Sam Watts Octet, Symphony Hall Café Bar, Birmingham, 11/03/2016.

This early evening event was part of the Jazzlines organisation’s “Free Gigs” and for me represented something of a ‘starter’ prior to the ‘main course’ of Tord Gustavsen’s new trio at the CBSO Centre later in the evening.

But what a tasty starter Watts and his colleagues served up. The young Birmingham born pianist and composer studied at Leeds College of Music before moving to London where he performs regularly with many of the rising stars of the UK jazz scene. As well as leading his octet Watts also works in more intimate situations such as his duos with Portuguese vocalist Mila Dores and with Birmingham based saxophonist Mike Fletcher. He has also been a member of drummer Dave Smyth’s Timecraft group and maintains musical connections in Birmingham, London and Leeds.

When he first moved to London Watts studied at the Royal Academy of Music and played in the Academy Big Band. His octet features a number of Academy alumni and included several musicians whose playing I was already familiar with including Matthew Herd (reeds), Kieran McLeod (trombone), Flo Moore (double bass) and former NYJO trumpeter James Copus. Completing the line up were guitarist Thomas Seminar Ford, drummer Ben Brown and classically trained cellist Lucia Capellaro.

Watts’ compositions covered an impressive stylistic and geographical range with influences ranging from various jazz genres to contemporary classical music and from New Orleans to Argentina, Brazil and South Africa. Among those mentioned as inspirations are Duke Ellington, Astor Piazzolla, Arvo Part and Tom Waits. Meanwhile the sheer diversity and eclecticism of the performance reminded me of Carla Bley and Django Bates.

Opener “Eight and a Half”, the title taken from a Fellini film, commenced with a free jazz squall before mutating into a kind of twisted tango, albeit one with several reflective moments. The solos here came from Herd on alto and the composer at the piano.

Next up “Rag” combined updated ragtime elements with the dissonance of contemporary classicism as part of a typically quirky and eclectic mix. Watts introduced the piece with a passage of solo piano with further features coming from trombonist McLeod and trumpeter Copus as the music developed.

I previously alluded to Watts’ fondness for playing in the context of a duo. Next up was “Almost Sunset”, a delightful dialogue between the pianist and cellist Capellaro. This beautiful and intimate performance represented a welcome change of mood and pace and was a good ‘palette cleanser’ between the denser octet pieces.

Capellaro also featured alongside Watts and Ford on the introduction to “The Kite”. On the octet pieces Capellaro’s cello brought a distinctive additional voice to the band that proved to be very effective alongside the more conventional ‘jazz’ instruments. Here she combined with her colleagues on a subtle arrangement that made use of flute, muted brass and brushed drums and which was crowned by the composer’s flowingly lyrical piano solo.

Moore’s unaccompanied bass ushered in a tango inspired piece that included solos from the leader at the piano plus Copus on dramatic high register trumpet. Watts left the piano stool to direct the band as Ford took the final solo on guitar.

The first set concluded with an arrangement of the New Orleans hymn “Just A Closer Walk With Thee” which featured a rousing solo trombone introduction from McLeod who subsequently combined effectively with drummer Ben Brown. Further solos came from Watts at the piano and Moore on melodic double bass, the latter allowing herself a smile of quiet satisfaction at the conclusion of her feature. Copus then raised the energy levels once more with a rumbustious trumpet solo that incorporated the use of a plunger mute to generate the kind of vocalised sounds associated with one time Ellington trumpeter Bubber Miley. The joyousness of the octet’s playing on this piece occasionally reminded me of saxophonist Tom Challenger’s Crescent City inspired combo Brass Mask.  Following Copus’ pyrotechnics the piece resolved itself with an unexpectedly subdued coda featuring just piano, guitar, bass and drums.

The second half delivered an equally diverse and eclectic set and began with a surreal arrangement of a Shostakovich waltz with features for Capellaro on cello and Ford on effects laden guitar.

Watts’ own “Love Song” began with the atmospheric sounds of piano, cello, bowed bass and Brown’s cymbal scrapes before evolving into a poignant ballad featuring Copus on flugel horn.

This set’s duo episode featured Watts on piano and Ford on guitar with a sprightly rendition of a Brazilian samba.

The octet piece “Birds” began with a passage of solo piano from Watts before evolving into a feature for Herd who swooped and soared on soprano sax buoyed by the soft thermals of muted trombone and trumpet plus the sympathetic support of Watts and the rhythm section with Brown deploying a combination of mallets and sticks.

Watts again emerged from behind the piano to conduct the band on an infectious slice of Township jazz, the celebratory vibe fuelling lively solos from Herd on alto, McLeod on trombone and Ford on guitar prior to a closing drum feature from the accomplished Brown. The audience loved it.

The afternoon concluded with a New Orleans styled arrangement of “In Dreams” which included lengthy features for McLeod on trombone and Ford on guitar plus more plunger muted fireworks from Copus.

I was very impressed with Watts and his octet. The playing was first rate throughout, as one would expect from some of the London jazz scene’s most talented young musicians. But it was also about the quality of the writing, Watts is an imaginative composer with a broad range of influences and this was a performance that touched many musical bases and incorporated a good balance of light and shade. Some might argue that it was all a bit too eclectic with Watts throwing everything but the proverbial kitchen sink into the arrangements but for me variety is good, this was a performance that kept the audience on their toes and the majority of them seemed to enjoy every minute of it.

Despite references to recording sessions on Watts’ website http://www.wattsworld.co.uk it doesn’t look as if the octet have actually released an album yet. This is a pity as this is music that deserves to be documented on disc and made available to the British listening public.