Ahmad Jamal, Royal Festival Hall

While he may have had a mixed relationship with the critics, Ahmad Jamal’s influence has been far-reaching and powerful. Over the course of a career spanning six decades, his elegant, deliberate touch, impressionist sense of harmony and respect for space and silence have inspired the likes of Miles Davis – who used to instruct his pianists to “play like Jamal” – and Keith Jarrett. 

Jamal, a restless innovator, has always followed his own star – and, at 83, he’s showing no sign of letting up. His latest album, Saturday Morning (released in October), brims with energy and invention, and he’s still performing across the world. 

Earlier this year he sold out the Barbican with what was widely considered a near-flawless gig, and on January 27 next year he returns to London. This time he’s playing at the Southbank Centre, bringing a stellar quartet with him – bassist Reginald Veal (once a regular in Wynton Marsalis’s group) and drummer Herlin Riley (who’s also played with Marsalis), along with the former Weather Report percussionist Manolo Badrena. 

Jamal is a master of collaboration, with a Bill Evans-like sensitivity to the dynamics of his group, and the ability to instigate seamless – and sometimes dramatic – shifts in the music’s mood and temperature. If his recent work is anything to go by, this gig will have a more propulsive, virtuosic feel than the spare, cool works with which he made his name. But while Jamal is always trying new things, his sound remains unmistakable. Expect catchy tunes, colourful chording, simmering rhythms and daring flights of fancy from one of the true greats of jazz.

Tickets: £37.50 £30 £20 £10

Address & Map:  Royal Festival Hall,  Southbank Centre, Belvedere Rd, SE1 8XX  ‎

Nearest Tube: Waterloo