Brigitte Beraha With Special Guest Bobby Wellins And Featuring A Special Appearance From Elo Viiding & JÜrgen Rooste-poetry & Villu Veski-sax (estonia) at 606 Club

Probably best known for work with her own, excellent, band "Babelfish", Brigitte Beraha has established herself on the UK scene as a gifted singer with an impressive technical ability combined with genuine creativity. Described as a “most musicianly singer.." Brigitte performs as both ‘sideman’ and leader in an ever-expanding range of projects, from straight ahead jazz to more contemporary outlets where she uses her voice solely as an instrument. As well as performing and recording with numerous high profile UK artists, including Kenny Wheeler, Chris Laurence, Paul Clarvis, John Parricelli and Henry Lowther she is also closely involved in the work of the new generation of jazz musicians, in particular the Loop and E17 jazz collectives. With 5 albums to her credit she is also a well established educator, teaching at The Guildhall School of Music & Drama, Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music & Dance and the Welsh College of Music & Drama and has performed and led workshops in the US, France, Belgium, Switzerland, Finland, Turkey and Nepal. Tonight Brigitte has asked her friend and colleague, the iconic British saxophonist Bobby Wellins, to join her quartet to perform a set of more "straight-ahead" jazz standards. Originally from Glasgow, Bobby was on one of the biggest selling jazz albums ever produced in this country, Stan Tracey’s “Under Milk Wood”, recorded in the late sixties. After taking a sabbatical from the music for seven years, he came back in the early eighties to lead the Charlie Watts Big Band as well as a number of small groups, which re-established him as one of the finest melodic saxophonists in the world. Completing the group this evening will be John Turville-piano, Dave Whitford-bass and Tim Giles-drums. However, if all that wasn't enough, we will also be featuring an interval set from three of Estonia's most interesting and creative performers: the poets Elo Viiding and Jürgen Rooste will be joined on stage by saxophonist Villu Veski to perform a set of Jazz & Poetry (which will, incidentally, be performed primarily in English). Jürgen Rooste made his name on the Estonian literary scene as a beat-poet and performance artist, winning almost every Estonian poetry award along the way. His best works are expressive and social “love poems” and it is fair to say his performances are characterful and idiosyncratic. Elo Viiding. Often thought of as the original “angry young woman” of Estonian poetry, Elo Viiding is one of the most distinct female voices in contemporary Estonian literature. Coming from a theatrical background she possesses an imposing stage presence, creating "roles" in a manner that can often be seen as "dark", but remaining deeply concerned with the issues at hand. Villu Veski is one of Estonia's leading jazz saxophonists. His playing encompasses a wide range of styles and influences, from folk/jazz through swing to Funk & Groove. An international artist, he includes performances at the likes of the Rochester Jazz Festival, New York, the Pori Jazz Festival, Finland, Natt Jazz, Norway, the Brussels Jazz Marathon, Belgium and the British Saxophone Congress in London. Villu has been artistic director of the Muhu Future Music Festival since 1997. This event is part of the Estonian program at the London Book Fair in preparation for Estonia, together with Latvia and Lithuania, being the LBF Market Focus countries in 2018 and the poems performed come from the book “Six Estonian Poets" published by Arc Publications and available this evening....

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Probably best known for work with her own, excellent, band "Babelfish", Brigitte Beraha has established herself on the UK scene as a gifted singer with an impressive technical ability combined with genuine creativity. Described as a “most musicianly singer.." Brigitte performs as both ‘sideman’ and leader in an ever-expanding range of projects, from straight ahead jazz to more contemporary outlets where she uses her voice solely as an instrument. As well as performing and recording with numerous high profile UK artists, including Kenny Wheeler, Chris Laurence, Paul Clarvis, John Parricelli and Henry Lowther she is also closely involved in the work of the new generation of jazz musicians, in particular the Loop and E17 jazz collectives. With 5 albums to her credit she is also a well established educator, teaching at The Guildhall School of Music & Drama, Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music & Dance and the Welsh College of Music & Drama and has performed and led workshops in the US, France, Belgium, Switzerland, Finland, Turkey and Nepal. Tonight Brigitte has asked her friend and colleague, the iconic British saxophonist Bobby Wellins, to join her quartet to perform a set of more "straight-ahead" jazz standards. Originally from Glasgow, Bobby was on one of the biggest selling jazz albums ever produced in this country, Stan Tracey’s “Under Milk Wood”, recorded in the late sixties. After taking a sabbatical from the music for seven years, he came back in the early eighties to lead the Charlie Watts Big Band as well as a number of small groups, which re-established him as one of the finest melodic saxophonists in the world. Completing the group this evening will be John Turville-piano, Dave Whitford-bass and Tim Giles-drums. However, if all that wasn't enough, we will also be featuring an interval set from three of Estonia's most interesting and creative performers: the poets Elo Viiding and Jürgen Rooste will be joined on stage by saxophonist Villu Veski to perform a set of Jazz & Poetry (which will, incidentally, be performed primarily in English). Jürgen Rooste made his name on the Estonian literary scene as a beat-poet and performance artist, winning almost every Estonian poetry award along the way. His best works are expressive and social “love poems” and it is fair to say his performances are characterful and idiosyncratic. Elo Viiding. Often thought of as the original “angry young woman” of Estonian poetry, Elo Viiding is one of the most distinct female voices in contemporary Estonian literature. Coming from a theatrical background she possesses an imposing stage presence, creating "roles" in a manner that can often be seen as "dark", but remaining deeply concerned with the issues at hand. Villu Veski is one of Estonia's leading jazz saxophonists. His playing encompasses a wide range of styles and influences, from folk/jazz through swing to Funk & Groove. An international artist, he includes performances at the likes of the Rochester Jazz Festival, New York, the Pori Jazz Festival, Finland, Natt Jazz, Norway, the Brussels Jazz Marathon, Belgium and the British Saxophone Congress in London. Villu has been artistic director of the Muhu Future Music Festival since 1997. This event is part of the Estonian program at the London Book Fair in preparation for Estonia, together with Latvia and Lithuania, being the LBF Market Focus countries in 2018 and the poems performed come from the book “Six Estonian Poets" published by Arc Publications and available this evening.

"Beraha…High-class....artistry" The Guardian;
"Brigitte is someone who concentrates on the music's core values: imagination, individuality, improvisation." Jazz Review;
“Wellins...a masterful display of controlled sensitivity from one of the most original voices in European Jazz” The Sunday Times;
"It implies that the spirit of Estonia is the spirit of poetry: it is the spirit that opposes, and survives, and this excellent new anthology should be commended for helping to keep that spirit alive" Paul McDonald, Envoi

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