Fleece Jazz

On Wednesday 14 August  The Oddgeir Berg Trio- £20

Oddgeir Berg Piano

Audun Ramo Bass

Lars Berntsen Drums 

“A piano trio to get truly excited about, a trio for the new millennium”– **** Dan McClenaghan, All About Jazz

Jazz trios named after the piano player give certain expectations, be it Horace Silver and his tender “Que Pasa” or Esbjørn Svensson and his Northern sounds; clarity and intimacy are common to these, with a hint of tonal melancholy.  These characteristics also present with Oddgeir Berg Trio, who are clearly familiar with a Scandinavian jazz tradition. 

The trio’s sound has been called “withdrawn and cinematic.” In this aspect they share a characteristic with another Norwegian piano group, the Tord Gustavsen Trio. A notable difference is Oddgeir Berg Trio’s more effusive embrace of electronics, which adds to the cinematic and atmospheric aspect of the sound. 

The trio has some other tricks up its sleeve though, most importantly an urgency for action, pace and adventure.   Here the Oslo based trio has more in common with Miles Davis’ Jack Johnson than Scandinavia’s Jan Johannson. The love of jazz and blues drive Audun Ramo’s double bass and the propulsive drum sound of Lars Bentsen energetically support Oddgeir Berg’s playing. Berg’s curiosity in experimenting with Wurlitzer\Rhodes and synthesizer sounds sneaks into the soundscape and lends a distinctive colour to the sound panorama.

“Electroacoustic jazz with one leg in melancholy and the other in ecstasy.”

On Wednesday 28 August Tony Kofi and The Organisation – £20

Tony Kofi Baritone sax

Liam Dunachie Hammond organ

Simon Fernsby Guitar

Pete Cater Drums 

‘Kofi deals not so much with the past as with the eternal truths of jazz music - swing, in-the-moment lyricism, the lust for life - and he continues to find compelling ways to express them.’       (All About Jazz)

Award-winning and internationally recognized saxophonist Tony Kofi teams up with the ‘Organisation’ to perform a hard-hitting selection of tunes in blues, jazz and funk idioms. Having honed his skills in the "Jazz Warriors" of the early 90's, he has gone on to establish himself as a musician, teacher and composer of some authority. He has performed with such acclaimed artists as the David Murray Big Band, Courtney Pine, US3 (Blue Note), The World Saxophone Quartet and Roy Ayers.  Tony has also recorded with Ornette Coleman and worked with Abdullah Ibrahim. 

Liam Dunachie is a pianist, jazz organist, composer and arranger based in London. After graduating from Trinity College, Cambridge, Liam won a scholarship to study jazz piano and arranging at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama where he studied with Malcolm Edmonstone, Nikki Iles and Scott Stroman among others. He has since gone on to play piano and Hammond organ in groups led by Jim Mullen, Dennis Rollins, Derek Nash and Nigel Price among others. He has performed at all of  London's major jazz and commercial venues.

Simon Fernsby has toured extensively in the UK, Europe, the U.S., Canada and Japan, headlining such prestigious venues as The Royal Albert Hall, the Forum, Paris Olympia, the Whiskey a Go-Go and the Universal Amphitheatre Los Angeles. With the ‘Organisation’ he has worked with Steve Fishwick, Jim Hart, Alex Garnett and Dave O'Higgins amongst others.

Pete Cater is ‘a gifted and versatile drummer, at home in any context’ (Rough Guide to Jazz) His professional career of over 30 years has encompassed almost the entire musical spectrum, but it is his work as a big band drummer and leader that has secured his worldwide reputation. He is in regular demand with a variety of large ensembles including the BBC Big Band and the Back to Basie Orchestra. In addition, Pete has worked with many international jazz stars in small band settings including Arturo Sandoval, Charlie Byrd and Benny Carter.

"a killer band with real bite, especially when the heat was on" - Jazzwise