aaamusic | On 23, Oct 2011

Sunday 20^th November

The Purcell Room, Southbank Centre

In 2009, more than a century after Romanian composer and violinist George Enescu was first introduced to European audiences, fellow Romanian, acclaimed pianist and composer Lucian Ban, together with renowned jazz bassist John Hébert took on Enesco’s musical legacy in a daring contemporary jazz re-imagination of some of his unique works.  In particular, Ban revisited some of Enescu’s folk-inspired 20^th century modernist compositions and recast them as large ensemble jazz explorations,  and with a group of stunning downtown New York jazz musicians, presented the project, Enescu Re-Imagined, at the George Enescu Festival in Bucharest.   The performance was recorded live and subsequently released receiving a plethora of outstanding reviews and earning its place on top of end of year polls.

“Sparkling new album” New York Times

“Trust us’ this kind of night only happens once every three centuries” The Village Voice

For his London Jazz Festival debut, Lucian Ban presents Enescu Re-Imagined.   Bringing together sounds from Balkan classical music, New York’s downtown jazz scene and the rhythms of the Indian subcontinent, – a reflection of Romania’s position in Europe as the melting pot between east and west – Ban creates a vibrant, multi-cultural soundscape of inventive string and brass melodies, sparkling improvisation and captivating rhythmic invention, all performed by an A-list band.

Enescu Re-imagined set the bar high in bridging the divide between classical and jazz composition while providing the perfect opportunity for the meeting of two generations of Romanian composer/performers.

Tony Malaby tenor saxophone; Ralph Alessi trumpet, Albrecht Maurer violin; Mat Maneri viola, Lucian Ban piano, Badal Roy tabla, voice, percussion, Drew Gress bass, Mark Ferber drums

For You Tube video, click here

Tonight’s concert is organised in partnership with the Romanian Cultural Institute in London.

Southbank Centre / Purcell Room
Belvedere Road, London, SE1 8XX
Tickets:  0844 875 0073  //  www.southbankcentre.co.uk //  £20, £10 + bkg