Xhosa Cole FreeMonk - Jazz At Wolverhampton Arts Centre
Schedule
Fri, 29 Aug, 2025 at 07:30 pm
UTC+01:00Location
Dunkley Street, Wolverhampton | Wolverhampton, EN
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Ingenious saxophonist Xhosa explores Thelonious Monk’s extraordinary music in open, intimate fashion, with Josh Vadiveloo (bass) and Tim Giles (drums). Stewart Kendrick DJs.This intriguingly bold, wide-open project sees remarkable young reeds master Xhosa Cole deconstructing and remodelling the ever-fascinating works of Thelonious Monk, genius of the 88 keys, in a breathtaking fashion.
Joining the Brum saxophonist for this piano-less challenge are brilliant young bassist Josh Vadiveloo – last seen in our theatre in 2024 with trumpeter Jay Phelps – and renowned jazz drummer Tim Giles, who accompanied Iain Ballamy on a tour of Senegal in 1997, supporting Joe Zawinul, while he was still a teenager.
Xhosa, credited by Downbeat magazine for ‘pushing the envelope on Afrofuturism’, is promising ‘a more intimate look’ at Monk’s music, with more scope for peeling off in different directions, journeying in and out of the composer’s unique themes.
Having developed his unique mixed-heritage, black British queer voice in the jazz tradition, Xhosa’s musical roots are in collaboration and improvisation. This alchemic mix has opened the doors to work alongside a diverse and expansive pool of creative forces from different traditions, cultures, backgrounds and practices.
Winner of the 2018 BBC Young Jazz Musician of the year, Xhosa is an embodiment of the success of numerous community arts programmes in Birmingham including the Midland Youth Jazz Orchestra, Jazzlines Ensemble and Birmingham Music Service. Having grown up in Handsworth and first played the tenor at Andy Hamilton’s Ladywood Community Music School, he’s now among a long legacy of eminent Birmingham saxophonists including Soweto Kinch and Shabaka Hutchings. Xhosa has performed twice at the BBC Proms, composed music for the Ripieno Players, a Birmingham-based string orchestra, recorded saxophone for Mahalia’s debut album Love And Compromise, completed a 22-date UK tour, all while he was still a student at Trinity Laban in London. Xhosa also received the Parliamentary Jazz Award for best newcomer in 2019 and was Jazz FM’s breakthrough act of the year.
Restless polymath Cole is building his own methodology for composition that puts Islamic geometry, natural structures and processes, West African rhythms and non-hierarchical orchestration and performance at its centre. The resultant highly invigorating music has the stability of sacred music structures found in Western harmony and the free combustion of Black improvising traditions. Cole’s teachers include John O’Gallagher, Hans Koller and Pat Thomas, who helped to instil an understanding of Western classical music from the foundations of Schoenberg’s ‘Fundamentals of Musical Composition’ through to the modalities of Messiaen, Bartok and Monk.
The understanding that the arts are all reflections of the same divine principles has always been at the heart of Xhosa’s outlook on music. His first steps in the arts were through dance and thus he carries a vision that isn’t limited to solely music. To date he has co-directed three short films, curated and performed a durational piece at the Midlands Arts Centre and worked with several award-winning playwrights, poets and visual artists. His inquisitive nature has drawn him to the inner workings, both practically and conceptually, in these fields and continues to imbue his collaborations with increasing creative empathy for those with whom he works.
He has performed alongside artists including Monty Alexander and Courtney Pine and as a soloist for the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, and appeared at the BBC Proms, Cadogan Hall, Birmingham’s Symphony Hall and Ronnie Scott’s. To date he has recorded two studio albums: K(no)w Them, K(no)w Us (2021) featuring saxophonist Soweto Kinch and pianist Reuben James; and Ibeji (2023), featuring conversations and duets with seven percussionists from the African Diaspora, which explores themes of Brotherhood, Ancestors, Masks, and Codes.
His 2025 live album On A Modern Genius Vol 1, recorded at 1000 Trades in Birmingham, exclusively features explorations of the Monk catalogue, to huge critical acclaim.
As an improviser, Cole has launched into the contemporary classical and free-jazz communities into Europe and beyond, working closely with internationally acclaimed artists including Hamid Drake, Elaine Mitchener, Jason Yarde and Mark Sanders. More recently he has been developing connections within the Berlin music communities with Bex Burch, James Banner and Asger Nissan.
Xhosa has the rare trait of having firm roots in tradition paired with an uncompromising radical vision. His art speaks to an intersectional experience that celebrates the reality of community connection and challenges conventions that inhibit true creative expression.
This truly promises to be a night to remember!
REVIEWS:
“It’s only once in a blue moon that someone as special as Cole comes along.” – Marlbank
“The 24-year-old tenor saxophonist/composer is a British sensation and proves that he’s here for blood with this release … He’s got technique, talent, artistry and a burning desire that shows throughout the set.” – Downbeat, on K(no)w Them, K(no)w Us
“If last year’s covers set proved Cole’s interpretative skills, these originals are more revealing” – MOJO, on Ibeji
“The result is rich and singular. Cole’s duo exchanges with each guest are marked by elegance and curiosity” – The Wire, on Ibeji
“He is not hidebound, chained by the rules, but, equally, not willing to court incoherence. His improvisations strike a balance between emotional, spiritual and intellectual elements, creating music that is both felt deeply and intellectually engaging. His own distinctive voice creates an important dialogue between past and present.” – All About Jazz, on On A Modern Genius Vol 1
“If you are fortunate enough to be hearing Monk music for the first time, this is a fine way to begin. If – more likely – you know these pieces already, I think these versions stand with any others I’ve heard, including the ones left us by the composer. Since Monk fully deserves the modern genius tag, that’s quite an achievement.” – UK Jazz News on On A Modern Genius Vol 1
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Where is it happening?
Dunkley Street, Wolverhampton, United KingdomEvent Location & Nearby Stays:
