Liam Noble: Piano

Geoff Simkins: Alto Saxophone

Taking their name, and not much else, from a late Victorian circus act involving the catching of turnips on a fork wedged between his front facing incisors, Noble and Simkins wind and swoop their way around melodies from classic standards to 80s pop. There’s a sense of danger and daring throughout, capturing, they’d like to think, some of the sheer terror and beauty of root vegetables in flight. Standards like “Stella By Starlight” and “When You’re Smiling” contrast with Duran Duran’s melodramatic “Save A Prayer” and the traditional folk song “Black Waterside”, provoking interaction both rumbustious and delicate, and perhaps a rethinking of what it means to be staring a speeding turnip in the face.

Liam Noble is one of the UK’s most distinctive pianists, known for his adventurous improvisation, imaginative compositions and wide-ranging collaborations. Equally at home in contemporary jazz, free improvisation…