E un bell'album con protagonista Keith Tippett torna disponibile in questi giorni in forma integrale, dopo che l'originale in 2LP (Fmp, 1983) era da tempo sparito dalla circolazione e la versione in singolo cd (Atavistic, 2003) ne aveva sacrificato un brano. Si tratta di Tern, tratto dai concerti di Tippett in trio con Larry Stabbins e Louis Moholo al Total Music Meeting di Berlino il 3 e 5 novembre 1982, ripristinato in digitale nel quadro delle riedizioni del catalogo Fmp promesse (e prodotte) da Markus Müller.

https://destination-out.bandcamp.com/tern

 

In un pub di Malmesbury, nella contea del Wiltshire in Inghilterra non lontano da Bristol, Bath e Swindon dove il mese scorso si è tenuta la rassegna Westport Sound, ha da pochi giorni trovato posto il pianoforte che per molti anni è appartenuto a Keith Tippett, e sul quale sono state composte alcune delle sue musiche più memorabili (Septober Energy, From Granite to Wind, Linuckea, probabilmente anche The Ark). E' uno strumento di inizio Novecento, che per la sua rilevanza vedrà ora conservati intatti tutti i segni dell'uso; Stephen Sheers si è offerto di trasportarlo da Tortworth al Three Cups, locale gestito da Janinka Diverio - amica e collaboratrice di Keith, oltre che di Mike Westbrook e Satoko Fujii, come organizzatrice in Mind Your Own Music - dove tornerà a suonare su richiesta di musicisti e amici rispettosi della sua storia. Matthew Bourne si è già fatto avanti...

Scrive Janinka: "The Cups has a new addition and just in time for those winter nights too. A beloved friend of ours Keith Tippett sadly passed away a few years ago and the family are sorting out his estate.  We have been asked to be custodians of this beautiful instrument which carries so much history. It dates back to around 1910 and for the last four decades belonged to Keith who composed many major works on it. Cutting his Bristol teeth on the London jazz scene during the mid 60s Keith became one of the most important performers, improvisers and composers of the last decade into the new millenium. At the age of 24 he took an orchestra of 50 called Centipede to The Royal Albert Hall to perform his iconic work Septober Energy (which was the inspiration behind Westportsound). An album produced by Robert Fripp was then released and remains one of the most important albums on the Anglo/European jazz scene of that era. I went on to have the honour of working with Keith through my thirties and he has always had a special place in my life, his uncompromising energy and creativity has been a constant source of inspiration and so to now house his piano upon which many works were crafted is beyond any imaginable expectation I may have had. It’s our hope, and that of his lovely family, that this piano will continue to entertain, educate and inspire our costumers. We ask that permission is asked and that only reasonably accomplished players use it. Music is our life here at The Cups and this piano seems very much at home!"

http://www.three-cups.co.uk
https://www.facebook.com/thecupsmalmesbury

 

Quando qualche anno fa a Bristol (Regno Unito) giunsero a compimento i lavori di ristrutturazione del suo più importante luogo di concerti, Colston Hall, e si pensò finalmente di cambiarne anche il nome, togliendo qualsiasi riferimento al ricco mercante schiavista del XVII secolo Edward Colston - celebre l'abbattimento della sua statua nel corso delle proteste del Black Lives Matter nel 2020 - ci fu chi propose quello del compianto Keith Tippett (1947-2020). La proposta ebbe un certo consenso, con petizioni e raccolta di firme a suo sostegno, ma non ebbe l'esito sperato: il centro, che oggi si chiama invece Bristol Beacon, ha tuttavia intitolato al Nostro un importante spazio al suo interno, destinandolo principalmente alla promozione e all'educazione musicale di allievi e futuri talenti. L'inaugurazione si è tenuta pochi giorni fa alla presenza di Julie Tippetts, naturalmente, assieme a una quarantina tra famigliari, amici e colleghi musicisti. 

Questo recita la targa della Tippett Room: "Keith Tippett - Bristolian born and bred - was a complete musician. Pianist, composer, improviser, arranger, educator - his rare, unique genius excelled in all these fields of music and his spirit lives on with everyone who worked with him and heard him perform, from solo piano improvisations, in small and large groups and in big bands from his 22-piece Tapestry Orchestra to the legendary 50-piece Centipede. As a jazz musician Keith was constantly creative, his work an uncompromising mixture of freedom and discipline, unmistakably individual and continually collaborative. Whilst internationally renowned and admired for a lifetime’s work in performance, composition and recording, his generosity towards young musicians in workshops and as a mentor, in Bristol, in the UK and as far afield as Australia and South Africa, has created a legacy of influence and encouragement that befits the dedication of this room - in his memory and as a permanent inspiration to all those who play music here."

https://bristolbeacon.org