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Bebop Spoken There

Branford Marsalis: "As ignorance often forces us to do, you make a generalisation about a musician based on one specific record or one moment in time." - (Jazzwise June 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

15491 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 15 years ago. 512 of them this year alone and, so far, 133 this month (May 31).

From This Moment On ...

Wed 07: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm.
Wed 07: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 07: 4B @ The Exchange, North Shields. 7:00pm.
Wed 07: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm.

Thu 08: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ The Holystone, Whitley Road, North Tyneside. 1:00pm. Free. CANCELLED! BACK ON JUNE 15.
Thu 08: Easington Colliery Brass Band @ The Lubetkin Theatre, Peterlee. 7:00pm. £10.00.
Thu 08: Faye MacCalman + Blue Dust Archive @ Cobalt Studios, Newcastle. 7:00pm.
Thu 08: Dilutey Juice + Ceramic @ The Ampitheatre, Sea Road, South Shields. 7:00pm. Free. A South Tyneside Festival event.
Thu 08: Lara Jones w. Vigilance State @ Lubber Fiend, Blandford Square, Newcastle. 7:00pm.
Thu 08: Michael Littlefield @ the Harbour View, Roker, Sunderland. 8:00pm. Free. Country blues.
Thu 08: Tees Hot Club @ Dorman's Club, Middlesbrough. 9:00pm.

Fri 09: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm.
Fri 09: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 09: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms, Monkseaton. 1:00pm.
Fri 09: Castillo Nuevo @ Revolución de Cuba, Newcastle. 5:30-8:30pm.
Fri 09: Emma Rawicz @ Sage Gateshead. 8:00pm.

Sat 10: Miners' Picnic @ Woodhorn, Ashington. Music inc. Northern Monkey Brass Band (3:00-3:50pm); New York Brass Band (4:00-4:55pm).
Sat 10: Front Porch Three @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:00pm. Free. Americana, blues, jazz etc.
Sat 10: Merlin Roxby @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A 'Jar on the Bar' gig.

Sun 11: WORKSHOP: Tim Richards' Jazz Piano Workshop @ JG Windows, Newcastle. Time TBC. Further details tel. 0191 232 1356.
Sun 11: Jeremy McMurray's Pocket Jazz Orchestra @ Ropner Park, Stockton TS18 4EF. 2:00-4:00pm. Free.
Sun 11: Am Jam @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:30pm. Free.
Sun 11: 4B @ The Exchange, North Shields. 3:00pm.
Sun 11: Groovetrain @ Innisfree Sports & Social Club, Longbenton NE12 8TY. Doors 6:30pm. £15.00 (£7.00. under 16).
Sun 11: Jeffrey Hewer Collective @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.

Mon 12: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm.

Tue 13: Paul Skerritt @ The Rabbit Hole, Hallgarth St., Durham DH1 3AT. 7:00pm. Paul Skerritt's (solo) weekly residency.
Tue 13: Infusion Trio @ Forum Music Centre, Darlington. 7:30pm.
Tue 13: Alice Grace & Pawel Jedrzejewski @ Black Swan, Newcastle Arts Centre. 8:00pm. £12.00 (£10.00. adv.).

Friday, November 26, 2021

Zakir Hussain concert brings a fitting and triumphant finale to the 2021 EFG London Jazz Festival @ Royal Festival Hall - Nov. 21

(Photo © Emile Holba)
Zakir Hussain (tabla); Sabir Khan (sarangi); Marcus Gilmore (drums); Abbos Kosimov (percussion).

The first half of his set saw Hussain, the critically-acclaimed Indian tabla master, collaborate with sarangi player Sabir Khan, wowing his audience at the RFH. 

They explored tabla repertoire passed down to Hussain by his father and guru, Ustad Allarakha Qureshi (1919-2000), popularly known as Alla Rakha. Rakha specialised in Hindustani classical music and was the accompanist of choice for sitar guru Ravi Shankar. Rakha greatly helped to popularise the tabla with audiences outside of the Indian sub-continent.

 

Hussain and Khan tackled the four movements of an absorbing raga which encompassed several spirited improvised passages. The four movements comprised Peshkar; an improvisation on established Kaida themes; a combination of ChhandChalan Gut and Parans (the latter two being 300 year-old traditional compositions); and a combination of Rau and Relas.

 

The chemistry and interplay between the musicians was infectious and well received by patrons who cheered at several points during the performance.

 

Sabir’s deft touch on the violin-like sarangi was apparent in his Lehra accompaniment role. This is a traditional role performed by a Sarangi player – producing a looping, repetitive pattern - which facilitated Hussain’s exciting flights of improvisational fancy.

 

(Photo © Emile Holba)
During the second half of the concert, Hussain and Khan were joined by the illustrious jazz drummer Marcus Gilmore and renowned Uzbek doyra (frame drum) and percussionist Abbos Kosimov. The quartet was influenced by Planet Drum, Hussain’s ever-evolving collaboration with the Grateful Dead’s Mickey Hart.

This portion of the performance explored the way in which Hindustani classical music repertoire, the jazz tradition and Uzbek drumming perfectly harmonise and compliment each other.

(Photo © Emile Holba)
It should also be mentioned that Hussain and Gilmore have had a fruitful musical partnership through the Rolex Mentor-Protege Arts Initiative: A philanthropic programme by the Swiss luxury watchmaker that has since 2002 paired legends in the disciplines of music, architecture, dance, film and visual arts, with promising young talent from across the world.

Gilmore’s drum solos were riveting as he worked his drum kit, melodically blending snare phrases, rim shots, bass drum and cymbals flourishes into the mix.

 

Kosimov was just as captivating playing several frame drums at the same time and holding audiences spellbound with other miscellaneous percussion instruments.

 

For their encore piece Sabir Khan played sarangi and rendered a folk song from the state of Rajasthan celebrating the Ghoomer festival.

Zakir Hussain led an extraordinary percussion summit bringing Indian, African and Central Asian percussive traditions together to demonstrate the oneness of humanity through rhythm.

(This review can also be accessed via US blog https://arstash.com/)

John Stevenson.

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