Show from Matthew Halsall, Manchester-based composer, trumpeter and founder of Gondwana Records.

The show features pianist / composer Taz Modi.

Taz Modi

On 29^th March pianist and composer Taz Modi presented his elegant debut solo album ’Reclaimed Goods’, which brings to light his love for contemporary composition – something which may come as a surprise to fans of soulful dance music heavyweights Submotion Orchestra, and jazz trumpeter Matthew Halsall’s Gondwana Orchestra – for both of whom Modi plays keys/piano.

Whilst also gaining further demand as a musician, including for A-list studio and live work for funk ‘n’ soul legends Dennis Coffey and Fred Wesley, plus beatmaker heroes DJ Shadow and Mr. Scruff, Modi has been discreetly pursuing an additional passion during down-time for years – and his prolonged, patient crafting shows.

Channelling the spirit of Cage, Debussy, Satie, Ravel, Hauchska, Budd, Sakamoto, The Durutti Column, Windy and Carl, Susumu Yokota, Aphex Twin’s piano pieces, and, not so surprisingly – the jazz-inflected sounds of Nick Drake, John Martyn and Talk Talk, ‘Reclaimed Goods’ is a graceful affair.

Lush strings sit alongside gently pulsing rhythmic flutters, with Modi’s restrained and delicate piano floating atop. Pieces range from the fragile beauty of ‘Libra’ and ‘Rewilder’ to moments like ‘Ethical Tourist’ and ‘Every Saint Has A Past’, in which percussive prepared piano loops form the rhythmic basis for explorations into far reaches of the instrument’s capabilities.

Musically Modi set out to search for a sense of calm and reflection, as a tonic to help counter the political and ecological turmoil of the last few years:

“Conceptually, the music was written and recorded with the backdrop of Brexit and the current trend of populist nationalism and anti-immigration. A lot of the tracks were inspired by looking into what ‘Britishness’ means for different people. As the son of immigrants (half-Czech, half-Indian), I’ve always been fascinated by the contrast between the narrow and fixed idea of ‘Britain’ trumpeted by the establishment and power-structure, and the things that I believe give Britain its truer identity – the mix of cultures, beliefs, races, and histories”, explains Modi.

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