NEIL COWLEY TRIO
Neil Cowley (piano)
Richard Sadley (double bass)
Evan Jenkins (drums)
Thursday 22nd March, The Sugar Club, Dublin
"One of the big jazz stories of the year" The Guardian
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CATHAL COUGHLAN:
FOBURG > FLANNERY'S MOUNTED HEAD
Sunday March 25th, The Sugar Club
"His fourth solo work overflows with the kind of pop nous that today's practitioners would sell their vocal cords for. Foburg remains a quality piece of work, musically and lyrically eloquent, provocative and intrepid” Tony Clayton Lea, The Irish Times
Cathal Coughlan returns to Dublin's Vicar Stret to present one performance of his evolving song-cycle Flannery's Mounted Head > Foburg on Sunday 26th November.
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Félix Lajkó
Felix Lajkó (violin)
Antal Brasnyó (viola)
Wednesday 2nd May, St Ann's Church, Dawson Street, Dublin
Virtuoso Serbian violinist Félix Lajkó is best known for his spectacular Concerts of Joy celebrating Balkan music, which annually draw audiences in the tens of thousands in Budapest. Félix Lajkó is the maverick of Balkan music, a musician moving beyond boundaries.As he says himself, "My music is based on the delicacy and colourfulness of my instrument. I do not play any new types of musical genre, I only follow my own path and improvise and write music. I cannot see differences between musical styles and ways, so I play folk, classical, rock, blues and improvisational music”. Wild and dramatic yet filled with sensitivity and virtuosity, his performances have drawn him an obsessive following. Lajkó has been long championed by musicians as diverse as The Dirty Three and classical composer Alexander Balanescu.
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THE BOOKS
Plus special guest Chequerboard
Thursday 17th May, The Sugar Club, Dublin
"I have been listening to a band recently called The Books and they make me fucking angry. I think 'I should have done that!' That's when I know I am really impressed by something. Some of their things are a bit of a mess, but the best things they've done are absolutely outstanding. It puts everything else in the shade. That's the benchmark, that kind of originality and attention to detail." Brian Eno
Obsessive, immaculate, organic and sometime absurd, American band The Books are a unique proposition. Their confoundingly beautiful music makes references meaningless, taking in lo-fi banjo and guitar Americana, precise electronica, cut-up bluegrass and surreal samples. The Books' 2006 release, Lost and Found (Tomlab), has become an international sensation and was chosen as album of the year by both Pitchfork and The Wire.
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Michael Wollny (piano)
Eva Kruse (bass)
Eric Schaefer (drums)
Friday 14th September, The Sugar Club, Dublin
"The pianist and his Berlin-based band nodded to hip hop and drum'n'bass while fizzing with the energy of experimental rock: this is the future sound of jazz." Stuart Nicholson, The Observer.
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WAYNE SHORTER QUARTET
Plus Mikkel Ploug Group with Sean Carpio
Thursday 19th April, The Helix, Dublin
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MARTIN HAYES, DENNIS CAHILL AND BILL FRISELL
Saturday 12th May, Vicar Street, Dublin
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CHARLES LLOYD QUARTET featuring Jason Moran
Plus Greg Felton Quartet featuring Michael Buckley
Friday 11th May, The Helix, Dublin
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JAN GARBAREK GROUP
Sunday 14th October, The Helix, Dublin
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THIMAR: ANOUAR BRAHEM, DAVE HOLLAND, JOHN SURMAN
Thursday 6th December
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"Last night I nearly died,
But I woke up just in time".
Duke Special