Wednesday 23 April 2025, 7.30pm
“Ever since I heard UK sax colossus Paul Dunmall with Keith Tippett’s Mujician quartet, I knew that there was something special, spiritual about his (tenor) sax playing. Nobody has a sound like him, he is in a class of his own!” – Bruce Lee Gallanter, Free Jazz Collective
Paul Dunmall / saxophone
Alex Bonney / trumpet
Liam Noble / piano
Steve Saunders / guitar
John Edwards / bass
James Owston / bass
Mark Sanders / drums
Miles Levin / drums
"…for range and intensity few contemporary artists in any idiom can hold a candle to Paul Dunmall" – Steve Lake, ECM records
"In this country I rate him above anybody; He’s a magnificent tenor player. What he doesn't know about it isn't worth knowing." – Alan Skidmore
"I have personally witnessed audiences in the UK, France, Austria and the US mesmerized and spellbound by his skill, technique, imagination and seemingly endless ability to create great music on not just all of the saxophone family but clarinets, flutes, bagpipes and invented woodwinds too!! If anybody deserves the word virtuoso it's Paul Dunmall." – Trevor Taylor, FMR records
“A robust and heavy hitting performer who has gone on to concentrate largely on free improvisation without sacrificing a rigorous melodic logic, a sparing lyricism and the technique to drop in on bebop occasionally.” – John Fordham, The Guardian
For 30 years Paul has carved out a reputation for himself and is now widely recognized as one of the most uncompromising and talented reed players on the International jazz/improvised music scene. Whether playing in Small or large groups, his musical sensitivity and imagination, combined with a powerful sound, make him one of the most distinctive improvisers playing today. He has performed with Alice Coltrane, Johnny Guitar Watson, Danny Thompson, LJCO, Mujician, Henry Grimes/Andrew Cyrille and a duo with Chris Corsano.
Liam Noble is a London-based jazz pianist, composer, educator, and recording artist. Noble has recorded and released several albums through Basho Records, including the acclaimed ‘Close your Eyes’ (1994), ‘In the Meantime’ (2001), ‘Romance Among the Fishes’ (2004), and ‘The Madness of Crows’ (2011), as well as collaborating with various notable musicians such as Christine Tobin, Marc Ducret, and Okkyung Lee. As well as being a successful recording artist, Noble holds acclaimed teaching posts at both Birmingham Conservatoire and Trinity College of Music.
Photo by Sean Kelly.
John Edwards grew up in London and started experimenting with the bass guitar before he switched in his twenties to play double bass. He is deeply rooted in the creative free jazz and improvisation genre. Since the 80ties he is as soloist and in many groups and ensembles in Europe active and became one of the most renowned bass players. He played/plays regular for example with Peter Brötzmann, Joe Mc Phee, Phil Minton, Maggie Nichols, Evan Parker, Roscoe Michtell, Louis Moholo-Moholo, Mark Sanders, Caroline Kraabel, John Butcher, Pat Thomas, Irène Schweizer, Hans Koch, Florian Stoffner, Gabriele Mitelli, John Dikeman.
"I think John Edwards is absolutely remarkable: there’s never been anything like him before, anywhere in jazz." - Richard Williams, The Blue Moment
Mark has worked with many greats of the British, European and American free jazz improvised music scene including Roscoe Mitchell, Roswell Rudd, Evan Parker, John Butcher, Henry Grimes, Elaine Mitchener, Wadada Leo Smith, Myra Melford, Charles Gayle , Sirone and William Parker
He has also played with Jah Wobble, Harold Budd, Bill Laswell, Christian Marclay, International Contemporary Ensemble, Ilan Volkov and The BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra.
He is a member of many working groups including duos with Nicole Mitchell and Rhodri Davies, Neil Charles' 'Dark Days' with Cleveland Watkiss & Pat Thomas, 'Last Dream of the Morning' with John Butcher & John Edwards, 'Shifa' with Rachel Musson and Pat Thomas and 'Sarost' with Larry Stabbins & Paul Rogers.
As an educator he has taught improvisation at many universities around the country as a lecturer and guest tutor.
Mark has played concerts and festivals around the world and appears on over 220 CD and Vinyl releases.
Mark was a recipient of the Paul Hamlyn Award for Artists 2024
"Drop the needle on the first track — or any track for that matter — and the first thing one is bound to notice is the amazing percussion skills of Mark Sanders" – Peter Thelen... Exposé
"Mark is just incredible and immensely diverse, he is at the center of "Kwingyaw" and it is difficult to tell what he is doing to get some of these sounds." – Bruce L Gallenter, Downtown Music Gallery, NY
Alex Bonney is a trumpeter, electronic musician and recording/mix engineer and producer based in London.
He leads the Alex Bonney Quartet, is a member of Leverton Fox, light.box, BABs, Golden Age of Steam, The Olie Brice Quintet, and performs solo with electronics and in a variety of other improvising ensembles. When not performing Alex works with a variety of artists producing and engineering music for leading jazz, improvised and contemporary music record labels including ECM.
