Norfolk and Norwich Festival event at Norwich Playhouse
Jazz lovers do very well at this year's festival – with this concert as an early highlight.
Two great collectives, Bill Bruford's quartet, Earthworks, and the Dean Street Underground Orchestra, featuring Tim Garland, combine to produce something extraordinary.
Bruford needs no introduction – as a drummer he has played with King Crimson, Yes and Genesis, while Garland is a saxophonist who made his name with Chick Corea.
This concert simultaneously mixed contemporary and retrospective works mainly from Earthworks' repertoire – many of them composed by Garland himself.
He kept tight control of some of Britain's finest jazz artists in this nine-strong band while Bruford took more of a back seat.
This allowed Steve Hamilton, on keyboards, plus Iain Ballamy and Garland on saxophones, more than their fair share of the solos while in the second half Gerard Presencer on the flugelhorn drew much praise.
The concert, played to a near full house, again shows what a great venue the Playhouse is for jazz as its intimate atmosphere creates just the right environment for both the artist and the audience. More please.
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