JIM DENLEY
Genres: Jazz Related Improv, Composition • Australia

Australian flautist Jim Denley has been active on the avant-garde front since the late '70s, but he remains a very obscure figure. His importance can be compared to Jon Rose, with whom he formed the groundbreaking Relative Band in 1981. As the violinist's profile rose thanks to strange radio plays and elaborate stage antics (a lot of talent was also involved!), Denley remained in the shadows. When Rose, by 1985 the prime mover in Australian experimental music, moved to Berlin, Denley chose London as his new scene. He has played with Derek Bailey, John Butcher, Roger Turner, but mostly in Chris Burn's ensemble and with violinist Stevie Wishart, whom he married in 1987. His extended technique on flutes and alto saxophone, his acute listening skills, and his refusal to get stuck into a single format make him a first-rate improviser. Denley was born in Bulli, a small country town in read more...