Doors 6:45 PM, Music 7:15 PM – 1 set of music
Line-up:
Julian Woods – Guitar
Li-chin Li – Sheng
John Butcher – Soprano Saxophone
About:
The second meeting of this truly unique improvising trio, consisting of Berlin-based Chinese traditional music performer and rising contemporary music star Lichin Li on Sheng, prolific free improviser and legendary innovator John Butcher on saxophones, and eclectic multi-instrumentalist and Vortex Whirlpool alumnus Julian Woods on microtonal electric guitar.
The trio first convened in spring 2025, playing to a packed house at Ryan’s Bar in Stoke Newington as part of Julian’s ‘Matador’ concert series.
While conceived half a world away and nearly 3000 years apart, the saxophone and the sheng (an ancient Chinese polyphonic free reed instrument) form a surprisingly natural sonic partnership in the hands of John and Li-chin, with both exploring the full register and timbral possibilities of their instruments, spurred on by Julian’s dynamic and provocative guitar playing.
Li-Chin Li is a Sheng performer from Taiwan. She majored in Chinese Music at the Tainan National University of the Arts. After graduation, she worked for the prestigious Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra.
Recently, she has been selected as a member of IRCAM concert de l’atelier d’improvisation, ManiFeste-2022, and she has guested with Ensemble LINEA and Ensemble CAIRN in 2022. She is a grantee of the Asian Culture Council in New York in 2023.
John Butcher is well known as a saxophonist who attempts to engage with the uniqueness of time and place. His music ranges through improvisation, his own compositions, multitracked pieces and explorations with feedback and unusual acoustics. Since the early 80s he has collaborated with hundreds of artists – including Derek Bailey, Rhodri Davies, Andy Moor, Phil Minton, Christian Marclay, Eddie Prévost, Magda Mayas, Spontaneous Music Ensemble, Sophie Agnel, Gino Robair, Mark Sanders, John Tilbury, Okkyung Lee, John Edwards, Chris Corsano, Polwechsel and Steve Beresford.
Julian Woods is a musician, composer and improviser based in London. In 2024, he graduated with a distinction in Jazz Performance from the Guildhall School of Music in London. He has recently performed at the Vortex Jazz Club, Cafe OTO, Wigmore Hall, Porgy & Bess (Vienna), INNtoene Jazz Festival, and Pizza Express. He performs on guitars (microtonal or regular), bass guitars (fretted or fretless), and double bass.
Julian’s musical interests include microtonality, free improvisation, polystylism and maximalism. His influences include John Zorn, Marc Ribot, Anton Webern, Gyorgy Ligeti, Harry Partch, John Cage and Alex Paxton. He is involved in a variety of projects, including co-directing the London Improvisers Orchestra, leading his own original music ensembles, collaborating with the Guildhall New Music Society, and was a member of the 2024-2025 cohort of the Vortex Jazz Club’s Whirlpool Collective.