20th July 2023: Live at Turner Sims – new solo album from Ivo Neame – dropping September 22

Whirlwind is proud to continue to document the musical journey of British pianist and composer Ivo Neame, who has a new solo piano album this Autumn.

Live at Turner Sims releases September 22 on LP and Digital Formats only.

The solo piano album has a long and noble tradition in jazz – it’s a challenge for any pianist to rise to, so what prompted Ivo Neame to take the time out from his demanding schedule as one of Europe’s busiest and most acclaimed pianist/composers and tackle that challenge? “I’ve been trying to do this for a while because it’s such a personal statement.” I tried to record in a studio, but somehow I didn’t feel the results was good or special enough to release. I started thinking about the process, and what I wanted to capture was the spontaneous freshness of improvising in front of an audience – with that energy, and that pressure.”

Ivo booked the Turner Sims auditorium in Southampton for a single concert. Live at Turner Sims documents that entire performance, just as it happened on that evening, not edited in any way. “You are very naked as a solo pianist – I wanted to wait a long time, til I felt that my left hand was strong enough to deliver all the counterpoint I wanted, and realize all my musical ideas in real time – its been a fifteen year process that is still ongoing.”  

Live at Turner Sims is an unedited portrait of a musician at work, alive and in the moment, each take flawlessly rendered, with a sureness of touch, a limitless flow of melodic inspiration, and a use of space and silence alongside the wealth of ideas that demonstrates the creative confidence of a master.  

More album news coming soon… but in the meantime check out Ivo’s Autumn 2023 tour dates below: