Wednesday 11 February 2009, 8pm
John Butcher & John Edwards – Duo
Mike Hurley & Mark Sanders – Duo
JOHN EDWARDS
Since taking up the double bass in 1987 and playing with the Pointy Birds and the Cholomondeleys dance company-he went on to play with B Shops for the Poor, The Honkies and GOD as well as busking in the street and composing and performing music theatre with The Great Explorers. Since the early 1990s he has built a reputation as one of the finest, and most in demand bass players currently active on the British and European improv/ jazz and New music scenes- a first choice for musicians such as Evan Parker, Louis Moholo, Veryan Weston, Charles Hayward and Spring Heel Jack- Other groups include BRUISE and the Obliquity trio with Alan Wilkinson and Noble.
JOHN BUTCHER
"In the hands of London improvisor John Butcher, the saxophone can sound like anything, from a peice of hollowed out brass baubled with pads and valves to a hermetically sealed feedback system, a minature sound enviroment teeming with ever-evolving note forms, or a huge echo chamber inflicting dub scale damage on every breath."
The WIRE
MIKE HURLEY
Representing a younger generation of improvisers Hurley has quickly established himself as an original voice on the Free Jazz/Free Improvisation scene and has collaborated with a huge variety of improvisers. He is the co-founder with Bruce Coates of the Birmingham Improvisers Orchestra (BIO). He is the current brains behind the innovative Fizzle series of concerts in Birmingham and the brains behind a new series co-promoted by Birmingham Jazz at the Midlands Art Centre - The Invention Convention. Amongst his many collaborators are Mick Beck, Lol Coxhill, John Coxon, Paul Dunmall, John Edwards, Patrick Farmer, Christopher Hobbs, Bruce Coates, Paul Hession, Miles and Tony Levin, Tony Marsh, Pete McPhail, Neil Metcalf, Paul Rutherford and Mark Sanders. Regular ensambles include SCHH (Shaw/Coates/Hobbs/Hurley), Friendly Fire (friendlyfiremusic.com) He is also the percussionist of the band folk/punk group Mama Matrix.
MARK SANDERS
Mark has played with most of the Uk`s major improvisers including Derek Bailey, Paul Rutherford, Barry Guy, Lol Coxhill, Phil Wachsmann John Butcher and Keith Tippett.
He has also played with Roswell Rudd, (with Elton Dean`s Ninesense) Tim Berne and Ned Rothenberg (with Evan Parker) trios with Charles Gayle with Sirone and William Parker, Mark Dresser, Butch Morris` London Skyscraper, and John Tchacai and Leo Smith with Springheel Jack playing festivals in the UK, France and Portugal.
He has toured the UK and Scandinavia with and played Minniapolis jazz festival with Peter Brotzmann.
Mark has toured the USA and Canada and played in Europe Turkey and Japan with Jah Wobble and played in Europe USA and Canada with Evan Parker.
A member of many groups notably ZFP quartet with Carlos Zingaro/Simon Fell/Marcio Mattos and SPEEQ with Hasse Poulsen, Luc Ex and Sidsel Endresen and Phil Minton which in the last year has played Banlieaus Bleues, jazz D`Or, Cheltenham jazz festival, Le Mans festival, Jazz Sur L`Edre, Poitiers and Bordeaux festival.
