Two Sets: Mark Lockheart & Tom Hewson

Mark Lockheart is an award-winning tenor sax player who first made his name working with seminal band Loose Tubes in the eighties, and whose mastery of modern jazz has kept him at the forefront of the music ever since. Co-founder of the universally regarded “The Perfect Houseplants” Mark has toured and recorded with Django Bates, Mike Gibbs, Mark Anthony Turnage and his own 11 piece “Scratch Band” as well as Seb Rochford’s highly acclaimed “Polar Bear”. He is also a highly respected educator, writer and arranger. Tonight Mark will be appearing with his brilliant trio, featuring Steve Watts (Norma Winstone, Django Bates) on bass and Tim Giles ("Fraud") on drums, performing music that he describes as "exploring classic jazz standards as well as re-workings of Rollins and Monk". A fabulous gig from a highly respected performer.

"Lockheart is a consummate saxophonist and an original and versatile composer" The Rough Guide to Jazz;
“inspired and imaginative” The Times;
“compelling” Guardian

The UK jazz courses continue to produce some very fine musicians and young award-winning pianist Tom Hewson is certainly amongst those that deserve to be taken notice of. A product of Oxford University and Trinity Laban (a course, incidentally, run by Simon Purcell-Tue 16th) Tom's fluent and inventive playing has already been heard in a wide variety of settings, from his own trio to work with numerous high-profile musicians. In 2014 alone Tom was not only the winner of the Nottingham International Jazz Piano Competition but his group ‘Treehouse’, featuring "Empirical"'s Lewis Wright (vibes) and Calum Gourlay (bass), were also presented with an ‘Emerging Excellence’ award from Help Musicians UK. Tonight Tom will be bringing the more traditional trio of piano, bass and drums to the Club, featuring Mark Lewandowski on bass and Dave Hamblett on drums, performing some brand new arrangements/interpretations of tunes from the classic 1965 Herbie Hancock album Maiden Voyage, in celebration of its 50th anniversary this year (my, how time flies)! Fine trio playing from one of the most gifted of the latest crop of young pianists.

“Hewson displays great maturity…impressive, free-flowing solos” TimeOut;
“...the compositions are sublime, with Tom’s beautiful, adventurous piano playing” John Taylor;
“...beautiful...[a] talented pianist and composer” AllAboutJazz