The Melancholy Babes - New Jazz From The Big City 2024 Tour - Hamilton

Lovers and listeners of adventurous music are in for a treat when Exploratory Jazz trio The Melancholy Babes perform their ‘New Jazz from the Big City’ 2024 Tour in August/September.

The Melancholy Babes have been performing and evolving their original music over the last three decades. From knotty jazz compositions to elegant Ellingtonia, free improvisation and beyond, the trio is dedicated to exploring the wide worlds of possibility within a saxophone, bass and drums format.

Saxophonist Jeff Henderson is renowned for his dynamic and energetic playing which incorporates all manner of sounds and techniques. His long history as a player and composer has seen him perform in a huge array of situations throughout New Zealand and internationally with many renowned artists including jazz legends Marilyn Crispell, Mike Nock, Daniel Carter, Sabu Toyozumi & even country star Kenny Rogers!

Double bass player Tom Callwood has a rich history in NZ music, performing in well known bands The Phoenix Foundation and Little Bushman, with Wellington jazz groups The Woods and Devils Gate Outfit, and alongside a plethora of leading NZ and international artists including Jobic Le Masson, Marilyn Crispell & Richard Nunns.

Anthony Donaldson is a drummer who has made an indelible impact on New Zealand music. From his beginnings with Wellington creative music pioneers Primitive Art Group and Braille collective, to the Six Volts and Front Lawn, the Bung Notes, Flower Orphans, Devils Gate Outfit and dozens more, his unique approach to rhythm and composition has seen him perpetually at the forefront of adventurous jazz in New Zealand.