Keith Tippett Tapestry Orchestra on CD

Cardiff-based Red Eye Music is giving the first ever official release of a concert by Keith Tippett hailed as an underground classic by one of the pioneers of post-modern British jazz.

First Weaving was recorded live at the 1998 Le Mans Jazz Festival. Originally commissioned by the BBC it stayed under wraps because the intention was to produce a studio recording for which the funding never materialised.

The Tapestry Orchestra features leading musicians such as Larry Stabbins, Louis Moholo, Mark Charig, Paul Rutherford, Dave Amis, Julie Tippetts, Maggie Nicols and the late Elton Dean.

Steve Day describes the work as follows: "There is a whole debate about the relationship between the 'jazz orchestra' and 'big band' traditions, one that is complicated still further by a composition such as First Weaving, which draws inspiration from music reaching well beyond the label 'jazz'.

"It is not just about orchestrating, Keith Tippett uses written composition to open up space for twenty, thirty, forty other soloists to come together to extend the possibilities of the score sheet...

"First Weaving unites some of the most important innovators on the British scene, playing in a setting well beyond national boundaries. It has taken nine years for this brilliant performance to be heard on CD, now that it is available on Red Eye Music; it needs to be listened to more than ever."

Keith Tippett, well known in Cardiff for his work as a tutor at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, will be performing at a launch event for the double CD at The Social, Miskin Street, Cathays, on Saturday 9 June as part of the Cardiff Jazz Festival.

For more details see www.redeyemusic.co.uk and www.myspace.com/keithtippett