David Preston Mµ Quartet
Birmingham Jazz @ 1000 Trades, Birmingham
Friday 2nd May 2025

David Preston – guitar
Jonny Mansfield – vibraphone
Conor Chaplin – bass
Marc Michel – drums

I had already seen David Preston’s Mµ Trio (with Conor Chaplin on bass and Joel Barford on drums) when they played for Music Spoken Here at The Marr’s Bar in Worcester, reviewed by me here;
https://www.thejazzmann.com/reviews/review/david-preston-m-trio-music-spoken-here-at-the-marrs-bar-worcester-22-02-2024

When David emailed last week promising new music from a quartet featuring vibraphone at their upcoming gig with Birmingham Jazz, I was intrigued to check it out.

Although the band name comprises the upper and lower case Greek letter ‘myu’ that corresponds to ‘M’ in Roman script (the lower-case u is also the mathematical symbol for ‘micro’), Preston’s band is pronounced simply ‘myu’, rather than ‘Mm’ as a Greek reader might assume.

Tonight’s quartet retained Conor Chaplin on bass, but had Marc Michel on drums and Jonny Mansfield on vibes. The set opened with a medley of three currently unrecorded pieces. Open, spatial guitar with sweeping, brushed drums introduced “ Mµ #3” as Jonny expanded the sound with vibes following David’s guitar melody and David got stuck in with his typically bright, electric sound with plenty of sustained notes giving the music room to breathe. Clattery rim shots and cymbal dings from Marc evolved into a more intense rhythmic adventure building anticipation until the room fell silent, allowing Conor’s solo bass to sing through and add his interpretation to the unfolding story.  Jonny then set up the melody for “K Mood”, busier with less space than before, building chiming waves of animated excitement that ebbed momentarily before cascading in again as “Elves” emerged, a piece the trio had played in Worcester last year, closing out with dancing, muted notes from David.

For “Deco Fifths”, taken from David’s “Purple / Black Vol. 2” album (released on Whirlwind Recordings in 2024), David set the scene with a bright, commanding guitar introduction with Jonny’s vibes chiming in unison before expanding out into an illustrious solo. David then took the baton and delivered a feature that invoked a sense of chasing down narrow streets in an old European town, with Marc introducing further urgency on the drums.

With some surprise that they were already at the end of the first set, David introduced the fourth new composition of the night, “Modern 1” and we were treated to another beautifully tuneful feature from Conor, huddled over his double-bass, crafting a dynamic solo, all within some 3-inch section at the bottom of the fingerboard.

After a short break, the band returned with a re-interpretation of “Blues for Klemens”, originally recorded on the “Purple / Black Vol 1” album,  and also performed with his trio at The Marr’s Bar last year. This featured Jonny again, who started out seemingly more restrained on the vibes but soon became more animated as his artistic contribution developed as if opening an agitated bottle of fizzy pop, with hisses and splashes from Marc on the kit. A dexterous guitar feature followed from David, with characteristic repetition of phrases ascending in pitch.

The set continued with “Mµ 1”, opening with plodding, spaced guitar chords, then a lively vibes solo, occasionally accented by the drums. It would swing for a bit, then abruptly drop back into a much more syncopated, spaced-out feel. There were some haunting vibes up next with “De”, followed by “Orsara Codes”, which was also performed in Worcester last year and as yet unrecorded. The set closed with “Circle 7”, instigated with a looping bass riff from Conor as David led and Jonny followed on the melody before a final, colourful outing on the vibes. Marc pretty much had the last word with a powerful solo, supported by the occasional dribble of vibes.

Although there was plenty of room for more, those in attendance listened intently throughout and expressed their warm appreciation at the end of what had been an enjoyable performance.

As noted in my video interview with him last year before his Worcester trio gig (https://youtu.be/jKOjOuLikoI?si=FzHSJn7kVRifS3lM), much of David’s writing is influenced by his fascination with poly-rhythms and complex interplay between players in the band. It brings interest and surprise to his compositions - you can’t become complacent thinking you know where a piece is going next!

DAVE FULLER