If you've been paying attention to the UK jazz scene over the past decade, the name 'Rob Luft' is bound to have cropped up on your radar at least once or twice. Having first emerged out of NYJO as a teenage guitarist from Sidcup, he went on to study at London's Royal Academy of Music where, upon graduating in 2016, he became the recipient of the Kenny Wheeler Jazz Prize and was swiftly signed to Edition Records. Fast forward several years and a flurry of critical praise to 2023 when Rob released Dahab Days, his third album that he conceived while stranded in the remote Sinai Peninsula at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. His first orchestral work, a BBC commission entitled 'From Silence, Music Is Born' also premiered last year as part of EFG London Jazz Festival under the direction of Japanese composer and conductor Miho Hazama.

As a much in-demand sideman, Rob's list of engagements at time of writing include concerts with a murderer's row of international talent, including John Surman, Elina Duni, Ellen Andrea Wang, Alice Zawadzki, Iain Ballamy, Byron Wallen and Dave O'Higgins — not to mention regular gigs with his own quartet! Anyone fortunate enough to have witnessed Rob perform live will already be aware of his fondness for performing onstage in his socks. Don't just take it from us, however! This unabashedly boyish musician performs with all the wide-eyed wonder of an absolute beginner, a trait he describes during our conversation...

Presto Music

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For our first episode, Barney visits Oslo and speaks to the musical supercouple of John Surman and Karin Krog, as the British saxophonist prepares to go out on tour in support of his latest album Words Unspoken released on ECM. This agreeable pair discuss the early days of their respective careers, from their first meeting at the Montreux Jazz Festival as European winners of the Downbeat Poll to releasing Cloud Line Blue - their proudest working achievement made together in 1979 - and beyond. Karin shares the impetus behind setting up her own label, Meantime Records, in order to regain control over her back catalogue, and the duo provide a fascinating glimpse into the life of a musical partnership worth its weight in gold.

Presto Music

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