Chris Dowding
Past gigs
2014
14th November – John Hegley, supported by Julian Arguelles (solo set), at St. Paul’s Sessions. St. Paul’s Church Centre, Marylebone. £7 / £5 concs.
17th November – ‘Names and Places’ with Sarah Woolfenden, at Vortex Downstairs (underneath the Vortex Jazz Club), 7pm, as part of the London Jazz Festival.
More information here:
http://www.efglondonjazzfestival.org.uk/events/info/chris-dowding-sarah-woolfenden
and here:
https://www.facebook.com/events/640475356071658/?ref_dashboard_filter=upcoming
23rd November – Natural Causes at The Hall, Lancaster, 1pm – 3pm
6th December – Some things grow in the sea at Norwich Buddhist Winter Banquet.
13th December – Brass Monkeys – ‘Shoaling’ collaboration with Ripsaw Catfish, at Marzanos, Norwich, 8pm – £5 (tickets available here: https://brassmonkeys.bandcamp.com/ )
2015
20th February – Glasseye Daisy Killer at Forest Gap – 8pm at Forest Tavern (a very nice pub and space), 173 Forest Lance, E7 9BB
28th February – Glasseye Daisy Killer set, supporting Tolerance Manoeuvre, at Hundred Years Gallery, 13 Pearson Street, London, E2 8JD. Timings TBC.
12th March – Monk Inc. at Rose Tavern, Norwich – Monk tunes with Ben Higham etc.
13th March – some things grow in the sea, supporting saxophonist Tom Ward’s ‘Madwort’s Menagerie’, at St. Pauls Sessions, St. Paul’s Church Centre, 5 Rossmore Road, NW1 6NJ
14th March – some things grow in the sea, at Gloombusters, Spooner Row Church, South Norfolk.
15th May – St. Paul’s Sessions – with The Brass Monkeys (support by Clive Bell – solo shakuhachi set)
29-31st May – Natural Causes at Wychwood Festival
10th June – St. Paul’s Sessions – Tolerance Manoeuvre, support by Chris Dowding and Mark Sanders – duo improvised set – part of ‘the meaningless sky’ series.
August 9th – Natural Causes at Manchester Jazz Festival
4th September – St. Paul’s Sessions – John Butcher (solo) & Word of Moth (Now on the 4th September, NOT 5th)
11th September – some things at ‘Existential Antics’ (a set of three gigs in Norwich in September 2015, see below) – in the Undercroft, above Norwich Market, Norwich. with the Organic Soul Society – 5:30-8:30ish
12th September – Rude 2.0 at the Vortex, Dalston.
18th September – The Brass Monkeys at ‘Existential Antics’ – at the Undercroft, above Norwich Market, Norwich. 5:30-8:30ish
25th September – Arthur at ‘Existential Antics’ – Undercroft, Norwich Market – I won’t be there, but you could be… It’ll be very good – very good new Norwich band – saxophone, tuba & drums… 5:30-8:30ish
28th September – some things at ‘Beyond our Kennel’ – John Hegley’s quirky and fun night at the Betsey Trotwood, near Farringdon station, London
19th October – some things – supporting Tolerance Manoeuvre, at Servant Jazz Quarters, London
14th November – Rude 2.0 at the Vortex, Dalston, as part of the London Jazz Festival
15th November – Glasseye Daisy Killer at ‘Oroshi’ – an afternoon of music, dance, and performance art at Hundred Years Gallery, curated by Glasseye Daisy Killer.
16th November – some things at the Vortex Downstairs. Early gig 7pm (for 45 minutes only), as a kind of introductory trumpeting warm-up to the main gig upstairs (which includes the great New York trumpeter Peter Evans, in a band led by Swedish bassist Petter Eldh). Free entry (donations welcome)
21st November – St. Paul’s Sessions – Natural Causes / Tolerance Manoeuvre
5th December – Playing with the Choral Engineers (a creative community choir from Devon), as part of ‘Long Time Coming – Songs About the New Road’. A Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra Participate Project.
2016
March 11th – Playing with the lovely duo Diego Brown and the Good Fairy – in London. More details soon…
May 7th – Playing as part of ‘Really Actually Windy’, curated by dancer Mirei Yazawa
https://m.facebook.com/events/996775070408768
May 22nd – Performing with Trio of Men, in the south-west. More details soon.
May 29th – Performing with West Gallery choir, at Carlton Forehoe church, South Norfolk. New choir set up by my Dad and his wife…
June 8th – Musical Keys fundraiser by Kit Downes, Anteros, Norwich. ‘some things’ set, supporting pianist Kit Downes, who will play a exciting solo set. Also performing are Miniature Universe, hang player Blake Harrison’s project.
http://www.musicalkeys.co.uk/kitgig/
23rd June – Triple-bill of some things, Arthur and The Brass Monkeys, at the York Tavern, Norwich. 8pm
3rd July – ‘some things’ in Spooner Row Church, Norfolk, as part of Wymondham Music Festival. Also Monk Inc. (Norwich band playing interpretations of Thelonious Monk tunes) and the Dolce choir, led by Philip Aldred. 6:30pm, Spooner Row Church, Spooner Row (nr. Wymondham). Details at the link below:
http://www.wymfest.org.uk/event/music-after-the-fete/?instance_id=241
6th July – ‘Lady sings the blues – the songs of Billie Holiday’ – Wymondham Music Festival, 5pm, with Shona McLellan (vocals) and Katie Vaughan (piano).
http://www.wymfest.org.uk/events/
21st July – Playing with Diego Brown and the Good Fairy, at the Lantern Society, Clerkenwell.
23rd July – Playing with Diego Brown and the Good Fairy, at Westival, nr. Aldershot (never been to Aldershot…)
4th August – First ever Plink Plonk gig..! Plink Plonk is a new improv night in Norwich, organised and programmed by the Norwich and Norfolk Sonic Arts Collective, which i am part of. This is the first gig – saxophonist John Butcher and electronics musician David Ross, solo set each, followed by a duo set.
More information and tickets here:
www.anterosfoundation.com/plink-plonk/
7th August – Depping in Norwich-based saxophonist Simon Youngman’s The Mingus Project. More details soon.
2nd-4th September – Natural Causes at End of the Road Festival – writing instant songs from playing games… More info soon. Amazing festival..!
26th September – Solo set at Clerkenwell ArtsLab, at the Betsey Trotwood, London – poet John Hegley will be performing on this night, and I will play the world premiere of a new solo piece i’m working on.
30th September – Second Plink Plonk gig – Sudden Amusements / Pan Anglian at the York Tavern, Norwich. Field recordings, processed trumpet and electric guitars. I am playing with Sudden Amusements, a new duo with Oliver Payne.
8th-10th October – Natural Causes – Tour of the North 2016
Celebrating 10 years together…
8th October – Marsden Jazz Festival – double-bill with Graham Browning Trio – NC, 3pm, GBT 1pm at Standedge Tunnel Visitors Centre
9th October – The Apothecary, Lancaster, 2pm
10th October – Chapel FM, Leeds, 7:30pm
24th October – some things at Clerkenwell ArtsLab, at the Betsey Trotwood, London.
26th October – Improvised duo set with the amazing Sylvia Hallett, as part of flimflam – saxophonist Alan Wilkinson’s regular improvised music night, at Ryan’s Bar, Stoke Newington, London.
11th November – ‘some things presents…’ at the Vortex Downstairs, as part of the London Jazz Festival. Part 1 – some things set plus Chris Dowding / Julie Kjaer, duo improvised set.
18th November – ‘some things presents’ at the Vortex Downstairs, as part of the London Jazz Festival. Part 2 – some things set, plus Ben Higham / Paul Jolly duo improvised set.
27th November – ‘Little Big Band’ at the Luna Lounge, Leytonstone, 2:30-5pm. Includes parts of Kenny Wheeler’s ‘Sweet Time Suite’ – I’m playing his part…
1st December – Third Plink Plonk event – London-based saxophonist Alan Wilkinson and Manchester-based guitarist Anton Hunter – each playing a solo set, then a collaborative duo set. At Anteros, Norwich. Link coming soon…
4th December – Chris Dowding (solo) / The Happy Couple / Arthur – York Tavern, Norwich, 1pm – afternoon gig..!
The Triple Bill Tour… :
A short UK tour of three new bands from Norwich, supported by the Arts Council. Includes some things (‘arresting trumpet duo’), Arthur (energetic trio of sax, tuba and drums) and The Brass Monkeys (a joyful, free-flowing improvising brass group). Hope to see you there..!
www.norwichtriplebill.org.uk
10th December – Alby Jazz at Erpingham Church, 7:30pm, £8:50 or concs. (Supported by Norfolk County Council’s Arts Project Fund)
11th December – Live radio session on West Norfolk Radio – 7pm
16th December – Norwich Arts Centre
17th December – Vinyl Tap record store, Huddersfield, supported by Hoot – 2:30pm
18th December – Ashburton Live, Ashburton Methodist Church (probably), 3pm
21st December – Vortex Jazz Club, London, 8pm £10 / £8 concs.
19th December – My Dad’s West Gallery choir – Spooner Row church, 7pm-ish
2017
7th January – with Joey Herzfeld – Cactus Cafe, Norwich – evening…
21st January – duo improvised set with Sylvia Hallett, at Hundred Years Gallery, supporting Tolerance Manoeuvre
31st January – Plink Plonk at the York Tavern, Norwich. Performing a newish solo piece, ‘Piano Angel’, for trumpet and electronics.
24th February – Joey Herzfeld Trio, at Jurnet’s Bar, Norwich
4th March – St. Paul’s Sessions – Trio of Men, with support by Chris Dowding (solo)
17th March – Natural Causes at Bob Lockwood’s house gig
18th March – Natural Causes at More Music in Morecambe, supporting poet Jackie Kay. Very exciting..!
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‘experiments in electronics’ – three-gig residency at the Vortex, exploring electronics…
19th March – hymn / Tolerance Manoeuvre – hymn as a duo of chris dowding (trumpet & electronics) & david ross (percussion & electronics)
9th April – chris dowding (solo), Sudden Amusements (processed trumpet & field recordings duo with Oliver Payne), Clive Bell / David Ross / Marjolaine Charbin
27th May – Rude 2.0, with support by David Ross (solo electronics)
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26th March – Little Big Band, Luna Lounge, Leytonstone, London, 2:30pm – playing Kenny Wheeler’s music, amongst other music.
March 27th – Plink Plonk – Ma/ti/om, hymn and Arthur – performing with hymn, a new trio with George McKay (double bass) and David Ross (percussion and electronics) and myself (trumpet, flugelhorn and electronics). Spacious soundscapes and fairly simple written material. Part of a Ma/ti/om UK tour – Ma/ti/om are an Anglo-Scandinavian improvising trio… Supported by Norfolk County Council’s Arts Project Fund.
2nd April – with Choral Engineers, Devon
23rd April – Alby Jazz warm-up gig – Cyan Traces (led by trombonist Dave Amis) and solo saxophone set by Norwich-based saxophonist Simon Youngman. I’m not playing, but involved in organising it, and looking forward to hearing it. (Supported by Norfolk County Council’s Arts Project Fund).
10th June – Triple-bill at Wymondham marketplace, as part of Wymondham Music Festival
15th June – Plink Plonk at Norwich University of the Arts. Including Plonkestra performance. Plonkestra is the in-house improvising group, formed from Plink Plonk organisers and friends.
16th June – Diego Brown plus horn section, at The Betsey Trotwood pub, London. New horn section arrangements that I’m doing. Horn section is: Chris Dowding (trumpet & flugel), Steve Pretty (trumpet & flugel), Annie Whitehead (trombone), Ben Higham (tuba, plus trumpet & flugel occasionally).
26th June – Diego Brown plus horn section, at Clerkenwell ARTSlab, at the Betsey Trotwood pub, London. Also – Chris Dowding solo, playing ‘Piano Angel’.
29th June – Plink Plonk – Sloth Racket plus ROOKS.
2nd July – Possible hymn / Arthur double-bill. Spooner Row church.
5th July – Joey Herzfeld Trio at First Wednesdays, at Platform 12. First part of three-part residency at First Wednesdays.
6th July – The Brass Monkeys at Head Out Not Home, Norwich city centre.
8th July – Joey Herzfeld Trio, in Great Yarmouth.
11th July – West Gallery choir at Wymondham Music Festival
14th July – Joey Herzfeld Trio, The Happy Couple & Chris Dowding (solo), at The Green Dragon, Wymondham, as part of Wymondham Music Festival
17th August – Chris Dowding / Sylvia Hallett duo, at The Klinker, London
6th September – Sudden Amusements at First Wednesdays, at Platform 12, Norwich. Second part of residency.
4th October – some things at First Wednesdays, at Platform 12, Norwich. Third part of residency.
22nd October – hymn & Tolerance Manoeuvre double-bill live radio session on West Norfolk Radio.
1st-3rd November – Natural Causes in the south-west
24th November – The Brass Monkeys / Deemer double-bill, part of Deemer’s UK tour to promote their new album, ‘Moment Frozen’. York Tavern, Norwich, 8pm, £7
12th December – Very exciting hymn gig TBA…
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The Hard Edges of Metal – short tour… (Cancelled in the end, due to illness…)
Two gigs to kick off a new trio, with support by London-based trumpeter Charlotte Keeffe, playing solo trumpet sets…
17th December – Hundred Years Gallery, London, 4pm, £5
18th December – Norwich – venue TBA, 8pm
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2018
4th January – The Brass Monkeys at the Rose Tavern, Norwich
22nd January – some things set at ClerkenwellARTSlab, London – new folk song suite…
22nd March – hymn at The Garage, Norwich. Tickets available through us…
31st March – Short solo set, TBA
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Natural Causes album launch tour TBA –
6th April – South-west…
7th April – North…
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23rd April – ALATI set at ClerkenwellARTSlab, London – new songs from Alice Oswald poems… Brigitte Beraha (vocals), CD (trumpet & flugel), Dave O’ Brien (keys)
May 4th – With Joey Herzfeld, at Jurnets, Norwich. A new ‘all-star’ line-up…
May 5th – St. Paul’s Sessions – CD (solo), The Happy Couple, hymn (CD, David Ross & Sylvia Hallett – improvised collaboration…)
23rd May – ‘Taster’ night for Camouflage – a new ‘out’ jazz night for Norwich. The Hard Edges of Metal trio, plus London-based (Norwich-born) saxophonist George Crowley’s trio. York Tavern, Norwich, 8pm, £8
24th May – Joey Herzfeld Trio, Last Pub Standing, Norwich
25th May – Performing as part of ‘Timepiece’ at the Norfolk and Norwich Festival, with The Voice Project.
I’m performing at 1pm (solo, with looper), and at 9pm (with The Voice Project choir and various combinations). There are different performances of different combinations and numbers of singers on each hour from 12 noon to 12 midnight. More information here.
26th May – Solo set in Brighton, more information here:
16th June – Performance with London-based dancer Mirei Yazawa, in London. More info soon…
24th June – Summer Pizzazz at Spooner Row Church, as part of Wymondham Music Festival, supported by Norfolk County Council’s Arts Project Fund. Album launch for Sylvia & I for our new cassette and download release, ‘the holding breath’. Come along..!
5th July – The Brass Monkeys (with exciting new line-up..!), Head Out Not Home, Norwich. Venue TBA.
19th July – Performance as part of Durham Brass Festival – commission for trumpet piece with looper app on mobile phone.
23rd July – Diego Brown and the Good Fairy album launch, Betsey Trotwood pub, London, 8pm
28th July – Duo with saxophonist Tom Ward at Bråk, at waterintobeer, Brockley, London
3rd August – Performing with Plankestra, supporting Corsano/Flower duo, at The Portland Arms, Cambridge.
28-30th September – Natural Causes in the south-west – launching our birdsongs double A-side single.
7th October – Sylvia, Colleen & I at The Vortex – extension of the Sylvia & I duo. The first edition of a new night called ‘une, deux, trois’ – presented by the ‘arresting trumpet duo’ some things, exploring solos, duos and trios…
19th October – Screening of my Open Worlds film at Aylsham Picturehouse in North Norfolk. Open Worlds is a community project around field recording and electronics.
20th October – Sylvia & I at Hundred Years Gallery
Hard Edges mini-tour
Mini-tour by the improvising all-brass trio Hard Edges, supported by Charlotte Keeffe (solo trumpet)
21st October – Hundred Years Gallery, London, 4pm, £5
22nd October – The Birdcage, Norwich, 8pm, £5
27th October – NNSAC in-house quartet, WW1 commemorative performance at Octagon Chapel, Norwich for BBC Radio Norfolk
30th October – Camouflage at The Fat Percy, Norwich – Arthur/Monk Inc. double-bill – Third Camouflage taster..!
8th November – some things trumpet duo – featured slot at The Noise Upstairs, Manchester
19th November – ALATI at ClerkenwellARTSlab – second set of songs from poems by Alice Oswald. Brigitte Beraha (vocals), CD (trumpet & flugel), Dave O’ Brien (keys). Special London Jazz Festival edition of ClerkenwellARTSlab that I’ve guest-curated…
29th November – some things at Shane’s non-guitar night, Cactus Cafe, Norwich
30th November – YARMONICS event at Lower Green – films, installations, and a solo saxophone and electronics set by Dee Byrne.
15th December – Concert by Norfolk West Gallery Quire, South Norfolk
28th December – Joey Herzfeld Trio, Norwich
2019
4th February- Chris Dowding (solo) at The Garage, Norwich
5th February – Sylvia & I, Eastbeat, East London.
16th February – Chris Dowding (solo) at Eastbeat, East London, more info soon.
23rd February – Rude 2.0 at More Music in Morecambe, plus David Ross (solo electronics) support.
3rd March – Chris Dowding (solo) at Platform 12, Norwich
9th March – hymn/Taupe double-bill at Carberry’s, Norwich
10th March – First ever ‘Plankestra Presents…’, with Dave Pullin (solo double bass) support. Details TBC
17th March – Sylvia & I at Mopomoso at The Vortex Jazz Club
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some things UK tour
25th March – ClerkenwellARTSlab
28th March – Shane’s non-guitar night, at Cactus Cafe, Norwich
more dates TBC…
17th April – Lindsay Dowding’s book launch for ‘CHARLIE THE HORSE, OWL and the PLANNING APPLICATION’ at The Boars, Spooner Row – playing ‘After All’ with Rob Milne (clarinet) – my song for the book.
20th-22nd April – Natural Causes film weekend
20th April – BBC Introducing films session – invite only – Spooner Row Church
21st April – Regal Cinema – films & songs, with The Happy Couple supporting
22nd April – Natural Causes recording session..!
27th April – hymn at NAPUM, Carberrys, Norwich (afternoon gig)
28th April – Second ‘Plankestra Presents’ – includes David Ross (solo electronics), plus a hat-selected trio from The Plank.
29th April – ALATI at ClerkenwellARTSlab – three new songs from poems about the hen harrier by Colin Simms, plus performing ‘After All’ with books and CDs available..!
9-10th May – The Brass Monkeys mini-tour:
9th May – Camouflage at The Fat Percy, Norwich, 8pm
10th May – The Bear Club, Luton
23rd May – Sylvia & I underneath London Bridge – more details soon…
28th May – With Joey Herzfeld Trio at OST, Cinema City, Norwich
1st June – Camouflage – part two of Summer mini-season – including Julie Kjaer and others at Carberrys, Norwich
13th June – Tangential at the Butcher Bhoys, Norwich
hymn tour for ‘silence, then birds’ album – released on Confront Recordings in June
25th June – CD (solo), Sylvia & I (duo), hymn (dowding/hallett/dunning – trio) – triple-bill at Ashburton Live, Ashburton Arts Centre, Devon.
(26th June – Sylvia & I at safehouse, Brighton)
27th June – hymn plus at Camouflage – extended line-up of myself (trumpets & electronics), Sylvia Hallett (violin & electronics), George McKay (double bass), Graham Dunning (vinyl improvising) and David Ross (percussion & electronics). Fat Percy, Norwich, 8pm
28th June – hymn (dowding/hallett/ross) at Vortex Downstairs
30th June – ALATI – Summer Pizzazz at Spooner Row Church – Alice Oswald songs, plus a few hen harrier songs, plus support by David Ross (solo electronics)
4th October – The Brass Monkeys at The Vortex
10th October – Solo at Lonely Arts Club exhibition, St. Margaret’s Church of the Arts, Norwich, 12-1pm
10th October – Joey Herzfeld Band, The Reindeer pub, Norwich, 8pm
20th October – Solo / Centre of Clouds (new collaboration with Morris Masuda), Banham Barrel, 4pm
30th October – Centre of Clouds, Jurnets, Norwich
31st October – Duo with Manchester-based drummer Johnny Hunter, for his duo collaborations tour, Cactus Cafe, 8pm
2nd November – Trio with Mark Howe & Dave Pullin, at Shane’s non-guitar night, Cactus Cafe, Norwich
7th November – Joey Herzfeld Trio, Rose Tavern, Norwich
18th November – Special EFG London Jazz Festival edition of ClerkenwellARTSlab, that I’ve programmed, including ‘arresting trumpet duo’ some things (new music inspired by David Peace’s book about Bill Shankly) and ALATI (new electronic set), also John Hegley and Dee Byrne (solo sets) — come along..!
21st November – Rude 2.0 at Midlands Arts Centre, Birmingham, presented by TDE Promotions.
25th November – Dowding/Percy/Larwood improvised trio at The Birdcage pub, Norwich, plus support by Oliver Payne (solo)
6th December – Sylvia & I set, supporting Kit Downes’ new project in a fundraiser for Musical Keys.
18th January – some things ‘arresting trumpet duo’ at Eastbeat, London
2021
8th October – some things trumpet duo at Bright Scarf at The Belfry Arts Centre, Overstrand
13th October – The Tree and the Bell EP launch, with support by Sylvia Hallett (solo), at St. Mary & St. Margaret’s Church, Sprowston, 7:30pm, £6 inc. a glass of wine
14th October – Live participatory drawing by Laure Van Minden from the ‘Black Lives Matter’ project, drawing all 24 names from the project, at The Undercroft, Norwich, as part of the Lonely Arts Club exhibition.
29th October – ‘Black Lives Matter’ performance at the Undercroft, Norwich.
31st October – Sylvia & I at Confront Recordings 25th anniversary event.
4th November – Rude 2.0 at Nottingham Jazz
6th November – The Tree and the Bell – new monthly residency (1st Saturday of the month) at Aroma, as part of subscription project TBA.
7th November – Tangential at The Rosebery, Norwich, 5:30-8:30pm
11th & 12th November – Chris Dowding / Mark Wastell / David Toop mini-tour – 11th Nov. at Hundred Years Gallery, London, 12th Nov. at Spooner Row Church, South Norfolk
18th November – John Hegley with BRIO at The Bear Club, Luton – brass trio with Jim Rattigan (french horn) & Jeff Miller (tuba)
19th November – Electronic Triple-Bill at Hundred Years Gallery, as part of EFG London Jazz Festival – Dee Byrne (solo), Navigator (Norwich trio with Dave Pullin & Mark Howe), WOOLFENDEN (duo)
24th November – Camouflage guitarfest – duo with Ranieri Spina (guitar & cornet), The Shoe Factory Social Club, Norwich, 7-9pm, £5/10, also Daniel Thompson/Colin Webster, Reconnoitre and others…
4th December – The Tree and the Bell at Aroma, Norwich
5th December – St. Paul’s Sessions – Chris Dowding (sol0), plus John Hegley, Diego Brown and the Good Fairy and others… 8pm, £8, St. Paul’s Church, Marylebone, NW1 6NJ
10th December – Chris Dowding (solo) at Bright Scarf @ The Belfry, Overstrand
16th & 19th December – Fowl / Natural Causes in & Morecambe & Huddersfield, more details TBA…