WITH Black Notes from the Deep jazz giant Courtney Pine returns to the tenor saxophone for the first time in a decade joining forces with UK soul star Omar.

The ground-breaking, multi-instrumentalist has led a generation of exciting and innovative players who have broadened their styles to take jazz out to a wider audience and stops off with Omar at Kendal’s Brewery Arts Centre on Tuesday, December 11.

In the 1980s Courtney was one of the first black British jazz artists to make a serious mark on the jazz scene when his first album Journey To The Urge Within charted and some 30 years on - now with an OBE and CBE for services to music - he continues to break new ground with a string of highly acclaimed recordings and numerous prestigious industry awards. His album Modern Day Jazz Stories was nominated for the Mercury Music Prize in 2000 and he was the recipient of the Gold Badge award in 2002.

He has released 16 studio albums to date and continues to tour worldwide with his award-winning band playing clubs, concert halls and festivals from Glastonbury to Fuji Rock, Montreux to Cape Town.

His numerous TV and radio presenting credits include Mandela Living Legend for the BBC and the Sony Award winning long running specialist jazz show, Courtney Pine’s Jazz Crusade for BBC Radio 2. He was most recently commissioned by the Tate to compose and perform a unique piece inspired by the work of artist Henri Matisse, as part of Tate’s Matisse Live broadcast in cinemas across the UK.

For the Black Notes from the Deep project, Courtney shares the spotlight with the vocal talents of soul man Omar, whose 1992 hit single There’s Nothing Like This earned him widespread critical acclaim and seen him work with the likes of Stevie Wonder, Erykah Badu, Carleen Anderson and Angie Stone.

The special collaboration between Courtney and Omar brings together two of the UK’s finest jazz and soul talents composing, recording and performing new original material together for the first time as well as a stunning cover of Herbie Hancock’s Butterfly.

They make an elegant musical pairing that matches sublime vocals with beautifully flowing and creative, imaginative sax.

Their Brewery show promises to be a standout performance.

Following Courtney and Omar at the Brewery on Thursday, December 13, is another star turn, Thea Gilmore, one of the UK's finest singer songwriters, who has gained global acclaim for making music not only of extraordinary beauty but of rare honesty and insight.

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