“O’Higgins plays with quite exceptional fluency and his fund of ideas never runs out.”
The Observer
Dave O’Higgins’ tenor and soprano sax sounds are highly personal and recognisable, with a clear sense of melodic development and adventure. A popular performer with the public, with an excellent sense of pacing and presentation, he has a wide palette from Charlie Parker, Dexter Gordon, John Coltrane, Joe Henderson through to Stanley Turrentine and Michael Brecker. He has relentlessly pursued artistic and sonic exploration and development with a deep respect for the tradition of the music.
Dave’s 21st album recording as leader is a collaboration with young guitar firebrand, Rob Luft, and is out now on the Ubuntu Music label (O’Higgins & Luft Play Monk & Trane- see DISCOGRAPHY). There is a 40-date tour set for the autumn with this thrilling new band, with Rod Youngs on drums and Scott Flanigan on organ.
Dave is a highly regarded educator at the London College of Contemporary Media, where he is the Jazz Pathway Leader.
He also runs a small specialist jazz recording studio (JVG), in search of the optimum way of recording jazz musicians through a combination of old techniques (á la Rudy Van Gelder) and newer innovations.
Dave has worked with some of the world’s finest musicans, including: Joey Calderazzo, Joe Locke, Dave Kikowski, Eric Alexander, Grant Stewart, Max Ionata, Phil Dwyer, Adam Nussbaum, Joe Lovano, Phil Woods, Jimmy Smith, Nancy Wilson, Peggy Lee, Kurt Elling, Wayne Shorter, Eddie Gomez, Billy Childs, Abdullah Ibrahim, Chico Chagas, Stephane Grappelli, Michel Legrand. He has released 20 CDs as leader to date. He also wrote and produced the last Matt Bianco album, “Gravity”.
Also on the CV: Frank Sinatra (the last London appearance - a week at the Royal Albert Hall in 1992) and a tour and album with Ray Charles (Strong Love Affair).
Other regular bands over the years include:
Brubecks Play Brubeck
John Dankworth and Cleo Laine
Jim Mullen
Martin Taylor’s Spirit of Django
Jamie Cullum
Kyle Eastwood
BBC Big Band
Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Orchestra
Dave received a nomination for ‘Best Tenor Sax Player’ in the 2018 British Jazz Awards
“A stunning player in the neo-bop vein, with an apparently effortless flow of coherent ideas, beautiful time and a highly developed harmonic sense.”
JAZZ GUIDE
“His professional presentation was an object lesson to the amateurishness of local players. His musicianship seemed boundless. Like his friend Martin Taylor did last year to our guitarists, Dave O’Higgins did to our sax players – gave them new and exciting challenges. And gave us mere listeners an exceptional night.”
ADELAIDE ADVERTISER, AUSTRALIA
“O’Higgins plays with quite exceptional fluency and his fund of ideas never runs out.”
THE OBSERVER
