“AfuriKo’s new music really flies in the face of jazz, opening up your ears to a world of possibilities.”

– Carol Banks Weber, Festival Peak (Feb. 2019)

AfuriKo – a Japanese portmanteau word combining “Afurika” (アフリカ) and the suffix “Ko” (子) which means “child” – is an African infused jazz duo comprised of percussionist Akiko Horii and pianist/keyboardist Jim Funnell. Like a modern-day griot, they celebrate traditional heritage from around the world through the prism of spellbinding grooves and eccentric harmonies.

Their first two albums – On the Far Side (2014) and Style (2016) – were produced with the support of SACEM (the French Society of Authors, Composers, and Music Publishers). Their new opus Tao (2019), successfully funded on Kickstarter, is a jazz journey from ancestral Africa to NYC, steeped in deep grooves with shades of Funk, Pop, Reggae, Bulgarian, and Enka music.

Propelled into existence when Jim & Akiko’s paths crossed in Paris as a result of following a shared, irrepressible call to Africa, its culture, and its Diaspora, AfuriKo began experimenting in 2010. A playful blending of tones and rhythms came to life, and a unique dialogue between the ancestral stories of the djembe and the modern voice of digital pianos and synthesizers was quickly initiated.

The duo has toured extensively in the UK (London Jazz Festival, Cardiff University Concert Hall, Vortex Jazz Club), Japan (Kanazawa Jazz Street, Asahi Shimbun’s Asacom Hall), France (Sunset Sunside, Le Baiser Salé, Improphile), Germany (JazzLab), Holland (Theater Vrijburcht), Nepal (Kathmandu Jazz Festival, Jazz Upstairs), the United States (Rockwood Music Hall, Beats in Bliss Plaza), South Korea (Jazz Alley), and collaborated with artists such as Hiroshi Fukutomi (Japan), Ory Minie (French Polynesia), Eddie Parker, Chris Batchelor, Rob Luft (United Kingdom), Bill Sims, Jr. (United States), Jade Choi (South Korea), Bruno Wilhelm, Philippe Lopes de Sa, and Chris Hayward (France).

Since 2017, Akiko and Jim have been living in Queens, New York, letting the energy that emanates from the most ethnically diverse part of the world nourish their creative process on a daily basis.

https://pando4.bandcamp.com
https://www.facebook.com/pandomusic/
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLFLIhuEANJ7YV4RF-vnvVhJ26aFnQuxk7

Sassafras folk trio:

Dom Ingham - violin
Laura Jane Armstrong - cello
Will Sach - bass

Sam started the saxophone when he was 8 years old and after completing grade 8 by the age of 13, it was clear that he wanted to follow music as a career. When he was 14 years old, Sam enrolled on the Junior Jazz Course at the Royal Welsh College of Music in Cardiff which he attended every Saturday for two years.

After completing his GCSEs, Sam moved to Manchester to study at Chetham's School of Music where he would deepen his knowledge of Jazz, take his A-Levels and prepare for Music College auditions. At Chetham's, Sam studied under Iain Dixon, Steve Berry, Les Chisnall, and attended masterclasses taken by Dennis Rollins and other worldwide artists. Sam has also performed in venues such as the Bridgewater Hall, Band on the Wall and Wakefield Jazz Club as the supporting band for Brandon Allen. In addition to these accomplishments, he has performed as a member of a saxophone quartet for the Director General of the BBC at his inauguration party as well as playing alongside Steve Waterman at Middleton Arena.

In 2014, Sam accepted a position at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama where he quickly became a member of NYJO (National Youth Jazz Orchestra), serving as an official deputy for the Tenor Saxophone chairs. He has also been a member of the Guildhall Jazz Orchestra since 2014 and has performed such works as Kenny Wheeler's 'Sweet Time Suite' in Autumn 2015, as well as John Taylor's 'The Traveller's Tail' in Spring 2015 alongside special guest, Huw Warren.

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