Alex Trask Trio Summer Tour Hamilton

The Hamilton leg of our sojourn around the North Island!

Alex Trask is taking a brand new ensemble and some brand new music on an inaugural voyage up north. The Wellington based saxophonist is joined by Umar Zakaria (bass) and Abe Baillie (drums). The trio will present new original music and surprising takes on favourite standards.

The inaugural tour of the Alex Trask Summer Trio will be a conceptual journey through improvised music, as well as a road trip around Alex's home region. The trio aims to be an entity able to move as one, driven by the will of the three performers. The repertoire is a mix of original music inspired by folk music around the world, blended with some modal jazz sensibilities. The tunes are built around the concept of simple, memorable melodies and minimal chord changes.

Alex Trask is a saxophonist residing in Wellington, playing with a number of high-level groups including the Rodger Fox Big Band. Alex and his quartet recorded a live album earlier this year, and the quartet has played his compositions at events such as the Wellington Jazz Festival and Tauranga Jazz Festival. Umar Zakaria is a New Zealand bassist and composer filled with hope for the future. His music unites diverse musical traditions to inspire communication and cooperation across cultural boundaries. In 2018 he was named Best Jazz Artist by Recorded Music New Zealand. Umar also released the Tui Award-winning album Fearless Music in 2017. Abe Baillie is a highly in-demand drummer on the Wellington scene and can be seen all around town. Abe also spearheads his own projects Cacophonous Nectar and Powerforce Helix, where his original compositions can be heard.