support LUME!

Nothing directly to do with me, but… one of the most fun and adventurous gigs anywhere in the world, LUME needs our support! LUME is programming a festival of jazz and improvised music in London, and are in need of additional funding to cover artist fees and travel expenses:

This Summer, we’re rounding off our 2015/16 season of gigs with the first ever LUME Festival. On Sunday 26th June we’re taking over IKLECTIK ARTLAB near Waterloo for a one-day celebration of all things LUME: original and improvised music from the UK and beyond, friendly vibes and good times….

Our core programme of LUME gigs this year is supported by Arts Council England, and there will be part of this funding left for the festival. There’s enough to put on about three bands and have a nice evening. But after all the amazing music we’ve listened to, that’s not quite enough for us. We want to do more—and this is where you come in. With your help, we can put on everyone in the list above and pack the day full of music. We’ve also invited Gina Southgate to come and capture the day on canvas, and Alex Fiennes to record the performances! [Read the rest…]

In addition to being an incomparably energetic space for new jazz and improvised music, LUME has previously supported my work, not least by hosting the first London performance by the trio with Dominic Lash and Mark Sanders (an ensemble that would eventually morph into Sirene 1009). For those who value music work on the ‘ground level’ of a scene, this is definitely one to back!

And with rewards that include a trip to the London Aquarium, who can resist? [LUME kickstarter page…]

Happy New Year: 2015

Original photographs/images © 2014 Don Mount; © 2014 Dee Byrne/LUME; and (cc by-nc) 2014 Han-earl Park. Images/artwork pertaining to cuttlefish: design (cc by-nc) 2014 Peter O’Doherty; cover artwork © 2014 Ciarán Ó Dochartaigh; score/artwork © 2014 Han-earl Park; photo © 2013 Emilio Vavarella.
Original photographs/images © 2014 Don Mount; © 2014 Dee Byrne/LUME; and (cc by-nc) 2014 Han-earl Park. Images/artwork pertaining to cuttlefish: design (cc by-nc) 2014 Peter O’Doherty; cover artwork © 2014 Ciarán Ó Dochartaigh; score/artwork © 2014 Han-earl Park; photo © 2013 Emilio Vavarella. [Listen/watch 2014…]

thanks: Han-earl Park, Dominic Lash and Mark Sanders (Birmingham and London, October 2014)

Quick note of thanks to all involved in the October 28 and October 30 performances. Thanks mightily to Cath Roberts and Dee Byrne, instigators of LUME, and Andrew Woodhead, the new mastermind behind Fizzle, for hosting the performances, and for their support and enthusiasm. Thanks to Ben Lee (who also managed Fizzle on the night) and Roberto Sassi (and Roland Ramanan for the intro) for allowing this itinerant guitarist to borrow the use of their amplifiers. Thanks to the other ensembles who shared the bill: Lee Allatson, Stewart Brackley and Bruce Coates (Lee, Bruce, great to see you guys again!); and Sam Andreae and Rodrigo Constanzo.

Mondo kudos to Dom Lash and Mark Sanders. I am indebted to these two smart, perceptive, crafty and imaginative improvisers. They make every moment sound that much more brilliant, and every turn that much more unexpected. Looking forward to playing again! (tell your local music org to book us! 😉

Finally, as always, thanks to all who came to listen to the real-time noise, and to witness the jump-cuts between chaotic frenzy and delicate, pretty open spaces. It’s been a while since I performed in these two cities; always a pleasure.