Beats & Pieces saxophonist Sam Healey wins International Jazz Soloist Award.

Saturday, October 18, 2014

Beats & Pieces Big Band saxophonist Sam Healey has won first prize in the Johnny Raducanu International Jazz Festival in Braila, Romania. Press release attached.

We have received the following press release from Efpi Records;

Beats & Pieces saxophonist Sam Healey wins International Jazz Soloist Award

Efpi are proud to announce that Beats & Pieces Big Band saxophonist Sam Healey has won first prize in the Johnny Raducanu International Jazz Festival in Braila, Romania. Fourteen musicians from a wide variety of countries performed over two days, with Sam receiving the top prize of ?5000 from the judging panel. The festival was established in memory of pianist Johnny Raducanu, who was born in Bralia and went on to become Romania’s most famous jazz musician, performing with the likes of Art Farmer and Slide Hampton during his career.

Sam says of the experience ?I’m feeling over the moon! It has been my first solo competition and so a real honour to not only win the grand prize but have the opportunity to meet like minded musicians and make connections all across Europe.? Despite his limited Romanian vocabulary (?I had no clue what was going on!?) Sam says that ?it is very apparent how important music and sustaining performance are to the Romanian public.?

A key member of Efpi’s flagship group Beats & Pieces Big Band and recent recruit to trumpeter Nick Walters’ Paradox Ensemble (also an Efpi act), earlier this summer Sam debuted his new quartet (featuring guitarist Stuart McCallum and drummer Luke Flowers of the Cinematic Orchestra alongside Richard Hammond on bass) at the Manchester Jazz Festival to enthusiastic reviews (see below). He plans to use the ?5000 cheque to record the quartet’s debut album, his first as bandleader.

?Sam Healey’s playing was bursting with passion and fire as he built his statements gradually into a intense climaxes. You’d expect there’s a lot more to follow from this exciting project? ? Andy Cronshaw, Manchester Evening News

?[Sam Healey Quartet’s] set… revealed another emotional and thoughtful side to this accomplished young player? delivered with the same intensity and passion as his [Beats & Pieces Big Band] blowing? ? Mike Collins, Jazzwise

Sam Healey
Born into a musical family and trained at Chethams School of Music, Purcell School of Music and the Royal Northern College of Music, Sam’s musical education and background is of the highest pedigree. He has received multiple awards both individually and within ensembles (Winner of London Saxophone Competition 2007, Burghausen Young Artists’ Jazz Award 2011 and Jazz FM Best UK Newcomer 2013 with Beats & Pieces Big Band) and has appeared as concerto soloist with the Netherlands Youth Orchestra as well as at many of the UK and Europe’s leading jazz venues and festivals. He is currently highly active as leader of his own quartet and with a variety of bands including Beats & Pieces and Paradox Ensemble. http://www.samhealey.com

Efpi Records
Based in Manchester, Efpi is both an independent record label and an umbrella organisation working to promote the activities of an emerging generation of musicians working across all areas of contemporary jazz, improvised and experimental music. Formed in 2009 by Sam Andreae, Ben Cottrell and Anton Hunter to bring together their various projects under a single banner, Efpi quickly expanded from its Manchester roots and now works closely with an ever growing number of musicians hailing from all over Europe and based across the UK and Scandinavia. Efpi artists include Beats & Pieces Big Band, Let Spin, Trio Riot, Silence Blossoms and the Anton Hunter Trio. http://www.efpirecords.com