Empty Birdcage Records presents two duos:
Dee Byrne (saxophones) & Cath Roberts (saxophones)
Emil Karlsen (drums, percussion) & Daniel Thompson (guitar)
Doors 3:30 | music 4pm | entry £8
Dee Byrne is a London-based saxophonist, composer and improviser with an interest in pushing the boundaries of jazz. Dee collaborates with artists from the UK and Europe who occupy the area of contemporary jazz, avant-garde and free improvisation. deebyrnemusic.com
Cath Roberts’ work explores free improvisation, composition and the music at their meeting point. Her primary outlet as a composer and improviser on baritone saxophone is the quintet Sloth Racket, which has toured widely and released several albums. She leads ten piece improvising ensemble Favourite Animals, and has a long-standing duo with guitarist Anton Hunter, Ripsaw Catfish. As bandmate, Cath is a member of Madwort Sax Quartet, Vole, Article XI and Alex Ward’s Item 10 amongst other groups. She co-runs LUME with Dee Byrne, producing concerts, tours and festivals since 2013 and releasing music on an offshoot label, Luminous. Cath is also part of the group of musicians who run BRÅK, an improvised music series taking place in Brockley, South East London. http://cathrobertsmusic.co.uk/
Emil Karlsen, originally from Norway, is a young drummer/improviser currently based in Leeds, UK. He is active on the UK jazz and improvised music scene establishing himself as a new, original voice. In 2019 he released his solo record “Flux” followed by a UK tour.
He is seen across the UK with various large and small ensembles ranging from being a solo performer to percussionist in the London Improvisers Orchestra. He’s currently active in groups with improvisers such as Philipp Wachsmann, Matthew Bourne, Phil Durrant, Ed Jones, Mark Hanslip and the London Improvisers Orchestra. Apart from being a busy performer, he also run the label noumenon – a label for improvised music with a Scandinavian presence.
Daniel Thompson is a guitarist and improvising musician currently living in Hackney, London. He was born in Norfolk, England in 1981 and other than a couple of years playing violin as a child, his musical studies didn’t seriously begin until his late teens. Largely self-taught, after moving to London in 2006 Daniel embarked upon a life changing period studying with the guitarist John Russell for two years, who “provided me with one of the richest and most rewarding musical experiences of my life”. A part of the fertile London improvising music scene Daniel has also played at many other venues across the UK and Europe.
