Small Blue: jazz piano trio

Event information

Small Blue was formed in the summer of 2023. Martin Pyne created a vehicle for his ever-growing catalogue of compositions in the classic jazz piano trio format. It gave him the opportunity to work with two of his favourite musical colleagues: bass player Marianne Windham and pianist David Beebee.

Having spent a good portion of his musical life playing improvised music, Martin also spends much of his time sitting at the piano writing. Over the years he has produced notebooks full of pieces which he explores with two sympathetic and creative collaborators. The music can be by turns lyrical, atmospheric, groovy, and mischievous, with most tunes inspired by novels, poems, art, or places Martin has visited.

Influences are many and varied, but include groups led by Marilyn Crispell, Bobo Stenson, Paul Motion and Bill Evans.

MARTIN PYNE works primarily in the areas of jazz and improvised music playing drums, percussion and vibraphone. He has performed and recorded with many artists, including Stan Sulzmann, Alex Maguire, and Josephine Davies, and, with Martin Archer and Charlotte Keeffe, is a member of Hi Res Heart. He also works extensively with contemporary dance, and has an ongoing collaboration with leading Silent Film pianist Stephen Horne, that has taken to the USA, across Europe, and to major UK venues such as The Barbican. In 2020 his solo album Spirits Of Absent Dancers was named by critic Richard Williams in The Guardian as one of the best albums of the year.

MARIANNE WINDHAM is founder and driving force behind Guildford Jazz. She started her musical life playing cello, switching to bass shortly before taking up playing full time. Marianne has become a well-respected player, performing with many of the leading names on the UK jazz scene and playing regularly at festivals and jazz clubs across the UK. Most recently she has been touring with The Jazz Samba Project alongside guitarist Nigel Price, including a performance to a packed Ronnie Scotts
Club.

DAVID BEEBEE is a superb pianist much in demand to play with top
musicians such as saxophonists Julian Nicholas and Julian Costello, and vocalist Imogen Ryall. In recent times he has recorded two albums playing fender rhodes piano with Martin Pyne on vibraphone, Ripples,and The Act Of Noticing, by Espial, a trio also featuring Josephine Davies on saxophone. Both of these were released on Discus Music to enthusiastic reviews. David also leads his own groups, including a quartet featuring Julian Nicholas, Eric Ford and Jakub Cywinski.

"Small Blue have themselves a minor masterpiece." - Steve Day, May 2025

"Some superb contemporary jazz." - Nick Lea, JAZZ VIEWS

"Intimacy, elegance and sophistication." - Rigobert Dittmann, BAD
ALCHEMY

"Heartfelt ballads and mysterious grooves, as well as evocative
atmospheres and melodic swing." - Patrick Auwelaert, JAZZ&MO

"One of the best ‘piano trio’ albums that I’ve heard in a long time." - Ian
Mann, JAZZMAN
"A collection of pieces that charms at every turn and shows just how
intuitive these players are.....a true delight."- Mr Olivetti. FREQ

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