Duck Baker, Alex Ward, John Edwards, Steve Noble

Fingerstyle guitar master Duck Baker returns to the Vortex with his trio/quartet, for another evening devoted to his own challenging compositions.

The trio, with clarinetist Alex Ward and bassist John Edwards, will perform tunes from their brand-new release Deja Vouty during the first set. These compositions reflect Baker’s long involvement with the music of Herbie Nichols and Thelonious Monk, among other things.

For the second set, John Edwards joins the group and the music moves more into the realm of free jazz and free improv. For listeners who have followed the development of free music and cutting-edge jazz in London in recent times, Baker’s cohorts probably need less introduction then he does himself, as all three have been vital and very visible contributors for many years.