Kate Westbrook, Chris Biscoe & Mike Westbrook have worked together in many Westbrook ensembles since the late 1970's, from the seminal Brass Band to the current New Westbrook Orchestra. They formed the Westbrook Trio in 1982.

Kate Westbrook's repertoire embraces Contemporary Music, as well as Jazz and Popular Song. An original and powerful lyicist, Kate has written libretti for Opera, Music Theatre and Cabaret. Recent albums include Cuff Clout, a Neoteric Music Hall, in which her texts are set by eight  composers from the worlds of Jazz, Rock, Pop and Contemporary Classical Music, and The Nijinska Chamber, a celebration of the great dancer/choreographer Bronislava Nijinska.

Mike Westbrook has led and composed for a succession of big bands and small groups since the 1960s. His compositions range from large scale works for jazz and classical ensembles to stage musicals, experimental theatre and opera, as well as pieces for radio, TV and cinema, He has made over fifty albums, among them Chanson Irresponsable, performed by The New Westbrook Orchestra, combining jazz and classical musicians, and Waxeywork Show for his current sextet The Village Band.

Chris Biscoe has featured in many leading ensembles notably George Russell's Living Time Orchestra, and the Orchestre National de Jazz, based in Paris, in which he was resident for three years, under the direction of Didier Levallet.  As a soloist Chris works in a great variety of contexts, ranging from The Grand Union Orchestra to the improvising group Full Monte.  As a composer he leads and writes for various ensembles. His current quartet album  Gone in The Air, the music of Eric Dolphy, features Chris in partnership with fellow saxophonist Tony Kofi.

The Westbrook Trio: Lush Life

In 2002 the Trio celebrated its Twentieth Anniversary with a European tour and a new album, L'Ascenseur / The Lift, an innovative new piece created by and for the trio:

The meeting of Galileo and Milton in a bar north of Rome, a lunar eclipse over the Indian Ocean, trouble in Vancouver, the bats of Thessaloniki, the monsters of Duisburg - just some of the images conjured up in The Trio's new jazz cabaret - a magical elevator ride through 20 years of geographical and musical travel.

More information about the L'ascenseur / The Lift CD

Reviews:
"This is a wonderful album full of evocative images of their tales and travels, including Kate in various languages, as they make their way across the globe."
Stacey Kent JAZZ LINE-UP - BBC Radio 3

"Drama King & Queen Mike & Kate Westbrook, plus superior reeds player Chris Biscoe, celebrate their 20th Anniversary, combining elements of German expressionism with cabaret and music-hall via far-out jazz."
Chrissie Murray - RONNIE SCOTT MAGAZINE

"Westbrook's disciplined ear for structure ensures that both Kate Westbrook and Biscoe have solid bases on which to develop their improvisations. 'Lunar Eclipse Over Western Australia' shows Biscoe at his most eloquent, recalling Konitz in the way he constructs his solo: note by note, and phrase by phrase."
Hugh Gregory - JAZZ REVIEW

"No one has succeeded in creating a more distinctive body of work than Mike and Kate Westbrook. Their mixture of jazz, music-theatre, poetry, street entertainment and visuals is rich and unique. ..That just three people can create such a variety of sounds is hard to believe"
Dave Gelly - THE OBSERVER

FOR BOOKINGS OR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT: 
Chris Biscoe: email: biscoechris@waitrose.com

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