Monday 16 March 2009, 8pm
Mark Browne (Saxophones)
John Russell (Guitar)
Jon Samsworth (Trumpet)
Steve Nash (Percussion)
And
Rodrigo Montoya (Tsagaru-Shamisen)
Marcio Mattos (Cello)
Thomas Rohrer (Sax and Rabeca-brazilian fiddle)
An evening of Improvised Music conceived by Mark Browne and Rodrigo Montoya. Seven musicians with a variety of backgrounds, two groups, but also designed and balanced with the aim of also performing as a Septet.
The performers are:
John Russell continues to be at the pinnacle of theLondon improvising scene as a guitarist and promoter. Since1977, he has concentrated exclusively on acoustic guitars. Over the years, he has performed in duo with- John Butcher, Stephan Keune, Phil Minton, Evan Parker, Roger Smith, Gina Southgate and Roger Turner and has played with many larger ensembles. He organise the very successful monthly Mopomoso concertsat the Vortex.
Over 25 years Mark Browne has pursued a musical path in Improvised Music. Noted for an uncompromising approach to improvisation and has only occasionally venturing into other territories. His main instrument remains the soprano saxophone, which he augments with percussion, bird calls, whistles and small explosives. Over the years he has played with Adam Bohman, Martin Klapper, Robert Powell, Lol Coxhill, Mark Wastell, Hugh Davies, John Russell and The Unseemly Trio - “Comedy was not excluded, but not promoted. The vast array of instruments, some evidently home-made, created a sense of the bathetic, with sounds veering from the recognisable to the completely alien. At one point proceedings stopped whilst raw vegetables were noisily broken and consumed”.
Jon Samsworth is a younger musician equally at home with filmmaking, guitar playing, composition and seemingly unaffected by the dogmas associated with composition and improvisation. His meticulous execution, invention and economy on trumpet, recorder and percussion has won him much praise. He alsoperforms with "The Alpha Males" and Derby based "Dust Collectors".
Stephen Nashhas has played with Mark Browne in several groups, the only one of note being The Unseemly Trio, with Mike Adcock. His percussion playing was once described as ‘shamanistic’, which pleased him enormously. The only piece of music that he has heard from beginning to end is the National Anthem.
Rodrigo Montoya is from Brazil and came to London in 2008 with his Tsugaru-shamisen, a japanese instrument with three-stringed spike lute struck with a large plectrum (bachi). He started to play it in the Japanese area in his city of Sao Paulo where he played with japanese folk groups and also within of the experimental and improvised music scene. In Brazil since 2004 he is integrant of brazilianimprovised music group Abaetetuba. In London he has collaborated with London Improvisers Orchestra, Marcio Mattos, Ricardo Tejero, Javier Carmona, The Radioactive Ensembleamong others.
www.myspace.com/abaetetuba
Thomas Rohrer was born in Switzerland and has lived in Brazil since 1995. He plays saxophones, violin, and the rabeca, a large and rustic Brazilian violin. Started his musics studies as violinist and studied saxophone with Othmar Kramis in the Lucerne’s jazz college. His work is involved within improvised music, contemporary jazz, brazilian folk music and medieval music. He has collaborated and is part of various groups such as Sendebar (Medieval music's group), Saadet Türköz, Abaetetuba group (brazilian improvisers’ group), Duo Rohrer & Gianfratti, Satoshi Takeishi, Marcio Mattos, Phil Minton, Hans Koch, Catriona Mckayamong others.
Marcio Mattos : cello and double bass. Marcio moved to Europe from Brazil in the early 70’s and started playing at the Little Theatre Club in several of John Stevens' groups. Since then has performed, recorded and broadcast both in Britain and abroad in various groups with leading improvisers including Evan Parker, John Surman, Derek Bailey's Company, Dewey Redman, Roscoe Mitchell and Marylin Crispell amongst many others. Other projects have include the 'Bardo State Orchestra', 'Wooden Taps' with Maggie Nicols, 'Embers' with John Butcher, “The Transatlantic Ensemble” with Roscoe Mitchell, Evan Parker and others, Georg Graewe's Grubenklang Orchestra, Tony Oxley's Celebration Orchestra, LIO, A bass/cello and shakuhachi duo with Shiku Yano, and in Japan various groupings with Sabu Toyozumi.
www.myspace.com/marciomattosmusic
www.musiclay.co.uk
