Music:
Member Since: 1/28/2006
Band Website: www.peterknightmusic.com
Band Members: Live in Valdagno, Italy, with Way Out West for Veneto Jazz Festival July 2008
Peter Knight Quintet-------Peter Knight trumpet, Colin Hopkins piano, Stephen Magnusson guitar, Frank Di Sario bass, Tony Floyd drums----------------Way Out West------------Peter Knight trumpet, Paul Williamson tenor sax, Dung Nguyen dan tranh dan bau modified electric guitar, Ray Pereira percussion, Dave Beck drum kit, Howard Cairns bass-----------------5+2 Brass Ensemble-------------Peter Knight, Gianni Marinucci trumpets, Geoff Collinson French horn, Kynan Robinson, Adrian Sherriff trombones, Anita Hustas bass, Rajiv Jayaweera drum kit and percussionGet Your Own! | View Slideshow
Influences: Kenny Wheeler, Morton Feldman, Clocked Out Duo, Cootie Williams, Radiohead, Nina Simone, Messiaen, Phil Slater, Beck, Arvo Part, Stephen Grant, Bjork, Miles Davis, Django Reinhardt, Morton Feldman, Anthony Pateras, Bob Dylan, Scott Tinkler, Kate Neal, Dave Douglas, Tomasz Stanko, Duke Ellington, Allan Browne, Billie Holiday, The Necks, Bach, Stephen Magnusson...
Sounds Like: Live in Valdagno Italy, July 2008
Adrian Jackson's review of Peter Knight Quintet's new album, 'All the Gravitation of Silence', in Rhythms October edition:Trumpeter-composer Peter Knight has established himself as a significant voice on the national scene over the last few years. He won some very positive reviews for his debut album, Between Two Moments, in 2001 then for recordings with his 5+2 Brass Ensemble and the co-op band Way Out West. Fine as these recordings were, his latest album represents a significant advance. It’s a gem, one that seeks to explore a relatively narrow range of moods and colours and succeeds brilliantly.A key ingredient is the choice of personnel: in Colin Hopkins (piano) and Stephen Magnusson (guitar), Knight has two of the most distinctive stylists on the Melbourne scene. They are fully attuned to Knight’s approach, which here is all about melody – melodic statement, variation and development. Knight’s own playing, whether he is using a mute (or more often) an open horn, is richly expressive; he is a ‘less is more’ trumpeter in the Miles Davis tradition. As much as the notes played, the emphasis is on the expression conveyed in those notes, the tone used, the feeling of space surrounding each note, which gives it extra weight. It’s about nuance, rather than brashness or drama.As suggested above, Hopkins and Magnusson complement the trumpeter superbly; some of the guitarist’s best work involves subtle colourings in the background. Bassist Frank Di Sario and drummer Tony Floyd also make tasteful, constructive contributions.Knight wrote most of the pieces and there are some striking melodies, for example, ‘Cruikshank Park’ and ‘Eunoia’ sound like pieces that the great Kenny Wheeler might have written. Three pieces collectively improvised in the studio ('Haiku Number 1', 'Haiku Number 2' and 'Haiku Number 3') stand up very well alongside the pre-composed pieces, providing an effective change of pace.The mood is almost uniformly low-key, introspective; only ‘Franky D’, towards the end of the album, offers a more urgent pulse and a fiery solo from Magnusson. I’ve found this an album I’ve especially enjoyed listening to first thing in the morning, or late at night.
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A recent review of Invisible Cities and Other Works by Peter Knight's 5+2 Brass Ensemble in Cadence Magazine:Rufus Records, one of Australia..s most prominent independent Jazz labels, has consistently documented that country..s rich jazz scene. While a great deal of Australian jazz is probably not heard by the majority of Cadence readers, Rufus is a great place to start for the curious sort. One such excellent release on the label is trumpeter Peter Knight..s 5+2 Brass Ensemble, a brass ensemble consisting of five horns and two rhythm players. As one might gather, the group..s sound is powerful and strident, though the arrangements and instrumentation provide for a surprisingly wide timbral spectrum. In this configuration, two trumpets play against a French horn, a trombone, and bass trombone, abetted by the potent rhythm team of bassist Anita Hustas and drummer Rajiv Jayaweera. Compositionally, the program is focused on Knight..s ..Invisible Cities Suite,.. a four part suite influenced by Italian writer Italo Calvino..s Invisible Cities, a tome dedicated to reflections on cities and their imagery. Taking up such inspiration, the first movement, ..Cities and Desire.. is a foggy, ruminative piece that presents both symphonic elements, thanks mostly to Geoff Collinson..s French horn and the trombones that conjure a grave soundworld. The suite gains momentum on its second section, ..Hypatia,.. a roiling vamp set by Adrian Sheriff..s bass trombone, Hustas.. bass, and Jayaweera..s pulsing drums that inspire the active interplay of the ensemble, eventually dissolving and then swinging mightily. As for the concluding half, ..Cities and Signs: Vault.. ripples with urgency due to a pliant groove and the farewell, ..Cities and Memory,.. floats away like a passing vision, replete with the ensemble..s vocal whispers that add an air of both mystery and reflection. As for the standalone compositions, ..All The Gravitation of Silence,.. opens as a shifting sound- world, commencing as an impressionistic pas- tiche, an uptempo Swing jaunt that includes potent solos from the leader and Adrian Sheriff..s bass trombone and a return to its initial thoughts. Of the remaining pieces, ..Fragment.. is a stunning ballad with Gianni Marinucci..s flugelhorn cutting deep and Dave Douglas.. ..Loopy,.. the only non- Knight piece, is taken as a joyous waltz that is both invigorating and inspires repeat visits. Worth noting is there are also two brief fragments that are less compelling, but serve their purpose as interludes/sketches. Worth searching out (if you can find it), Peter Knight and his ensemble have created a riveting work.
www.rufusrecords.com.au
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John Clare, reviewer
August 28, 2006The modern trumpet long ago stepped beyond its heraldic and martial role. You can hear it in subtle glints and laciniations through Debussy's music, in Bix Beiderbecke's often delicate playing and in the lyrical and even introspective elements of Miles Davis and Chet Baker. It was Davis, above all, who made the trumpet float.Melbourne trumpeter Peter Knight has explored this area in a distinctive and very beautiful way, taking from his forebears only what he needs. The feeling is not melancholy but placid and shining.Crucial to the effect is guitarist Steve Magnusson, playing in a pastoral dream or, it seems, making shapes in ductile gold wire. All five players are crucial. There are fiery flares, glorious brass projections and faster pulses, but in the main it all seems to expand slowly.The word is chill, I suppose, but it would repay one to give much deeper concentration than that
Record Label: Jazzhead and Rufus Records
Type of Label: Indie
