Glasgow-based composer, producer and multi-instrumentalist Liam Shortall, aka corto.alto, has been described as a traditional jazz fan raised in the internet age who, through his mix of improvisation and electronica – laid out over a heavy bass beat – is out and about in the paw pads of modern jazz.
The debut album Bad With Names was released in October 2023 and, according to Shortall, is about “forgiving oneself”, with the theme: the passage of time and wasted youth. The record brings together some of the UK’s strongest young jazz instrumentalists, including Mercury-nominated pianist Fergus McCreadie, trumpeter James Copus, trombonist Anoushka Nanguy and drummer Graham Costello.
With the feel of a string quartet, Shortall’s Quartet takes the corto.alto sound in a new direction. Liam Shortall knows his jazz history through, among other things, his time in the brass line of the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra.
In the summer of 2023, corto.alto played at the festivals in Glastonbury, Love Supreme and Barcelona’s Jamboree Jazz Club. Now this exciting composer comes to Stockholm’s jazz festival and Fasching as a mouthpiece for the strong Scottish jazz scene.
Matt Carmichael – tenor sax/composition,
Fergus McCreadie – piano,
Charlie Stewart – violin,
Ali Watson – bass,
Tom Potter – drums
About Stockholm Jazz Festival
Stockholm Jazz Festival is one of Sweden’s largest and oldest festivals and takes place between 11 and 20 October 2024. This year’s festival presents big names such as Bill Frisell, Sona Jobarteh and The Headhunters. Stockholm Jazz Festival is an indoor festival that houses over fifty stages every year and is visited by around 30,000 Stockholmers during its ten days. Read more about the festival at stockholmjazz.se
