John O'Gallagher 'club set'

About this event

The Sofa Sessions, in association with Kilkenny Arts Festival, presents John O’Gallagher & Oxygen Thief

10pm - 12pm / €20

John O'Gallagher - saxophone

Chris Guilfoyle - guitar

Barry Donohue - bass

Matthew Jacobson - drums

In partnership with Kilkenny Arts Festival, the Sofa Sessions is proud to present one of the most original saxophonists in contemporary jazz, John O’Gallagher. The Boston-born saxophonist arrives in Kilkenny to perform with Superumbra, guitarist Chris Guilfoyle’s 8-piece ensemble, in a gala performance at the Set Theatre on Wednesday 15th August as part of the Kilkenny Arts Festival programme. And while he’s in town, he will also play this very special Sofa Session with Guilfoyle’s trio. This is an opportunity to catch one of the leading US saxophonists of his generation, up close in the magical back room at Billy Byrne’s bar.

About John O’Gallagher

"Mr. O'Gallagher is an exploratory alto saxophonist with a clear melodic streak" - The New York Times

John O'Gallagher is considered one of the most compelling alto saxophonists and composers at work today on the New York jazz scene. He is known for an innovative style which pushes the boundaries of jazz while rooted in it's tradition.

Born in Anaheim Califorina in 1964 he began playing alto saxophone in grade school after his family moved to Spokane, Washington. Upon graduating high school he studied briefly at Eastern Washington University before moving to Boston to attend Berklee College of Music. There he studied with legendary saxophone gurus Joe Viola, Jerry Bergonzi and George Garzone.

During the past 25 years living in New York he has become known for his projects as a leader, and as a sought after sideman, working with artist such as Joe Henderson, Maria Schnieder, Kenny Wheeler, Billy Hart, Tony Malaby, Jeff Williams, Tom Rainey, Chris Cheek, Ralph Alessi, Rudresh Manhathappa, Mike Formanek, Ben Monder and numerous others.

About Chris Guilfoyle

Chris Guilfoyle is one of the leading lights of a new generation of Irish jazz musicians. He grew up in a musical family where his father Ronan Guilfoyle and uncle Conor Guilfoyle are household names in the Irish jazz scene. He has studied at Berklee College of Music - where he was awarded a scholarship from Fender Guitars and the Jazz and Improvised Music Salzburg conference in Austria. Chris was also selected to represent his college at the International Association of Schools of Jazz in The Netherlands in July 2010.

In August 2011, Chris was accepted to study at Dave Liebman’s Chromatic Harmony Workshop in Stroudsburg Pennsylvania, USA. Since graduating, Chris has been actively performing in the Dublin music scene as well as abroad. In November 2011 he performed in Paris with Ronan Guilfoyle’s Lingua Franca as part of the Festival Jazzy Colours; in October 2011 he performed on a 3 day tour of Ireland with Dave Liebman, Ronan Guilfoyle and Finnish drummer Jussi Lehtonen; In March 2011 he performed with the great drummer Ralph Peterson in Dublin and in February 2011 he played with Greek pianist/organist George Contrafouris at the National Concert Hall in Dublin.

Chris also leads his own group Umbra, a quintet featuring some of the most promising musicians in the country who play all original compositions and Oxygen Thief, a new project aiming to expand the vocabulary of the jazz guitar trio. He also plays as a sideman in 3G (Ronan Guilfoyle, Conor Guilfoyle, Chris Guilfoyle), Kevin Higgins’ Nature, Aleka and The Long Way Around. Chris also produces electronic music under the name Exit Introvert. Currently, Chris is part of the guitar and ensemble faculty of DCU’s jazz performance degree where he teaches 1st, 2nd and 3rd year guitar as well as 2nd and 3rd year ensembles.