Dylan Howe's Unity 4 is a new improvising group.
It's made up of some of the most talked about and talented musicians in the UK.
This is their first major tour.
They are playing music from legendary Hammond organist Larry Young's brilliant Blue Note album Unity as well as beautiful music from
Ornette Coleman, Pat Metheny, Steve Lacy and The Great American Songbook.
ABOUT THE MUSIC ON THE PLAYER -
This is just a couple of little clips of us during rehearsals - messing around, playing through some of the stuff we're going to do on the tour; in trio and duo - none with us all unfortunately - hard to press the red button at the right time to get us all playing on tape! - Let alone the four of us in the same room at the same time ... (!):
Ornette Coleman's Law Years
Pat Metheny's Song For Bilbao and Change Of Heart
PROPER VIDEO CLIPS TO HOPEFULLY FOLLOW SOON BUT IN THE MEANTIME HERE'S SOME VERY SHORT FILM FROM OUR QEH FOYER GIG LAST SUMMER:
DYLAN HOWE
(04/08/69. London)
Dylan started playing drums at 10. His distinctive groove and versatility has led him to be drummer of choice for leading artists and producers worldwide. Naturally at home in nearly any musical setting or genre, DH has spent the past five years focusing on his jazz groups, honing his compositional skills, gathering critical acclaim for his four albums and tandem nationwide tours as well as gaining attention for his evolving style behind the drum kit.
Mostly self-taught, and having picked up the sticks to jam with his dad Yes guitarist Steve Howe in 1979, Dylan has been particularly influenced by Roy Haynes, Elvin Jones, Stewart Copeland, John Bonham, Al Jackson Jr and the music of Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Igor Stravinsky, David Bowie, Stevie Wonder and the Muppets.
An active member of legendary band The Blockheads for over 12 years and session credits on over 60 albums and hundreds of live TV appearances, Dylan's love of jazz has run like a thread through his successful session and sideman career (credits include Nick Cave, Damon Albarn, Portishead, Robert Wyatt, Ian Dury and The Blockheads, Ray Davies, Gabrielle, Sir Paul McCartney, Gilad Atzmon, Stan Sulzmann and Courtney Pine among many others), 2008 sees Dylan touring with his new 'Unity 4' group, Steve Howe Trio, Portishead splinter group The Blessing and planning new projects for 2009.
'Inspiring and invigorating in any genre.' 'THE GUARDIAN
'A superb player.' THE OBSERVER
'Swings like an old veteran.' MODERN DRUMMER
'Dylan Howe makes it new. The way he plays it, it's as if Be-bop were still hot and wet from its Harlem womb - he plays time from the heart.' ROBERT WYATT
'Dylan Howe simply does all the right things.' MUSICIAN MAGAZINE
'You funky little bastard.' IAN DURY
'The best new young drummer to emerge since Phil Collins or Stewart Copeland.' YESWORLD
'Howe swings effortlessly.' **** DRUMMER MAGAZINE
'Dylan Howe, rightly acclaimed as one of the best drummers of his generation.' RONNIE SCOTTS
TONY KOFI: ALTO SAX
The playing career of saxophonist Tony Kofi began when he chanced upon a series of jazz workshops, run in Leicester by Nick Hislam. Born in Nottingham to West African parents, Tony was bitten by the jazz bug and made a point of making the journey to go along to each session. This laid the seeds for what was to come, and a stint at the legendary Berklee College of Music in Boston Mass. USA, on a full scholarship.
From 1991, Tony was part of the UK's premier jazz group of the time The Jazz Warriors. This band was a hotbed of young talent from the UK jazz scene. Tony was also vital part of Gary Crosby's Nu Troop; this was a big stepping stone for his solo and ensemble work, contributing massively to his own solo projects and educational projects. Tony is still committed to this ethos, regularly running his own workshops and giving individual lessons.
Tony was busy throughout the 1990s, appearing in the front line of innumerable high-profile musicians and groups, including Billy Higgins, Branford Marsalis, Byron Wallen's Indigo, Claude Deppa's A.J.E. & Horns Unlimited, Clifford Jarvis, Courtney Pine , Digable Planets, Donald Byrd , Dr Lonnie Smith, Eddie Henderson , Gary Crosby's Nu-Troop, Jean Toussaint big band, Julian Arguelles, Julian Joseph big band, Jazz Jamaica all stars, Queen Latifah , Ralph Moore, Salt'n'Pepper, The David Murray Big Band, US-3, The Township Express Orchestra, Andrew Hill's Anglo-American Big band, Sam Rivers Rivbea orchestra, as well as composing original music for his Ten piece group, the Afro jazz family, The Tony Kofi Trio, and more recently touring with the World Saxophone Quartet. Since 2000, Tony Kofi, Jonathan Gee, Ben Hazleton & Winston Clifford, with featured artist, Orphy Robinson (Vibes & Marimba) have been building their repertoire of Thelonious Monk compositions, all 70 of which were performed in a groundbreaking marathon 6 hour set at the 2003 London Jazz festival. The quartet's album, All is know (Specific Jazz), features a selection of Monk originals. The group's CD picked up the 2005 Jazz Parliamentary award and the 2005 BBC Jazz award for best ensemble & best album.
Tony has just completed his next album for Specific Jazz, which includes all his own original compositions. The TonyKofi Trio +1 is a newly formed original project by the double award winning Saxophonist/Composer, featuring Byron Wallen on Trumpet, Anders Olinder on B3 Hammond Organ and Winston Clifford on Drums.
www.myspace.com/tonykofi
JAZZ PARLIAMENTARY AWARD and BBC Jazz award winner…Kofi has that remarkable talent for adopting a familiar jazz idiom and finding new and exciting things to say in it THE OBSERVER
Tony Kofi…Urgent, accessible, heartfelt contemporary jazz THE GUARDIAN
MIKE OUTRAM: GUITAR
Mike is based in London and has worked with Herbie Mann, Tim Garland, Carleen Anderson, Cinematic Orchestra, Martin Speake, Dave O'Higgins, Nikki Iles, Rebecca Hollweg, Jacqui Dankworth, Stan Sulzmann, Julian Argüelles and alongside guitarists Martin Taylor, Jim Mullen and John Etheridge.
He is also Guitar Professor at Trinity College of Music, The Royal Academy of Music,
Middlesex University, Thames Valley University, The Royal Welsh college of Music and Drama, Guitar-X and has given numerous workshops, clinics and summer schools internationally. He also writes for Guitarist magazine.
www.mikeoutram.com
One of the British guitar finds of recent years…Outram is a guitarist with world-class credentials THE GUARDIAN
Mike Outram is without doubt the most talented guitarist of his generation STEVE RUBIE, 606 CLUB
ROSS STANLEY: HAMMOND
Age: 25. Grew up in Marlborough, Wiltshire.
Studied at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama. London.
Influences: Bill Evans | Herbie Hancock | Chick Corea | John Taylor
Played with: THe Heritage Orchestra| Jamie Cullum | Liane Carroll | Steve Howe | Jim Mullen & Guy Barker
