Kit Downes
Sirenjaw
Sirenjaw documents the first meeting of three musicians who, while previously connected through various collaborations, had not performed together as a trio before this recording. The project brings together long-standing musical relationships: Lukas Koenig and Vinicius Cajado share a deep-rooted connection within the Viennese music scene; Koenig and Kit Downes have collaborated both live and on record; and Downes and Cajado have recently worked together in a range of ensemble contexts in Berlin…
Exhaust
The music of Exhaust unfolds through real-time exploration, where quick reflexes and deep listening shape each performance. Nebbia’s powerful saxophone voice drives the ensemble with intensity, while Downes reveals a side of his playing that leans into raw immediacy and unrestrained expression. Lisle acts as both a catalyst and anchor, crafting fluid rhythmic structures that support and propel the trio’s intricate interplay. Their album moves through a vast spectrum of sound, shifting between me…
Vermillion
Kit Downes joins forces with long-time collaborators Petter Eldh on bass and James Maddren on drums for a carefully assorted piano trio programme that treads gentle lyricism and bold creative outbursts in equal measures. Downes, whose prior ECM offering Dreamlife of Debris was termed a “work of otherworldly beauty” by BBC Music Magazine, carves out some of his most compendious pieces to date on Vermillion. Replete with subtle twists and turns, the trio offers its idiosyncratic take on the piano …
Subaerial
'Subaerial' is the latest and most sophisticated transmission from the long musical partnership of cellist Lucy Railton and keyboardist Kit Downes, a collaborative history that stretches back thirteen years. From the beginning, the pair bridged musical worlds, with the former emerging from classical and contemporary music and the latter steeped in jazz tradition.
Outpost of Dreams
Duo album by Norma Winstone (voice) and Kit Downes (piano): four Downes pieces, songs by John Taylor, Carla Bley, Ralph Towner and Aidan O'Rourke, two traditionals, nine with Winstone lyrics. Recorded April 2023 at Artesuono, Udine, produced by Manfred Eicher. ECM 2811, 2024.
A Short Diary
Duo album by drummer Sebastian Rochford and pianist Kit Downes, music written after the death of Rochford's father, poet Gerard Rochford, recorded February 2020 at the family home Waverley, Aberdeen. CD, ECM 2749, 2023.
Dreamlife of Debris
Second ECM album by keyboardist Kit Downes (piano, church organ) with Tom Challenger (tenor saxophone), Lucy Railton (cello), Stian Westerhus (guitar) and Sebastian Rochford (drums), recorded November 2018 in Huddersfield and Snape, produced by Sun Chung.
Obsidian
Solo pipe organ album by Kit Downes, played on organs at Union Chapel, London, and two Suffolk churches (Snape and Bromeswell), with Tom Challenger on tenor saxophone on one track. Recorded November 2016; produced by Sun Chung.