TOMMY SMITH & BRIAN KELLOCK
Two of Scotland’s finest jazz artists, saxophonist Tommy Smith and pianist Brian Kellock, have teamed up to bring audiences some of the most beautiful, haunting and iconic pieces in the jazz repertoire.
Tommy’s prolific career began in earnest when, aged just 16, he recorded his first album. He was subsequently rewarded with a scholarship to Berklee College of Music, an experience that has shaped his affirmative approach to jazz. Since then, he has cut 27 solo albums as a leader for Blue Note, Linn and his own label, Spartacus Records.
Brian Kellock is widely regarded as one of the UK’s finest jazz pianists. Stylistically, he aligns himself with iconic figures such as Oscar Peterson or Monty Alexander, but he is a player who is equally at home in mainstream and contemporary jazz styles. His talents have seen him work with American jazz luminaries such as Red Rodney, Sheila Jordan, Art Farmer, Stanley Turrentine and Herb Geller.
Two of the most respected and best loved artists in contemporary jazz, the duo’s most recent release, The Whispering of the Stars, revisited many cherished standards drawn from a deep well of understanding and affection. The carefully chosen melodies are treated with due reverence, but they are also delivered with tremendous interpretive flair.
Tommy and Brian offer great insights into the collective jazz memory, but the music (and the way they play it) admits the audience to something more profound – jazz as a shared experience.
http://tommysmith.scot
“The saxophonist’s blend of frailty and power puts him in the league of colossi such as Lester Young or Stan Getz at times.” - The Guardian on ‘The Whispering of the Stars’
“. . . Kellock’s piano bright and incisive, and his interwoven lines and chordal commentaries always apposite.” - London Jazz News
“Smith is the complete saxophonist, possessing a tone muscular when needed, and sweet as a nut on the ballads. Kellock does everything a post-Oscar Peterson pianist should.” - Birmingham Post
Tickets £15 / £13 Concessions
Sorry, the Jazz Express offer does not apply to this concert
Doors open 7pm, show starts 7.30pm
