Gwilym Simcock and Céline Bonacina Trio, Kings Place

Celebrated as both composer and virtuosic pianist, Gwilym Simcock is one of the undisputed stars of British jazz and contemporary classical music. Still in his early thirties, he has performed with top international musicians in a dazzling range of genres, from his jazz-rock supergroup The Impossible Gentlemen , featuring the legendary bass guitarist Steve Swallow, and 12-time Grammy Award-winner Steve Rodby, to contemporary classical composition and performance with contemporary orchestral specialists.  

This Kings Place gig again shows off his diversity. Simcock is launching a new album, Instrumation , a characteristically collaborative and genre-busting affair featuring the City of London Sinfonia , a group specialising in novel kinds of live orchestral performance. The gig features a slimmed-down orchestral presence, with distinguished Russian double bassist Yuri Goloubev (like Simcock, at home in both classical and jazz performance) and drummer Martin France, to play Simcock’s new orchestral compositions. 

The first half of the concert will feature Simcock’s collaboration with French saxophonist Céline Bonacina , who has dedicated much of her career to extending the range and repertoire of the neglected baritone saxophone, with its unmistakable combination of stern bottom end and sweet-singing upper register. Her repertoire is nearly as broad as Simcock’s: her latest album, Open Heart , released earlier this year, featured world jazz, classical epiphanies and folk inflections, as well as the track Wild World , a blend of animal growls and explosive saxophone effects. The evening promises to be a milestone in two exciting, original careers. 

Tickets: £29.50 / £24.50 / £19.50 / £14.50

Address & Map:  90 York Way, London N1 9AG  ‎

Nearest Tube: Kings Cross St Pancras