DREAMT compositions by one of Scotland’s most influential musicians will be performed tomorrow at a “festive soiree” curated by Counterflows.
Bill Wells will play from Winter Dreams, his atmospheric new album recorded with Audrey Bizouerne, a French-born musician Wells describes as “one of the best singers around”.
The multi-instrumentalist will be joined live by Bizouerne and Danielle Price, his tuba-playing collaborator in The Sensory Illusions, one of many outfits the prolific Wells is involved with.
The one-off festive event comes ahead of Counterflows’ four-day festival of radical international and local music in April.
Tomorrow’s soiree also features Aine O’Dwyer, a mesmerizing Irish experimentalist who will perform a new piece in collaboration with The Glad Scratch Choir, while veteran Edinburgh duo Usurper will present The 3 Year Old Hamster, a new piece Malcy Duff and Ali Robertson have written especially for the festive event.
READ MORE: Bill Wells sings praises of National Jazz Trio
Like previous works Summer Dreams and Autumn Dreams, Winter Dreams is a mini album of compositions Wells discovered through his dreams.
“Sometimes I just wake with the tune in my head,” Wells explains. “Other times there is an actual scenario. For example, I once dreamt I was sitting at a table in a night club and there was a fairly large band preparing to play on the stage in front of me and Danny Boyle, dressed in a sharp suit, walks in, stands right next to me, snaps his fingers, does a count in and the band immediately launch into a big band blues type tune.”
Festive Soiree: Tomorrow, Queen’s Hall, Edinburgh, 7pm, £10. Tel: 0131 668 2019. www.thequeenshall.net
Counterflows: April 2 to 5, University of Glasgow, festival pass £52.69. www.counterflows.com www.eventbrite.co.uk
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