Dylan Thomas-Do not Go Gentle

DNGG_Bristol

“Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light”

Huw Warren – Piano

Iain Ballamy – Saxophone

Steve Watts – Bass

Martin France – Drums

Mark Williams – Voice and Narration

Swansea born composer Huw Warren presents a new jazz suite based on the poetry of Dylan Thomas. The project is the result of Warren’s lifelong interest in Thomas’ poetry, and reflects the inherent South Walian musicality of the words.

Specially commissioned for the Dylan Thomas centenary year, the piece will be touring after its world premiere at Brecon and features three of Warren’s long term collaborators, who have all been at the cutting edge of the UK jazz scene since the 1990’s.

No project linking Dylan Thomas and Jazz can fail to be influenced by Stan Tracey’s iconic Under Milk Wood Suite of 1965, and this suite is respectfully dedicated to Stan.

“ the crisp acoustics of St George’s were a sublime setting for pianist/composer Huw Warren’s suite of Dylan Thomas settings. This was almost devotional music with Iain Ballamy’s sax at its most lyrical and actor Mark Williams natural Welshness bringing the evocative words to light. The piano/sax dialogue for Fern Hill was particularly effective, jaunty and leisurely, catching the careless breeze of the verse, but the whole set was flawless and riveting”

Tony Benjamin, Bristol Jazz Festival March 2019