Category: Music"Brass Jaw, Pizza Express Jazz Club, London" By Mike Hobart Published by The Financial Times October 16th 2007 "Sober-suited Brass Jaw are a quartet of Scottish saxophonists willing to take the risk of performing unaccompanied. There is no drummer's thump to hide the occasional glitch, and no piano or guitar to remind soloists where they are in the scheme of things. Yet without resort to barnstorming histrionics or instrument-swapping theatrics, they delivered full-blooded, on-the-edge arrangements that, for two sets, riveted this somewhat sparse jazz-club audience. Their opening number had so many twists and turns that it fully lived up to its title "The Nasty". A brief unaccompanied alto sax melody was tossed around the ensemble and then distended into a controlled anarchic rumble. Enter a bluesy riff, lush harmonies punctuated by sudden stabs and slurs, and then an angular, wickedly fast alto saxophone melody emerged from the melange. They seemed to have done it all in the first number, but this wide-ranging virtuosity was maintained throughout the gig. Lilting township rhythms yielded to abstract washes, funky grooves came to an abrupt stop and quick-fire ensemble passages were densely harmonised, and played with the confidence that comes from continuous collaboration – they are midway through a UK tour, and also core members of the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra's brass section. With baritone sax taking on the arduous duty of replacing the bass – Allon Beauvoisin has a nice line in funky riffs and walking bass, and the stamina to keep going without a break – the two altos and tenor were free to roam round the saxophone's lush sonorities. And properly anchored they could project their solo strength – tenor saxophonist Konrad Wiszniewski all tumbling cadenzas and breathy balladry, Paul Towndrow and Martin Kershaw equally fleet-fingered but neatly contrasting rhythmic awareness and harmonic intellect on altos. But chamber jazz stands or falls by its writing. Theirs is top notch. Strong structures and a grasp of tradition give the ensembles an identifiably and richly harmonised sound, tea-shop sweet on Gershwin's "Our Love is Here to Stay", spiritually moving on their transcription of a guitarist's rendition of Coltrane's "Afro Blue". And with sudden silences, ululating altos and swoops and slurs sprinkled around, there were loads of details to keep you focused." _____________________________________________________ "Free-spirited brass with class" By Jack Massarik Published by The Evening Standard, October 12th 2007 "Saxophone quartets are unusual but not unknown. A group called Itchy Fingers once pipped Andy Sheppard to a British youth-jazz prize back in the days when the Daily Telegraph sponsored such contests, and the World Saxophone Quartet, a US outfit boasting London's Tony Kofi, is popular on the summer-festival circuit. Brass Jaw, on a UK tour to support their latest album, Burn, are four fresh-faced Glaswegians. Altoists Martin Kershaw and Paul Towndrow took care of last night's whizziest solos but the others were no less valuable. Konrad Wiszniewski's tenorsax-ballad feature, Chelsea Bridge, was the most lyrical performance of the set, while Allon Beauvoisin's chunky baritone-sax beats and "walking" bass-lines served to create a firm rhythmic foundation. Imaginative ensemble writing was their strongest suit. Walking on the Moon, scored by Towndrow, included a rubato section of held notes that worked very well. Chelsea Bridge had slowly trilling chords under the tenor solo, and Afro Blue, adapted from a guitar solo by the late great Emily Remler, was a close-harmony feast. So too was Kershaw's feature, All the Things You Are, while the set-closer, Damn Fine-O, was packed with staccato blues figures, nailed in perfect unison. Meticulously rehearsed yet free-spirited, this was brass with class." _____________________________________________________ "Alan steps up after Kofi breaks down" By Sophie Barley Published by Scarborough Evening News October 1st 2007 "A SPOT of car trouble meant a bit of re-jigging for organisers at Scarborough Jazz Festival. Alan Barnes' Saturday set was moved forward to 7pm after Tony Kofi, who was scheduled to play at that time, had car trouble 90 miles away from Scarborough. A taxi was sent to pick him up and he made it to Scarborough for 9pm.Organiser Mike Gordon, said: "We were very worried when we heard his car broke down. But he made it for 9pm and he just put his bags down and went straight onto the stage. It was fantastic. The crowd loved him – it was worth the wait." On the opening night, which was sponsored by the Evening News, 700 people watched the Laura Fowles Quintet, Cubana Bop and Stan Tracey Octet.On Saturday 750 attended and saw Voice of the North Jazz Orchestra, Richie Barshay's Roundtable, Osian Robers/ Steve Fishwick Quintet, Tony Kofi Trio, Alan Barnes and Martin Taylor. On Sunday first on stage in front of 600 people was saxophone quartet, Brass Jaw. Baritone, Allon Beauvoison, said: "This is the first time we have performed in Scarborough and we think the town is great. The seafront is beautiful and it is a lovely place to perform. It is nice to see so many people here and the atmosphere has been incredible." Also performing on Sunday was Dave Newton, Steve Waterman Sextet, Anita Wardell Quintet, and Dennis Rollins' Badbone and Co.People travelled from all over the country to attend the festival. . . . _____________________________________________________ CD REVIEWS "And work it does. Their imaginative arrangements make clever use of the tonal and timbral possibilities across the range of the instruments, while allowing plenty of freedom for the distinctive musical personalities of the individual players to emerge." The List "Saxophone quartets are still thin on the ground in jazz and present considerable challenges to the players in maintaining full melodic, harmonic and rhythmic interest on four essentially similar single-line instruments. The quartet cope with those challenges in fine style, " Jazzwise " . . their attractive arrangements and sharp-edged interplay bring the music vividly alive." The Scotsman _____________________________________________________ Homegrown Showcase, Glasgow International Jazz Festival Kenny Maithieson, The Scotsman LAST year's inaugural Homegrown presentation at the Glasgow International Jazz Festival has expanded to two concerts this year. It provides a showcase for Scottish jazz talent, with five groups playing short sets to an audience of promoters and the general public. Saxophone quartet Brass Jaw, featuring the altoists Paul Towndrow and Martin Kershaw, Brian Molley on tenor and Allon Beauvoisin on baritone, opened proceedings with a set that made highly imaginative use of the timbres, textures and interacting lines of the four instruments. Teenage singer Jonathan Carr was the newest name on the bill, and worked his way through a set of standards with remarkable assurance. Trianglehead, featuring Kershaw with the pianist Paul Harrison and the drummer Stu Ritchie, entered into a radical three-way conversation in their uncompromising free-jazz approach to improvisation. Drummer Alyn Cosker opened the second half with a trio featuring his regular collaborator, bassist Ross Hamilton, and an excellent guitarist I had not heard before, David Dunsmuir. Cosker's compositions revealed an additional facet to his established talents behind the drum kit. Guitarist Graeme Scott closed the concert with a fine set of his own compositions rooted in classic bop, but with a distinct contemporary shimmer. All very impressive, with five more to come in the second concert. _____________________________________________________ Homegrown Showcase, Ramshorn Theatre The Herald There really is something going on in the Scottish jazz scene. As the first instalment of this mini festival within a festival, a kind of Scottish Jazz Expo, confirmed, there's a wealth and diversity of young bands and musicians in our small country, all working at their own creative ideas. And it's not just that there's a lot of them, they're good, too. Don't take my word for this; the deans at Berklee, one of America's pre-eminent music colleges, recognise it and at least two of the bands here have enthusiastic references from an extensive list of promoters on England's jazz circuit. College degrees and paper recommendations only go so far. It's the bandstand that really matters and, from the opening set by saxophone quartet Brass Jaw, there was quality, imagination and invention in the air. Brass Jaw's is a tricky metier but they carry it off with style and spark, their well thought-out harmonies and rhythmical riffing producing a sound as complete as more conventional line-ups. Berklee-bound teenage vocalist Jonathan Carr has the tone, timing and a maturity of phrasing that all point, surely, to a bright future and the same might be said of guitarist Graeme Scott, whose quartet provides a well-tempered vehicle for his compositions and considered soloing. For "where next?" pointers, look to trios. Trianglehead combine creativity, wit and an intoxicating energy in balancing intriguing composition with inspired improvisation, and Alyn Cosker's group revealed a compositional talent to equal his drumming dynamism and produced a real find in David Dunsmuir's resourceful, beguiling guitar playing. _____________________________________________________ Tron Theatre, Glasgow Rob Adams, The Herald The saxophone quartet is no longer a new concept in jazz and its trailblazers pretty much defined what can be done with the format. So once you've added a touch of formation choreography, you really have to make it on musical interest – and Brass Jaw does just that. Paul Towndrow and Martin Kershaw (altos), Brian Molley (tenor) and Allon Beauvoisin (baritone and announcements) pay homage to their forebears, including an opening, funky-fervent walk-on courtesy of New York's 29th Street Saxophone Quartet and a rather more involved tangle of bebop and beyond from London's Itchy Fingers. But they have plenty of ideas of their own. These materialise both in original compositions and inspired transcriptions and/or arrangements of tunes from the jazz and pop canons. Introduced as something that takes four men with saxophones to do what one woman did with a guitar,the late Emily Remler's setting of Afro Blue was indeed a tribute to singular fretboard vision, all rich chords and intricately executed lines. It's the quality of sound as much as the well-plotted strategies, the sense of mischief and variety as well as cleverness – cleverness, that is, without being too cute – that make Brass Jaw work so well. They riff and hustle with the groovy pep of James Brown's horn section or lay out lush voicings that sound more like an orchestra than a quartet. They mix solo features of considerable virtuosity with keen ensemble understanding and they slip into The Police's Walking on the Moon and Spanish-Cuban fantasies with the same ease and aplomb as they do jazz standards. Above all, they communicate a feeling of enjoyment alongside the passion, a good time that travels freely from stage to audience. _____________________________________________________ Jazz House, Bonnington Theatre, Nottingham, Alan Joyce, Nottingham Evening Post "This quartet of highly accomplished Scottish saxophonists played a programme full of intrigue and surprise, brought about by their skilful application of dynamics, steadfast discipline, attention to detail and superb musicianship. Brass Jaw featured Martin Kershaw and Paul Towndrow on Alto Saxes, Brian Molley, Tenor, and Allon Beauvoisin Baritone. They played intricate arrangements of jazz standards, mixed with original compositions. These were melodic, if at times ambitious, and many had an infectious rhythm, powered by Beauvoisin's sonorous baritone. The Altos were well matched in terms of tone, agility and ability, while Molley's Tenor sound ranged from rich and creamy to plaintive and passionate. Towndrow penned many of the originals. Among the high spots were his gorgeous arrangement of Premiere and Beauvoisin's bop-inspired Close Call, involving a fanscinating three way conversation between the two Alto's and tenor with Baritone." _____________________________________________________ Wakefield Jazz Club James Griffiths, The Guardian While there are many examples of the saxophone quartet in jazz history, it's relatively rare on the contemporary British scene. Watching the Brass Jaw Saxophone Quartet - it isn't difficult to see why. Without a rhythm section the task of making everything swing is shared by everyone, and solos must be extremely focused. The Brass Jaw boys generally do a brilliant job, packing their performance with an impressive amount of detail while achieving an extremely classy sound. They began by trooping through the audience, spinning delicate contrapuntal melodies. Taking it in turns to produce drone notes and fluttering harmonies, they reached the stage and launched into a hard swinging number anchored by Allon Beauvoisin's honking baritone. The group quickly set out their individual wares, Brian Molley's tenor providing bluesy grit, Martin Kershaw's alto quirky humour. Also on alto, Paul Towndrow was the biggest show-off, launching immediately into Wayne Shorter territory with a mercurial torrent of notes. Drenched in sweat after only one tune, Beauvoisin introduced a piece by one of the group's chief influences, the New York 29th-Street Saxophone Quartet. The Nasty is apparently a Mount Everest for any sax ensemble, full of Mingus-like pandemonium. There were head-frying passages of contrary motion and car-horn parps arranged into barrages of funky riffs. The momentum was sustained through a Charlie Parker-ish reading of Walking On the Moon, and a shrieking Beauvoisin original dedicated to the horrors of painkiller withdrawal. Altogether, an accomplished and ambitious ensemble who aren't afraid to enjoy themselves.