London’s Ultimate Music Calendar

Described by John Zorn as “Spine-tingling music from one of the most creative ensembles in the world.” Sam Eastmond’s Bagatelles record (Volume 16 on Tzadik Label) was the latest iteration of over a decade's worth of transatlantic collaborations between London-based Eastmond and the legendary New York Downtown alchemist John Zorn (including Zorn’s MASADA Books Two and Three and albums of Eastmond’s original compositions on Tzadik.)

Eastmond's Big Band more than rises to the challenge posed by these selected Bagatelles. Arranged for 12 musicians, the ensemble features some of Europe's most celebrated creative musicians and improvisors alongside young rising stars of the UK scene.

Across the work, there's the sense of choreography and the speed with which the players interact and slip in and out of the spotlight, the precision with which they follow the demands of Eastmond's arrangement and directions, the blurred virtuosic handling of improvised and written material, the way they switch moods and tones, from the ferocious to the mellifluous, is astounding.