Award winning jazz vocalist and singer songwriter Claire McAllister is joined by virtuoso electric accordion player Volodymyr Vasylenko who is one of five in the whole of Ukraine who plays jazz on accordion and bayan. He has numerous awards and formal qualifications alongside many concert performances in Ukraine and beyond. More recently he taught music in schools before having to flee Kharkiv where he used to live with his family before the war.
Also joining Claire is the inspirational and creatively versatile improviser, composer, drummer and percussionist Martin Pyne who also works as a soloist and in ensembles often performing with dancers and accompanying silent film at the Barbican, London.
Our special guest is Alex Western-King an award-winning musician and one of the most sought after saxophone players on the London jazz scene. Described as “reaching deep into the core of jazz”, Alex is passionate about communicating through music and preserving the jazz tradition.
Since graduating the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in 2017, Alex has performed extensively throughout the UK and Europe including playing sold out shows at Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club, Pizza Express Jazz Club Soho, Royal Albert Hall, Hideaway Jazz Club and many theatres around the country