Introduction

I'm thrilled to be performing in Symphony Hall alongside the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra this evening.

My relationship with the hall itself started around 15 years ago, when my brother and I would come to watch the CBSO for £5. I then went on to participate in some of their youth programmes, following that I was a steward for both Town Hall and Symphony Hall - I know this building inside and out. The CBSO have a very special place in my heart – I've got some great memories of hearing this hall brought to life by its resident orchestra, so I’m really excited to be forging new memories in a way that my younger self sitting in the stalls only half dreamed of.

Miles Davis’ Kind of Blue is regarded as a seminal record in jazz music; this album was a massive milestone for the music, capturing the trajectory and artistic momentum of this art form. Through their music, these artists were carving out a place for their identity and culture in a new and hostile world. To revisit Kind of Blue in this concert is a deep honour. Guy Barker has done a beautiful job of arranging the album in a way that gives justice to the record while also highlighting other possibilities to reframing the work.

The reimagining of the music of Thelonious Monk has been truly exciting adventure for me and my ensemble. Having recently released our album ‘On a Modern Genius, Vol.1’ we’re now pushing boundaries on form and structure; collaging several melodies together and improvising through his compositions. With this reimagined project the idea is to free Monk and his music from a limited two-dimensional approach to reproducing his compositions. Melody is at the heart of his music and is therefore the main engine for this approach – listen out for how the melodies are connected, layered and interwoven and the incredible colours they create.

This will be my first time working with Guy Barker and we’re really excited to be coming together on this project. This concert will be a meeting of two worlds: my band’s modern approach to interacting with form and structure alongside the beauty and nuance of Barker’s arrangements, it’s bound to be really special.

Xhosa Cole
Saxophone