VOLANT
Led by saxophonist and composer Matthew Ottignon, Volant comprises four exceptional musicians who produce a singular explorative sound. Matthew Ottignon's compositions are an ode to his admiration for nature and are deeply influenced by musical geniuses including John Coltrane and the Necks. Bassist Hannah James grounds the ensemble with unparalleled confidence and musicality, 2022 Freedman Jazz Finalist Holly Conner brings an appetite for innovation and creative ambition, and pianist Lauren Tsamouras adds sensitivity, subtle nuances and an openness towards experimentation. Together, they’ve created an exciting new project, inspired by the flight patterns of birds, that’s making waves in the Sydney jazz scene.
Featuring
Lauren Tsamouras | Piano
Sydney-based jazz pianist and improviser. Throughout her musical career, her style has been influenced by trad Jazz of the 1920’s, iconic jazz players of the 50’s such as Bill Evans and Chet Baker as well as contemporary Australian pianist/composer Luke Howard. An amalgamation of these has allowed her playing style to be partly compositionally driven and well as improvisational, evident in her original music featured in her work ‘Another Green World’. Music written to challenge the standard roles of instrumentation; navigating pulsatile, ostinato-based compositions where the improvisation is informed by the architecture of the piece.
Hannah James | Acoustic Bass
Hannah is a bass player and composer from Sydney Australia. She leads the 10 piece ensemble @Pharos.au, the Hannah James Trio (HJT) and quintet project #Hatch. She is the bassist for the New Orleans infused Crawfish Po' Boys, Mingus Amongst Us, the Divergence Jazz Orchestra, Mothership Jazz Orchestra and others. She has worked with Ingrid and Christine Jensen (USA), Lakecia Benjamin (USA), Helen Sung (USA), Silke Eberhardt (Ger), Sandy Evans (Syd), Matt Keegan, Katie Noonan (Bris), Don Burrows and Kevin Hunt amongst others. Hannah has been a recipient of the prestigious Jann Rutherford Scholarship, the ANU Excellence Scholarship. She has toured Australia, Asia and the UK with various ensembles. Hannah is a sessional lecturer in Jazz and Improvisation at the University of Sydney.
Holly Connor | Drums
Holly Conner is a Sydney-based drummer, percussionist and electronic music producer - extremely versatile, she works across the pop, indie-rock, electronic, experimental, contemporary improvised, and free jazz music scenes. She also produces her own percussion-meets-electronic music under the moniker ilex.
Coming from a diverse musical background, she first studied rock drumming and classical percussion, before completing a BA in Jazz Drum kit from the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. Holly has also completed summer courses at the School of Improvised Music Brooklyn, and two Australian Art Orchestra Creative Music Intensives.
In 2022, Holly became one of three finalists for the Freedman Fellowship. The Fellowship Finals recognise those at the forefront of contemporary jazz and improvised music in Australia. Following Holly's ilex performance for the Fellowship Eric Myers of Loudmouth magazine wrote -
"Dynamic, powerful...an impressive display of virtuosic drumming
