Helena Kay on curating the new jazz series at Edinburgh's Queen's Hall

Helena Kay

The coming month is an exceptionally busy one for multi-award-winning saxophonist Helena Kay. Thursday 19 September sees them take the stage at Edinburgh’s Queen’s Hall with their quartet and a notable guest, the acclaimed pianist Zoe Rahman, in the first of a series of concerts Kay has been invited to curate at the Edinburgh venue. The next day sees Kay island-bound, for the Lagavulin Islay Jazz Festival that weekend, before returning to take their regular seat in the reeds section of the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra as it tours the following weekend.

Now based in Glasgow after some years in London, the Perth-raised tenor sax player is relishing the opportunity to take the stage with artists who have inspired them. Following the Rahman gig on the 19th (with Glasgow guitarist Nathan Somevi in support), other guests appearing with Kay during the series include Norman&Corrie – the adventurous sax and drums duo of Norman Willmore and Corrie Dick – on 13 February, when Kay also plans to launch their third quartet album, due to record towards the end of this year.

On 10 April, Kay will be appearing alongside strings in swing violinist and singer Seonaid Aitken’s beautiful chamber composition, Chasing Sakura, and there will also be guest spots from saxophonist Laura Macdonald and guitarist Kevin Mackenzie. Scottish National Jazz Orchestra director Tommy Smith joins Kay on 11 September next year, along with another, yet to be confirmed guest.

Asked what influenced their choice of guests, Kay replies: “Musicians that I look up to and that I’m really excited by and that I think are doing interesting things – like Norman and Corrie and Nathan and Seonaid Aitken. I think Seonaid is a unique and incredible musician, and as for Laura MacDonald … obviously I’ve looked up to her for a long time.”

So far as Rahman is concerned, Kay first saw the Anglo-Bengali pianist play with Courtney Pine when they were a teenager. “My Mum, as a big fan, was anxious to speak to her. It was so inspiring for me to meet her at that stage in my musical life, so now it’s great to play with her. I played in Zoe’s octet for her Colour of Sounds album launch tour, and actually we’ve got a gig in Finland in November.”

Laura MacDonald tutored Kay in the run-up to the Young Scottish Jazz Musician of the Year contest, which Kay won in 2015, and they regard her as “a fantastic example for young musicians looking to play jazz to follow.”

Kay has performed on such hallowed stages as Ronnie Scott’s, the Royal Albert Hall and The Vortex but, like many musicians, nurses a particular affection for the Queen’s Hall, which is hosting these concerts under its “Jazz Thursdays” spot. They cite such illustrious figures as Carla Bley and Sonny Rollins who have played there: “So to lead my own band and to play with some of my heroes there is really special. I’ve also played a lot there with the SNJO as well and that’s always fun.” And they return there with the SNJO on 29 September.

In the meantime, immediately after the Rahman concert, they head off to the music and malt suffused realm that is the Lagavulin Islay Jazz Festival, running from 20-22 September. Kay will lead their quartet with pianist Pete Johnstone, bassist Calum Gourlay and drummer Alyn Cosker, as well as duetting with Slovak vibraphonist Miro Herac from fellow saxophonist Paul Towndrow’s multinational collective, Atlantic Road Trip, who are also festival guests.

Other Islay notables include Kay’s future collaborators MacDonald and Aitken, as well as rising saxophone star Matt Carmichael, all playing in various configurations with international visitors such as Norwegian pianist Kjetil Mulelid, French guitarist Sébastien Giniaux and, also from Towndrow’s band, US trumpeter Chad McCullough.

Other guests include Glasgow-based cross-genre collective Azamiah, fronted by singer India Blue, while pianist Johnstone enlists Kay, Towndrow, Cosker and others in his new outfit, Timepiece.

See www.helenakay.com and https://jazzscotland.com/collections/lagavulin-islay-jazz-festival