Chorleywood jazz pianist who creates melodies that linger

Modern jazz pianist and composer John Donegan, one of the star performers at last month’s international jazz festival in Limerick, will bring his highly rated sextet to Rickmansworth on Wednesday, October 19.

The sextet will perform some of the stand-out tracks from two of John's most recent albums at a concert organised by Three Rivers Music Society. The first album, A Kite for Kate, released in 2019, was dedicated to John’s youngest daughter. The second, Shadows Linger, was premiered at the Limerick Jazz Festival on September 25.

This brand-new album includes tracks that John worked on during the Covid lockdowns. “Not being able to play with other musicians and in front of an audience was a real loss,” he admitted. “However, the lockdowns also gave me an opportunity to be creative. I am sure many other musicians would say the same.”

John was born in Cork but now lives in Chorleywood. He has performed in France, Spain and Portugal and at Birdland in New York.

John’s music has been partly influenced by jazz greats such as Bill Evans, Chick Corea and Keith Jarrett and, as one reviewer recently noted, he has “an unfailing gift for melody”. His compositions have been played on the BBC, Jazz FM and independent radio stations in both the UK and Ireland.

John’s sextet includes some of the other outstanding talents on the British jazz scene. At the Rickmansworth concert, the tenor saxophonist will be Alex Hitchcock, whose own quintet won the Conad Jazz Contest, Italy’s prestigious competition for young musicians. The sextet’s alto and soprano saxophonist, Jamie O’Donnell, is also a prolific composer who studied at the Guildhall School of Music.

The October 19 concert – the sixth that John will have given for Three Rivers Music Society -- will be held at the Baptist Church in High Street, Rickmansworth WD3 1EH. It will begin at 7.30pm. Tickets £16 at the door. Reduced price for members. Free entry for under-25s.

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