all 3 ECM Cork 2025 concerts and get 10% off (offer applies to full price tickets only)Delicate, profound, and full of lyrical power: British jazz vocalist Norma Winstone and pianist Glauco Venier present themselves in a fascinating duo configuration. Winstone – a defining voice of European jazz, notably known from the trio Azimuth with John Taylor and Kenny Wheeler – is, at over 80 years of age, more artistically present than ever. As an artist who understands
herself not only as a jazz singer but also as a lyricist, Norma brings her poetic sensibility to new compositions by Kit Downes, as well as works by Carla Bley, Ralph Towner, and John Taylor, on the
2024 ECM album Outpost of Dreams, giving each piece a fresh dimension. Glauco Venier, one of Europe’s most compelling pianists, has shared the stage with Norma for many years. He impresses with a deep
musical intuition and a playing style that is at once sensitive to every nuance and marked by extraordinary creativity. Their trio album with Klaus Gesing
was even nominated for a Grammy in 2007. Together, the duo reveals the essence of each song with exceptional sensitivity to phrasing, timing, and textual interpretation, inviting the audience on an intimate and intense musical journey where listening
becomes a profound experience.Norma Winstone: voiceGlauco Venier: pianoAbout the Musicians
Norma Winstone was born in London and first drew attention in the late 1960s when she performed at Ronnie Scott’s Club with Roland Kirk. Although she initially became known for developing her own wordless improvisational approach, her versatility also allows her to excel in the standard repertoire, performing with small ensembles, orchestras, and big bands.
She has collaborated with Mike Westbrook and Michael Garrick, sung with John Surman, Kenny Wheeler, Mike Gibbs, and John Taylor, and worked extensively with many leading European musicians as well as American guest artists.
In the late 1970s, together with pianist John Taylor and trumpeter Kenny Wheeler, she founded the group Azimuth, which Richard Williams of The Times described as “one of the most imaginatively conceived and exquisitely balanced contemporary chamber jazz groups.” Within this framework, Winstone combines the instrumental use of her voice with lyrics, most of which she writes herself. Since 2023, she has reached an entirely new audience: rapper Drake sampled Azimuth’s piece “The Tunnel” on the song IDGAF, which has now been streamed over 500 million times.
Her voice has also become a key element of the sound of Kenny Wheeler’s Big Band and can be heard on the ECM double album Music for Large and Small Ensembles, which also features John Abercrombie, Dave Holland, Peter Erskine, and John Taylor.
In recent years, she has earned a reputation as an exceptional lyricist, writing texts for compositions by Ralph Towner as well as Brazilian composers Egberto Gismonti and Ivan Lins. She has a special affinity for the music of Steve Swallow and has written lyrics for many of his compositions.
Born in London in 1941, Winstone is a celebrated chanteuse and former faculty member of the London Royal Academy of Music, which named her an Honorary Member in 2013. She remains as active as ever: in 2021, she received the Parliamentary Jazz Award for her services to jazz, subsequently recorded three new ECM albums with distinct projects, and continues to perform on stages worldwide.
Glauco Venier, born 1962, hails from Sedegliano in the Italian region of Friuli, a landscape whose folk music continues to influence his work to this day. After studying organ and composition at the Conservatory of Udine, he received a scholarship to the Berklee College of Music in Boston, where he deepened his love for jazz and developed his distinctive style: a fusion of improvisational freedom, subtle chamber music balance, and nuanced folkloric influences.
Since the early 1990s, Venier has led his own ensembles and collaborated with leading musicians such as Enrico Rava, Kenny Wheeler, Paolo Fresu, and Lee Konitz. He is a regular guest at international festivals.
He gained wide recognition through the trio with Norma Winstone and Klaus Gesing, whose ECM album Distances was nominated for a Grammy Award in 2007.
As a solo artist, Venier continually explores new paths. On his ECM album Miniatures (2016), he expands the piano’s sonic palette with gongs, bells, and other resonant instruments, creating meditative, almost sculptural music. Projects such as Antiche Danze & Canti Italiani for the WDR Big Band and the WDR Radio Orchestra translate the folk songs of his homeland into symphonic colors, bridging the gap between tradition and contemporary jazz.
Today, Glauco Venier is considered one of Europe’s most versatile pianists – a musician who moves virtuously between genres without losing sight of his roots, and whose profound musical curiosity is evident in every note.
