The Jigsaw

Stan Sulzmann – saxophones
Marc Copland – piano
Drew Gress – bass
Jochen Ruckert – drums

"Stan Sulzmann’s meticulously written music is ravishing, powerful and direct.” – The Guardian

“Copland is a pianist of the front rank, with the kind of expressive touch and technique to take him anywhere he wants to venture musically.”
– The Irish Times

Sun 26th September 2004 8pm Whelans, Wexford St D2

Adm€ 20 tel 01 670 3885

Four pieces only in this Jigsaw, but all of them elements that create a compelling image of contemporary jazz at the highest level of expression. The central piece is saxophonist Stan Sulzmann, enigmatic and understated, and unquestionably one of the greatest musicians the UK jazz scene has produced. Dovetailing with Sulzmann is Philadelphia’s Marc Copland, among the most lyrical and subtly persuasive pianists to be heard in jazz today. The picture is made whole with the potent rhythm duo of US bassist Drew Gress, and German drummer Jochen Ruckert, two musicians who share a wealth of experience in the highest echelons of contemporary jazz.

For Sulzmann and Copland, The Jigsaw, also the title of their most recent CD together (Basho Records), is the latest chapter in a musical relationship that spans two decades, and it has graced them with a rare level of rapport and mutual creativity. Copland’s piano touch, masterful in its control of dynamics and colour, seems the perfect foil for Sulzmann’s elegant lines and burnished tone. In the probing company of Dress and Ruckert, they have never sounded better.