John Donaldson

Jazz Hastings in September 

Hexagonal, the brilliant jazz sextet who will be playing next Tuesday, 19 September 19, at the Jazz Hastings monthly session at the East Hastings Sea Angling Association on the Stade, are much in demand at the moment. Julian Norridge writes. 

The weekend after their Hastings appearance, they will be headlining at the prestigious Scarborough Jazz Festival. Then next month they will be one of the major attractions at the Herts Jazz Festival, a concert that will be recorded by BBC Radio 3 for broadcast later in the year.

The group first came together in 2016 to play the music of the late, great South African composer and multi-instrumentalist, Bheki Mseleku – and they’ve now added pieces by McCoy Tyner and some compositions of their own to their repertoire.

Hexagonal

The band features some of the best jazz musicians around. Saxophonist and composer, Jason Yarde has worked with some of the great names in jazz, including McCoy Tyner, Andrew Hill and Jack DeJohnette. His flugelhorn concerto All Souls Seek Joy was premiered by Hugh Masakela and the London Symphony Orchestra in 2007.

New Zealand born tenor saxophonist, Greg Heath has been resident in the UK since 1986 and has worked with a wide range of musicians including Dr John, Maceo Parker, Mica Paris, Van Morrison and Joan Armatrading.

Grammy-award winning trumpeter and producer, James McMillan James Brown, Kirk Whalum, David Sanborn and Mike Westbrook has worked with James Brown, Kirk Whalum, David Sanborn and Mike Westbrook. He has released five albums under his own name and produced records for a range of musicians from Whitney Houston to Hastings very own Liane Carroll.

Pianist John Donaldson began playing jazz as part of the Cambridge Modern Jazz Club’s rhythm section. He spent time in California playing with some of America’s leading jazz musicians. Back in England, he has worked with Art Themen, Alan Barnes, Norma Winstone, Don Weller and Art Farmer. He also won the best pianist slot in the British Jazz Awards.

Hexagonal

Bassist, Simon Thorpe worked in Bheki Mseleku’s band and has become one of the most popular bass players in the country. He has worked with numerous artists including Stacy Kent, Bobby Wellins, Alan Barnes and Amy Whitehouse.

Finally Tristan Banks is one of the most in-demand drummers on the scene. He has studied Afro-Brazilian styles extensively and worked with a wide range of artists including David Gilmour, Roy Ayers, Dave Valentin, Idris Mohammed, Marcos Valle, Da Lata and Carleen Anderson.

All in all, an outstanding line up not to be missed. Doors open at 7.45pm for an 8.30pm start.

Also in: Music & Sound