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Delta Sax Quartet

biographies

Music on the Edge

Tim Holmes (tenor sax)

Tim is a very experienced musician and much sought after in the UK and abroad. His work sees him regularly playing and recording with all the major London and provincial orchestras and chamber music ensembles, including the LSO, RPO, Philharmonia, City of London Sinfonia, Lontano.

Tim has also worked extensively in London's West End theatres, in shows such as "Wonderful Town", "Carmen Jones", "Guys and Dolls", "Oklahoma", "Witches of
Eastwick", and "The Producers".

Tim was a member of the jazz saxophone quartet "Itchy fingers" for a couple of years. He is currently a member of the Steve Martland Band, and the jazz quartet "Candytime". Tim was invited to join the Delta Saxophone quartet in April of 2006, which means that the Steve Martland Band saxophone section is now 3/4 of the DSQ!

Martin Robertson (soprano sax)

Martin graduated from the Royal College of Music in 1984 having studied Saxophone and Clarinet as joint principle study under Stephen Trier and John McCaw. Whilst at college Martin won several woodwind prizes including the Boosey and Hawkes Music Prize. He returned to the Royal College of Music in 1994 as a Professor of Saxophone.

Martin made his solo debut at the Purcell Room in 1986 with Mark-Anthony Turnage’s ‘Sarabande’. From here on there has been a close relationship between the two. ‘Your Rockaby’ was written specifically for Martin – Mark dedicated the movement ‘Lullaby for Charlie’ to Martin’s severely autistic son. ‘Rockaby’ was premiered at the Royal Festival Hall with the BBC Symphony Orchestra and was later performed at the Royal Albert Hall during the Proms season. It too was the featured work in the BBC TV series ‘The British Century – ‘Turnage’’. It has gone on to be performed by the Los Angeles and London Philharmonic Orchestras.

Turnage’s ‘Blood on the Floor’ – a nine movement work for three Jazz soloists and orchestra – was premiered by the Ensemble Modern in 1996. Martin was joined by Peter Erskine and John Scofield and has since performed this piece with orchestras such as the Berlin Philharmonic under Sir Simon Rattle, The Hamburg and Tampere Philharmonic Orchestras, Avanti, the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra again with Sir Simon Rattle and the BBC and BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestras. ‘Blood’ has continued to evolve and last summer John Parricelli joined Martin at the Tanglewood Contemporary Music Festival with the Boston Symphony Orchestra.

At the beginning of this year Martin performed Debussy’s Rhapsody for Saxophone with the London Philharmonic under Vladimir Jurowski. Martin returned to Berlin featuring on Duduk as part of an overnight performance of Tavener's "The Veil of the Temple" with The Berlin Radio Choir in May. Turnage’s newest piece, About Water, was premiered with the London Sinfonietta at the Queen Elizabeth Hall in June. Martin was a featured soloist alongside John Patitucci, Gwilym Simcock and Mark Lockheart.

While Martin immerses himself in contemporary music he continues to play the full range of classical repertoire from Villa-Lobos to Frank Martin to Glasunov. Martin is a regular guest of the major London orchestras as both a freelance musician and soloist. In 2006 Martin performed the Glasunov with the BBC Welsh National Orchestra at Saint David's Cathedral in Pembrokeshire. He also travelled to Koblenz to perform Kancheli's Night Prayers with the Rheinische Philharmonie under Daniel Raiskin.

During the 2002 Prom season Martin was Clarinet soloist at the Royal Albert Hall with the BBC Big Band, under the direction of Leonard Slatkin, playing Bernstein’s 'Prelude, Fugue and Riffs’ which was later recorded for BBC Radio 3. He too was the featured soloist with the London Philharmonic in Bernard Herrmann’s Taxi Driver Suite, given as part of the Meltdown Festival; more recently he performed a suite of music based around the theme from ‘Poirot’ with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.

This year Martin also appeared at the BBC Proms 2007 with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra performing Sir Harrison Birtwistle's "Panic" with Peter Erskiine on percussion.

Away from the concert platform Martin is frequently featured on film and TV sound tracks. Not only is he in demand as a saxophonist and clarinetist but can also be heard on ethnic woodwind instruments such as the Taragato and Duduk. He is fascinated by the complexity and timbrel differences between Western and Eastern instrumentation. Composers such as Stephen Warbeck, Rob Lane and John Lunn have been enticed by the Taragato’s ability to cross seamlessly from Middle East to West, while composers such as George Fenton and Hans Zimmer have been attracted to the stirring simplicity of the Duduk. In February Martin featured playing the duduk as guest soloist with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra on David Attenborough’s feature length film ‘Earth’. Martin’s film and television credits include Shakespeare in Love, Billy Elliott, Captain Corelli's Mandolin, King Arthur, Kingdom of Heaven, Bleak House, Hotel Babylon, Mrs. Brown and Planet Earth.

"Hidden Love Song" Read the reviews:

Times Review , The Telegraph , The Financial Times , The Gaurdian
 
All Rights Reserved © 2004 Martin Robertson - playin' for the love of it

Chris Caldwell.(baritone sax)

Chris graduated from the Guildhall School Of Music & Drama in 1986. As a performer he's been involved with some of Britain's leading contemporary composers and ensembles including The Mike Westbrook Orchestra, BCMG,Steve Martland Band, Almeida Ensemble and The Delta Saxophone quartet.

Chris has also performed with many of the UK's leading orchestras including the RPO, LSO, CBSO, Bournemouth SO, and the Philharmonia.

Currently Chris is part of the saxophone section in the West End production of 'Guys and Dolls', he has worked in the West End for the last 12 years playing in many productions including Les Miserables, Cats, Chicago, Follies, and City Of Angels.

His commercial work has seen International tours with the Shirley Bassey Orchestra in Russia, Lebanon, Turkey, Cairo and the UK plus tours of Asia, Japan and Europe with the Michael Nyman Band, Grahamophones, and for a variety of Theatre groups.

Between 1999 and 2005 he ran a music management company, Music On The Edge which represented amongst others, Mike Westbrook, Delta Sax Qt, and Steve Martland. The company now is more a one- stop shop for Chris's musical tastes!

The 30th Annual Jazz Station Poll results by Brazil-born jazz historian & jazz educator Arnaldo DeSouteiro

Sax Barítono: 1º James Carter (“Present Tense” – EmArcy); 2º Joe Temperley; 3º Julian Arguelles; 4º Chris Caldwell; 5º Ronnie Cuber



Pete Whyman (alto sax)

Peter studied at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama with Yona Ettlinger, Anthony Pay and Tony Coe. After graduating he began working with Mike Westbrook, an association that has resulted in 11 albums and the performance of his saxophone concerto, and continues
to this day. Peter is a member of Between The Notes, Steve Martland Band, Delta Saxophone Quartet, The Barry Adamson Experience and Huw Warren Octet.

Currently Peter is also working with Elvis Costello, Orchestre National de Jazz, Everything but the Girl, Spiritualised, William Orbit and his own trio, recently featured on BBC Radio 3’s Jazz In Britain.

His musical world is extremely eclectic, and while he has played with The Philharmonia, the Royal Opera House Orchestra, Birmingham Contemporary Music Group, Lontano, Music Projects London, Terry Riley, Dawn Upshaw and as the clarinet soloist with Leonard
Bernstein in Prelude Fugue and Riffs, he has also performed and recorded with the likes of Pulp, Tom Robinson, Spiritualised, The The and Ute Lemper. On the other hand he has also appeared at all the major jazz festivals in Europe, and John Fordham, jazz critic in the Guardian has recently written “When Whyman switched to soprano his avoidance of
post-Coltrane cliche and the deft intelligence of his lines didn’t flag. A fine, and under-exposed virtuoso.....the level of technical certainty was awesome.”

Peter is also in constant demand as a recording artist, including two CDs with his Delta Saxophone Quartet, recent solo appearances on Spiritualised, Steve Martland, Elvis Costello and Barry Adamson recordings, and as a featured soloist on the David Lynch film, Lost Highways.

“The real revelation is the playing of Peter Whyman...extraordinarily confident, already something of a virtuoso.” Charles Fox, New Statesman

“...dominated by the remarkable playing of Peter Whyman, a sophisticated and highly accomplished young jazz musician.” Dave Gelly, The Observer

“The instrumental playing of Peter Whyman is thrilling.” The Times

“Peter Whyman’s virtuoso flights contribute enormously.” Financial Times

“...meticulously-crafted saxophone solos.” City Limits

“For vitality, exuberance and sheer originality, Whyman’s trio is hard to beat.” Chris Parker

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You can buy the following Delta CDs online:


Minimal Tendencies



Facing Death



Formosa