Not many musicians spend a whole year working as composer-in-residence in a foreign country with one of the most reputable European jazz ensembles at their fingertips, before returning home for an exalted headline gig with said ensemble at a prestigious central London venue to close out the EFG London Jazz Festival, all the while cooking up visions of new visions, compositions and other artistic commitments along the way. But then, not all musicians are Nikki Iles, whose latest album, Face to Face, is a triumph of imaginative and colourful big band writing. 

Prior to her current engagement with the progressive NDR Big Band, the pianist and composer had initially participated in a competition for writers held by the German-based radio ensemble; their first collaboration was so inspiring that the group decided to invite her back to assume a year-long tenure. Under her jurisdiction, the outfit serves as an important vehicle for Iles’ crucial compositional voice, which continues the legacy of British jazz royalty in the vein of Kenny Wheeler and Mike Gibbs. In a similar fashion, another of Iles’ homegrown contemporaries, Ivo Neame, has been making the most of his status as the Cologne Contemporary Jazz Orchestra’s inaugural artist-in-residence over the past year. In a cultural landscape where commercial interest and opportunities for sponsorships are drying up fast, an esteemed patronage such as these is vital for artists willing to spread their wings and come into contact with prodigious talent that lies beyond the bounds of the English Channel. 

Though only released in the past few months, Face to Face is the culmination of a busy few years which have seen commissions, concerts and productions galore for Nikki and the NDR. How fitting a testament to their illustrious partnership, then, that the British bandleader should return to native soil in anticipation of her crowning moment in light of several years of painstaking work. With the distinct ability to capture her own personality within the music she writes, it is no wonder that Iles has found herself tied so innately to the realm of jazz. Each number is a fresh opportunity for Iles to reveal more of herself and to once again state her intentions all the more profoundly, while at the same time reconfiguring the specific questions asked of her. Across her music, one hears not only speculative hopes and dreams, but also her missed opportunities and lost connections – themes so pertinently touched on during her live programme, entitled ‘A Love of Imperfect Things’. It is this setlist, which you can witness below, that reflects on the limits of perfection and the desire for the spontaneous and unfinished, a theme that is also constantly present in jazz.

Like many others, I was delighted to attend Nikki’s concert and album launch at Cadogan Hall earlier this October. Her charming presence and energy was enough to command the audience’s attention in droves, let alone the might of the players assembled onstage. With her spritely demeanour not even restrained by the accordion that Iles occasionally strapped to her chest (“It reminds me of when I was pregnant”, she offhandedly remarked), there was no other way in which Nikki’s natural exuberance could remain hidden during the night. Performing to a packed house of friends, family and other devoted followers, the unmitigated poignancy of Iles’ creative profile revealed itself as the evening progressed. Her elegiac tribute to Doreen Wheeler (the late wife of Kenny) and family, ‘One4One’ – which was also prefaced by a quick shout-out to a present Norma Winstone – offered us a titillating glimpse behind the professional curtain, before revealing a connection only personal friendships can achieve. 

Judging from the smiling faces that were reciprocated both in front of the conductor’s podium as well as behind it, the mutual feelings of love and appreciation for the task at hand were apparent – not to mention the NDR’s collective anticipation, excitement and inevitable joy at once final chance of being able to sink its teeth into the vivid and characterful music that was about to unfold.