Stolen Moments jazz afternoon returns this month

THE third Stolen Moments jazz event at Christ Church is on 11th November, featuring double bassist Pete Maxfield.

“The second Stolen Moments on 14th October was another magical occasion,” says organiser and musician, Keith Harrison-Broninski.

“Saxophonist Jon Lloyd brought along pieces of limpid beauty and we have had terrific feedback ever since. Pete is an extraordinary bassist and has been playing jazz at top level for over 50 years and appears on over 50 albums. Frome Jazz Club aficionados will remember how his solos regularly bring the house down.

“Pete’s first album, alongside Andy Sheppard in the legendary group Sphere, went to number one in the Melody Maker jazz charts in 1981. In the same year, Pete won Young Jazz Musician of the Year. Pete went on to record further award-winning albums and make countless appearances at jazz festivals and venues across the world, from the North Sea Jazz Festival to touring Outer Mongolia for the British Council.

“To showcase Pete appropriately, we will be playing the music of another distinctive and powerful bassist, the great Charles Mingus. Mingus helped Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and others create modern jazz in the original be-bop era then went on to become one of the most original composers in any genre. His tunes and arrangements for an extended small group are like nothing else before or since. They use slides, stops, shouts, and a kind of synchronised anarchy to fuse jazz/blues tradition and African-American experiences into some of the most affecting and tuneful music ever written. Mingus’ music is in the jazz canon but much of it is rarely performed due to its difficulty.

“For the next Stolen Moments, we will be featuring some of his most beautiful and sophisticated compositions. You are unlikely to hear these deeply emotional and spiritual pieces anywhere else, so do come along!”

The event is free and fruns from 3pm to 5pm on Saturday 11th November.