Baxendale and his ensemble are featured guests at Dunedin Jazz Club this Saturday night, from 7.30pm at Hanover Hall, showcasing new album Waypeople — featuring a fusion of jazz, classical Chinese and Taoist scripture.
The performance will feature a six-piece ensemble led by Baxendale (saxophones/clarinets), with Chelsea Prastiti (voice), Jia Ling (guzheng), Daniel Hayles (piano), Seth Boy (double bass) and Rick Cranson (drums/percussion).
Born in the United Kingdom and raised in Aotearoa, Baxendale studied at the New Zealand School of Music in Wellington, before earning his Masters at the University of Auckland.
A multiple award-winning artist Baxendale has taught and performed across the world, from the United States and Canada to South Korea and Germany.
His time in Korea inspired an interest in cross-cultural collaboration, culminating in a commission by the Wellington Jazz Festival in 2023 — Waypeople. This opportunity led to a collaboration with Jia Ling, a renowned player of the traditional Chinese stringed instrument the guzheng.
Waypeople was inspired by Ursula K. Le Guin’s English-language translation of the Tao Te Ching, a foundational work in Taoism.
Baxendale said Waypeople ‘‘transforms the timeless Taoist philosophy of harmony, balance, and paradox into sound’’.
Saturday’s Dunedin Jazz Club show is the seventh stop on the launch tour for the Waypeople album, which is available now.
The Hanover Hall doors will open at 7pm. Tickets available now through the Dunedin Jazz Club website.
