blog 'Bebop Spoken Here'"

The Strictly Smokin' Big Band included Be Bop Spoken Here (sic) in their 5 Favourite Jazz Blogs.

Ann Braithwaite (Braithwaite & Katz Communications) You’re the BEST!

Holly Cooper, Mouthpiece Music: "Lance writes pull quotes like no one else!"

Postage

15245 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 15 years ago. 264 of them this year alone and, so far, 77 this month (March 25).

From This Moment On ...

March

Sun 26: Musicians Unlimited @ Park Inn, Hartlepool. 1:00pm.
Sun 26: More Jam @ The Globe, Newcastle. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 26: 4B @ The Exchange, North Shields. 3:00pm.
Mar 26: Pop Jazz @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. 'Jazzified' tunes by the likes of Sylvester, Bowie, the Monkees etc., feat. Alan Law, David Gray, Richard Herdman & Jude Murphy.
Sun 26: Outlines @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. JNE promotion (upstairs).

Mon 27: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm.

Tue 28: Paul Skerritt @ The Rabbit Hole, Hallgarth St., Durham DH1 3AT. 7:00pm. Paul Skerritt's (solo) weekly residency.
Tue 28: Sanaz Lavasani Trio @ Black Swan, Newcastle Arts Centre. 8:00pm. £12.00 (£10.00. adv).

Wed 29: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm.
Wed 29: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 29: 4B @ The Exchange, North Shields. 7:00pm.
Wed 29: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm.

Thu 30: Gateshead Jazz Appreciation Society @ Gateshead Central Library. 2:30-4:30pm. £2.00. All welcome.
Thu 30: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ The Holystone, Whitley Road, North Tyneside. Back to 1:00pm stomp off. Free.
Thu 30: '58 Jazz Collective @ Hops & Cheese, Hartlepool. 7:30pm. Free.
Thu 30: Lindsay Hannon: Tom Waits for No Man @ Harbour View, Sunderland. 8:00pm.
Thu 30: Tees Hot Club @ Dorman's Club, Middlesbrough. 9:00pm.

Fri 31: Lewis Watson Quartet @ Bishop Auckland Town Hall. 1:00pm. SOLD OUT!
Fri 31: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm.
Fri 31: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 31: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms, Monkseaton. 1:00pm. CANCELLED! Back next week (April 7).
Fri 31: Jasmine Myra + Waclaw Zimpel @ Cobalt Studios, Newcastle. 7:00pm.
Fri 31: The Revolutionaires @ The Shack, Boldon Colliery. 7:30pm. £10.00. The Revolutionaires' big band (horn section) line-up.
Fri 31: Andrew McCormack @ Maltings, Berwick. 8:00pm. £20.00.

April
Sat 01: The Big Easy @ St Augustine's Parish Centre, Darlington. 12:30pm.
Sat 01: Play Jazz! workshop @ The Globe, Newcastle. 1:30pm. Tutor: Steve Glendinning - In a Minor Key. £25.00. Enrol at: www.jazz.coop.
Sat 01: Hot Club du Nord @ Pleased to Meet You, Bridge St., Morpeth. 8:00pm. £79.00. A charity fundraising event.
Sat 01: Boys of Brass @ Stack, Seaburn. 7:00-9:00pm.
Sat 01: Rendezvous Jazz @ Red Lion, Earsdon. 8:00pm. £3.00. RESCHEDULED to next week (Sat 08).

Thursday, November 14, 2019

Sirkis-Bialas IQ @ King's Hall, Newcastle University - Nov 14

Asaf Sirkis (drums, percussion, konnakol); Sylwia Bialas (vocals, waterphone); Frank Harrison (piano, keyboards); Kevin Glasgow (bass guitar). 
(Review by Russell).

The IQ's second album featured during this afternoon's King's Hall concert. Our New Earth serves to showcase the compositions of the two principals - Asaf Sirkis and Sylwia Bialas - with committed contributions from pianist Frank Harrison and bassist Kevin Glasgow. Drummer Sirkis did the talking, Bialas did the singing, all four did the playing to an attentive audience.

Sirkis' fizzing sticks, Bialas' soaring, at times near-operatic vocals, Harrison's mature piano playing, Glasgow's precise six-string bass playing, IQ (that's the International Quartet) is a working unit of five years or so and it shows - a glance, a nod, a smile, they knew where they were going. 

Bialas' Nocturnity pressed the Polish vocalist's waterphone into action. Consisting of a resonator bowl, cyclindrical neck and brass rods, the waterphone or 'ocean harp' emitted a range of resonant sounds as Bialas first scraped across the rods with a bow then struck with a rubberised hammer. As Sirkis, Harrison and Glasgow picked up on the sounds echoing around the room Bialas' vocal explorations encompassed lyrical expression in the form of scat and vocalese. 

For those unfamiliar with the work of Asaf Sirkis, the Israeli born, London resident musician is a fine drummer. A treat on some of his gigs, as was the case here in Newcastle, is to hear him launch into konnakol Carnatic (south Indian) singing. Applause should have reverberated around King's Hall but, somehow, Sirkis' vocal dexterity met with silence - perhaps, on this occasion, it wasn't the done thing to show appreciation.

A two-part suite - Rooting and the new CD's eponymous Our New Earth - concluded the performance which went down well with the public and student audience alike.
Russell.

3 comments :

Patrick said...

If there is no applause - the audience didn’t like it

Russell said...

Patrick, the absence of applause during a performance doesn't necessarily indicate audience dissatisfaction. On this occasion Asaf Sirkis' brilliant vocal feature didn't prompt applause, principally because everyone present was transfixed, listening intently to the group performance.

Chris K said...

Russell, I think you're spot on. Furthermore, the audience didn't seem to be familiar with a jazz format ...there was no applause for any individual solo effort, even the more conventional keyboard and bass. There was, however, sustained applause at the end of each song!

This was justified as this was a remarkably gifted outfit playing some remarkable music!

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