Michael Buckley, Ronan Guilfoyle and Christophe Lavergne

Magy's Farm are proud to present Michael Buckley, Ronan Guilfoyle and Christophe Lavergne, live in session.

About the session

Well this was such a revelation! A re-enactment of Sonny Rollins Live at the Village Vanguard, live at Magy's Farm. Firstly, what big footsteps to follow in, all that history and greatness associated with the original…Rollins' amazing energy and ability to create a tide of new ideas in the moment, one of the truly legendary albums in jazz. And, yet, the impossible was delivered. First the band. Michael has been a forever friend of mine since we were very young…we played in the Irish Youth Jazz Orchestra together, and even played the St. Patrick's Day Ball in New York in the early 90's with the Commitments. Christophe, a high-energy thinking-man's drummer who leads and responds, all with solid time, but space that opens the door to the other players. Ronan Guilfoyle, one of the true legends of jazz in Ireland who has done so much by setting up courses, bringing in the stars and playing with them here and abroad…an ambassador who has committed himself as a servant of the music. Remarkably, over the years our paths have seldom crossed and yet his positivity, energy and generosity of spirit made the whole experience one of our most important. The music was on a ridiculous level, bearing in mind firstly that there was no chordal instrument, so the bass had to hold down a more open harmonic palette while generating the time with drums and freeing the drummer to invoke rhythmic ideas that developed through each track. Michael? Well he was on fire! The tenor sax was one with him, the ferocious chops, high energy angular lines interspersed with the most delicate of touches as he took the room up and down, back up, and to places we seldom as audiences get a chance to go. It was one of those gigs where you can't remember breathing, but you do remember clapping and screaming, and then there was the 7-minute standing ovation securing legendary status for the band and the night. Add to that the mighty craic afterwards, the hang, the stories as Michael and Ronan competed into the night with yarn after yarn and memories that they brought back to life. It was just one of those sessions we will never forget at Magy's Farm.

Performers