Way back in June 2005 saxophonist Simon Rose played a solo set at Newcastle’s long demolished Egypt Cottage, displaying a remarkable grasp of extended instrumental techniques, all of them put to the service of a complex yet profoundly melodic musical vision. It was a beautiful and memorable performance.
But soon afterwards Simon moved to Berlin, and performances in the UK have become pretty infrequent. Our loss was most certainly Europe’s gain - he performs across the continent both in ‘regular’ concerts, but also collaborating beyond music with dancers, visual artists, mixed media, built instruments, site specific performance and much more. His imaginative curiosity seems insatiable, and his music unfailingly gripping.
So when the opportunity came round to finally bring him back to Tyneside, we jumped at the chance. And, adding icing to the cake, we have him teamed up with one of our favourite percussionists. Steve Noble started his career with the progressive post-punk band Rip Rig + Panic, and has gone on to involvement with a wide range of improvised music - including, like Simon Rose, working with dancers and film makers.
So these are two immensely compatible musicians, and it’s a huge pleasure to have them together at the Bridge for what seems certain to be an evening of compelling creativity.