Ian Bateman is one of the most in-demand jazz trombonists in Europe. Ian has spent most of his career playing in the top jazz groups and big bands produced in the UK from the late 1970's to the present day. Whilst mainly seated at the heart of the traditional jazz and big band scene, Ian has started to turn heads with his own bands that are gradually finding their way into the main stream of jazz in the UK.

Ian is currently with the Acker Bilk Paramount Jazz Band and has been for almost eight years. Mr Bilk is now into his 80s and in order to keep him able to perform in the best of health, he limits the amount of work that he does. This allows Ian to freely pursue other avenues whilst keeping his loyalty to Acker.

Over the past ten years, Ian has also been a regular member of the Back To Basie Orchestra and Andy Cooper's Top 8 (formerly Euro Top 8). All the members of these two bands have their own careers with other bands so Ian is now thinking to the future and therefore now has bands of his own that he hopes will allow him to pursue the music he loves into his own ripe old-age!

At the top of Ian's new career path is the band he co-leads with his brother Alan. Now booking dates in 2011 and 2012, and a newly-released CD, the Bateman Brother's Jazz Band will keep Ian firmly established at the top of the traditional and dixieland jazz circuit. Ian's brother Alan on trumpet is also very well-known to UK jazz lovers. Alan moulds his style on Louis Armstrong and like Ian, was also hugely influenced by the bands of the British trad boom of the early 1960's. Ian and Alan have put their own band together in response to huge interest wherever they find themselves paired together. The band presents a very special show; a tribute to the Louis Armstrong All-Stars. "Not another one", we hear you say. Well, this show will play Louis' own arrangements as per the famous recordings and they will be played in the same swinging manner that electrified audiences wherever they played around the world, something we feel no other Louis Armstrong tribute has managed to convey to an audience. With Trevor Whiting on Clarinet, award winning pianist Craig Milverton, John Day on Bass and the amazing Steve Rushton on Drums, there cannot be a more exciting band on the jazz scene - especially with the addition of vocalist Maggie Reeday.

Also in the running is the band that Ian co-leads with Adrian Fry, The Bone Supremacy. Five trombones plus a piano trio and the incredible writing of Adrian Fry has already put this band into second place in the British Jazz Awards for 2009. The band has four regular trombonists plus a guest. Regular guests include Mark Nightingale and Alastair White.

Although best known in the traditional jazz world, the more informed jazz listener knows that Ian possesses the rare quality in jazz in that he excels at other styles and being a first-class reader, he is also in demand with big bands. One of these styles is be-bop (very difficult on a slide trombone) and Ian has formed his Be-Bop Quintet to perform the music of JJ Johnson and Frank Rosolino from the late 1950's - early 1960's. Along with Ian, this band features Alex Garnett on Tenor Sax, Leon Greening on Piano, Dave Green on Bass and Richie Bryant on Drums. The music has been transcribed from these recordings by Ian and it quite literally does swing like the proverbial clappers!

Kick Ass Brass is a labour of love for Ian. He is a big fan of Tower Of Power, a soul/funk band from Oakland, California who are the inspiration for many bands of all types that feature brass sections in their bands. Where TOP are different is that the brass section is at the front with the singer and play the lead role. Ian is achieving this with Kick Ass Brass and it is currently in rehearsal with some big names in the jazz and popular music vein, so watch out for this lot to appear somewhere near you soon!

So you can see Ian is going to be busy for a while yet to come. Please have a look around the web site and get in touch if anything interests you!

April 2011