Singer, pianist and composer Laila Biali was my first guest on Harmonious World in June 2020. Tonight, we met for the first time at Ronnie Scott’s iconic jazz club, where she was joined on stage by the extraordinary sax player Emma Rawicz, whose gig I loved just ten days ago.
It’s a great story, how these two unlikely musical talents met, as they’re both recording artists with ACT Music and performed a gig together a few months ago. For Canadian vocalist and pianist Laila, it was an obvious choice to including UK saxist Emma on her date at Ronnie Scott’s.
I was especially delighted with the inclusion of the Gregory Porter tune ‘Take Me To The Alley’, which appeared on Laila’s 2020 album ‘Out Of Dust’. That album was the reason Laila appeared as my first guest on Harmonious World and it will always have a special place in my musical consciousness.
A brilliant finish to this show came with the nod to Julie Andrew’s and John Coltrane, as this quartet performed ‘My Favourite Things’. Certainly one of my favourite things.
It’s a great story, how these two unlikely musical talents met, as they’re both recording artists with ACT Music and performed a gig together a few months ago. For Canadian vocalist and pianist Laila, it was an obvious choice to including UK saxist Emma on her date at Ronnie Scott’s.
Also on stage with Laila and Emma was Laila’s husband, Ben Wittman, on drums and the brilliant bass player Max Luthert.
Laila and Emma together entranced the packed audience at Ronnie Scott’s, with originals from Laila’s impressive repertoire, including the recent release of ‘Wintersongs’. Thr pianist’s arrangements of standards such as ‘Autumn Leaves’, ‘Bye Bye Blackbird’ and ‘Pennies From Heaven’ were equally inventive, allowing plenty of space for improvisation. Even the Coldplay ‘Yellow’ was beautifully arranged and creative.
Throughout the show, Laila’s piano and voice sat well with Emma’s tenor sax, soprano sax and flute and both were able to maintain their individual style while collaborating musically. This pairing shouldn’t work but it really does.
Throughout the show, Laila’s piano and voice sat well with Emma’s tenor sax, soprano sax and flute and both were able to maintain their individual style while collaborating musically. This pairing shouldn’t work but it really does.
I was especially delighted with the inclusion of the Gregory Porter tune ‘Take Me To The Alley’, which appeared on Laila’s 2020 album ‘Out Of Dust’. That album was the reason Laila appeared as my first guest on Harmonious World and it will always have a special place in my musical consciousness.
A brilliant finish to this show came with the nod to Julie Andrew’s and John Coltrane, as this quartet performed ‘My Favourite Things’. Certainly one of my favourite things.
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