Preview

Mae Anna Brooks, sy'n sacsoffonydd a chyfansoddwraig o nod, yn arwain y pumawd jas ifanc a deinamig yma sy'n gwneud cryn argraff ar y sin jas Prydeinig: 'techneg heb ei hail', 'dawn ddramatig', 'band o'r radd flaenaf'.

This young and energetic quintet is rapidly gaining a reputation on the British jazz scene - the quality of their playing and Anna's fresh, original compositions are attracting fulsome critical praise.

Not yet thirty, Anna has been playing saxophone for almost twenty years, and has developed a unique rich and lyrical sound and a highly polished technique. She studied at Birmingham Conservatoire, and is now one of the college's saxophone tutors. Anna cites her main influences as Joshua Redman, Kenny Garrett, and Michael Brecker. Her CV includes a spell with John Mayer's Indo-Jazz Fusions, and as a member of glam-rocker Roy Wood's Big Band, and the Quintet's festival appearances include Montreux and Brecon. Anna also writes music for TV and film, and she's currently working on a suite for septet, commissioned by the Arts Council.

The Quintet's debut CD, 'My Time', featuring Anna plus bass, drums, piano and guitar, was released in 2003 by Martin Levan's Red Kite Records - home of the 'Live! at the Talbot' CD: quality guaranteed!

'Her playing was as assured as it was polished' - Jazz Review

'... no-nonsense alto solos built with impeccable technique and a lyrical flair' - Birmingham Post

'... impressive facility and abundance of ideas ... dramatic flair ... top-notch band' - Peter Quinn, Jazzwise

Review

Not for the first time, there was a fair amount of head-scratching rumination among the Cambria Arts honchos about how we might somehow overcome the resistance of the punters to anything bearing the label 'jazz' ... the j-word, once uttered, can be the kiss of death. Such a shame, then, that there was, as ever on jazz feature nights, a relatively select (OK, sparse, even) turnout for the Talbot debut of scintillating Red Kite artists the Anna Brooks Quintet, whose absorbing and perfectly accessible music would undoubtedly have appealed to many of the regulars who were conspicuous by their absence on the night. Still, for those who were there, there were treats aplenty, not least the confident virtuosity of Anna herself (on saxes): she possesses a purity of tone and a melodic flair that belies her relative youth (by jazz standards); and her compositional skills ('Karmarama', the lyrical 'Already There', the storming 'Bad Hair Day', 'Dink No Dink', 'Beans' Dreams' - inspired by her baby twins, 'By Twelve', and more) are world-class.

In support, Anna has four top-flight young musicians with a synergy that's palpable ... Tim Crampton's guitar style is classically contained in tone and style, while in Dave Foster (string bass) and Carl Hemmingsley (drums) the quintet boasts a rhythm section beyond reproach - both soloed with verve on occasion; and the splendidly-monikered Alcyona Mick on piano is absolutely riveting: she displays a fearless knack of skirting the outer boundaries of melody and metre while never plunging too far. In addition to the Brooks originals, we got spirited and inspired arrangements of Joshua Redman's 'Can't Dance', Ivan Lind's 'Once I Walked in the Sun', Michael Brecker's 'Delta City Blues' (with brave unaccompanied intro from Anna), and a Kenny Garrett work-out. The ensemble playing was tight and faultless throughout, the soloing by all inspired, and we all took away from the evening the sense of having witnessed a quintet of very special quality. This was, then, an intimate and enriching night's music, one which would undoubtedly have been much appreciated by many more, had they taken a chance ... maybe next time, we'll simply omit to utter the j-word in our publicity ...