Victoria ("Tori") Freestone is a British saxophonist, flautist, violinist and composer. She has performed British jazz since 2009 as a band leader and sidewoman, known for her robust tenor sound and melodic invention. Her "Trio" albums, released in 2014 and 2016, were awarded at least 4 stars. ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' critic John Fordham described her first album "In The Chop House" as "an imposingly original sound". In 2017 Freestone was shortlisted for a Fellowship in Jazz Composition supported by PRS for Music Foundation, UK Arts Foundation.The Arts Foundatio
"Tori Freestone Jazz Composition supported by PRS for Music Foundation - Shortlisted 2017"
The Arts Foundation, retrieved 16 April 2017 That year Freestone was also nominated in the Parliamentary Jazz Awards 2017 in the Jazz Instrumentalist of the Year category.London Jazz New
"NEWS: 2017 Parliamentary Jazz Awards Shortlists Announced"
London Jazz News, 12 September 2017

Career

Freestone started performing in folk clubs at the age of seven. She joined the National Youth Jazz Orchestra when she was 17 and then went on to study jazz flute at Leeds College of Music, then progressed to the saxophone when she was 26.Ford, Catherin

London Jazz News 8 March 2014 Freestone likes to compose for unusual instrumentation that challenges traditional composition and improvisational techniques, most notably in her trio she explores the avenues of composing for a group that is led without a harmony instrument. Freestone features in many UK bands such as the

Andre Canniere Andre Canniere (born February 20, 1978, in Coudersport, Pennsylvania) is an American trumpet player and composer. He is based in London, England, where he's lived since 2008. Canniere has toured throughout the United States and Europe, performing ...

Sextet and

Ivo Neame Ivo Michael Beale Neame (born 13 March 1981) is a British jazz pianist and composer. In addition to leading his own bands he is a member of several European jazz groups including Phronesis, the Marius Neset Quintet, and the Kairos 4Tet. He ...

Quintet, but her main focus is on three projects: The Tori Freestone Trio, the Tori Freestone/ Alcyona Mick Duo and the sextet 'Solstice'. She has appeared at a number of UK Jazz Festivals including Manchester Jazz Festival in 2015 with a project with trumpeter Neil Yates and her duo with pianist Alcyona Mick. More recently she appeared at The Barbican, London as part of a larger ensemble all-star band with Hermeto Pascoal. She also performs on tour with the

Julian Siegel Julian H. Siegel (born 1966 in Nottingham) is a British jazz saxophone and clarinet player, and a composer and arranger, described by MOJO Magazine as "One of the UK's most creative saxophonists" Siegel has toured and recorded with Greg Cohen an ...

Big Band.

Recordings

Freestone's debut album with her Trio was ''In the Chop House'', released in 2014 on

Whirlwind Recordings Whirlwind Recordings is a London, UK-based independent record label established in 2010 by Michael Janisch. History The label was founded in 2010 by bassist, composer, educator and producer Michael Janisch in order to release his debut solo albu ...

. This album featured Freestone on tenor saxophone, Dave Manington on double bass and Tim Giles on drums. ''The Guardian'' gave the album 4 stars and said: "In being supported by only bass and drums (Dave Manington and Tim Giles), Freestone goes for one of a saxophonist's toughest options, but she is more than up to it."

All About Jazz ''All About Jazz'' is a website established by Michael Ricci in 1995. A volunteer staff publishes news, album reviews, articles, videos, and listings of concerts and other events having to do with jazz. Ricci maintains a related site, ''Jazz Near ...

placed this album in their top 10 albums of 2014 and gave it four and a half stars. Her second album, with the same trio, ''El Barranco'', again released on

, garnered similarly excellent 4-star reviews. John Fordham wrote "...fascinating once again for the ways in which an exceptional improviser can spin new yarns from the most deliberately restricted of resources – just an unbugged sax, bass and drums. Freestone has an arresting Coltrane-inflected sound..." In 2018 her duo album with pianist Alcyona Mick entitled ''Criss Cross'' received many 4 star reviews including one in

"This is elegant, engaging and original music, played with magnificent panache." In 2019, her third Trio album ''El Mar de Nubes'' received 4 stars from John Fordham "...this impressive trio shows formidable range, balancing free-jazz delicacy and bite".Fordham, Joh
Freestone Trio: El Mar de Nubes review – tenor sax player's inventive, pliant trio"
''

'', 7 June 2019

Discography

As leader * 2019: ''El Mar de Nubes'' (

) with Tori Freestone Trio * 2016: ''El Barranco'' (

) with Tori Freestone Trio * 2014: ''In The Chop House'' (

) with Tori Freestone Trio As co-leader * 2018: ''Criss Cross'' (

) with Alcyona Mick As sideman * 2016: ''Alimentation'' (Two Rivers Records) with Solstice * 2016: ''The Darkening Blue'' (

) with

* 2015: ''Strata'' (

Edition Records Edition Records is an independent record label that was founded in 2008 by pianist Dave Stapleton and photographer Tim Dickeson.Ivo Neame Ivo Michael Beale Neame (born 13 March 1981) is a British jazz pianist and composer. In addition to leading his own bands he is a member of several European jazz groups including Phronesis, the Marius Neset Quintet, and the Kairos 4Tet. He ...

Quintet * 2013: ''Ichthyology'' (Groove Laboratory Productions) with Jamil Sheriff Big Band * 2013: ''Entertaining Tyrants'' (Jellymould Jazz) with Compassionate Dictatorship * 2013: ''Clocca'' (Loop Collective) with Fringe Magnetic * 2012: ''Yatra'' (

Octet * 2011: ''Things Will Be'' (Impossible Ark Records) with Riaan Visloo Examples of Twelves * 2011: ''Twistic'' (Loop Collective) with Fringe Magnestic * 2010: ''Cash Cows'' (FMR) with Compassionate Dictatorship * 2009: ''Empty Spaces'' (Loop Collective) with Fridge Magnetic * 2008: ''Club Rouge'' (Deep Touch Records) with Levan J * 2007: ''Coup d'Etat'' (FMR) with Compassionate Dictatorship * 2005: ''Sunday Morning'' (Deep Touch Records) with Levan J * 2004: ''Cool Day'' (Deep Touch Records) with Levan J

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Freestone, Tori British jazz saxophonists British jazz flautists Living people 21st-century saxophonists Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century flautists Whirlwind Recordings artists