Arts Life - Mark Lockheart, Jazz saxophonist and composer

What I do: Jazz saxophonist and composer.

Favourite café: Monmouth Coffee, London Bridge.

Currently listening to: Quartet For The End Of Time, by Olivier Messiaen.

The last gig I attended: Chaos Orchestra at the Spice Of Life.

The last book I read: Round Ireland with a Fridge by Tony Hawks — I didn’t realise till I started reading this book that this is the same Tony Hawks I was in a band with in the early 1980s.

My last trip to the theatre: Betrayal, starring Kristin Scott Thomas in the West End.

The last exhibition I attended: David Hockney: A Bigger Picture, Royal Academy Of Arts London.

My favourite film: Fargo.

My favourite writer/artist/musician: Wayne Shorter.

My favourite work of art: Monet’s Waterloo Bridge.

My favourite venue: QEH, Southbank Centre, London.

The writer/artist/musician I would most like to meet: Stevie Wonder.

Bio: I’m a jazz saxophonist based in London. I came to prominence in the mid-80s as part of the jazz ensemble Loose Tubes. In 1992 I formed my eclectic quartet Perfect Houseplants and have also recorded seven albums under my own name as well as collaborating with a host of other musicians and bands including Polar Bear, Django Bates, Radiohead, June Tabor, Robert Wyatt and Mark Anthony-Turnage. In 2010 I was awarded the Parliamentary Jazz Award for Best Jazz Musician.

Upcoming projects: Ellington In Anticipation — A brand-new project inspired by the music of Duke Ellington. Taking many of Ellington’s most revered compositions such as ‘Satin Doll’, ‘Mood Indigo’, ‘Take The A Train’ and ‘Creole Love Call’, I’ve deconstructed and arranged these melodies for a seven piece band which features fellow Polar Bear drummer Seb Rochford, Liam Noble, etc. It is to be released in February 2013.

Interview: Kieran Bohane