Based on Jan’s international core duo with Polish pianist Wojciech Konikiewicz from a collaboration over several years featuring, virtuoso keyboards, passionate saxophone and textural rhythms. Their duetting also finds larger settings in trios and quartets as in their recent 2015 and 2016 Polish and UK concerts
- JAN KOPINSKI saxophones (UK)
- WOJCIECH KONIKIEWICZ piano/keyboards (Poland)
- ZONE K trio includes PAT ILLINGWORTH drums (UK)
Jan first worked with Wojciech whilst touring Poland with PINSKI ZOO in the 80’s. They subsequently recorded an album, ZONE K, together with former Pinski Zoo drummer, the late Steve Harris (UK), and furthered their musical relationship with tours in the UK and Poland.
Warsaw pianist/composer, Wojciech Konikiewicz has a wide musical palette. He is a musician who has worked tirelessly in Warsaw leading numerous groups and writing and performing for film, TV, chamber and sacral work. He has toured extensively in Poland, Europe, Mexico, Japan, India, South Korea and the USA
He has played all the major festivals and clubs in Poland and his Tribute to Miles Orchestra, was released on Warner Bros. He met Jan on Pinski Zoo’s early Polish tours, during the heightened political situation in the late eighties, joining them on their album Live in Warsaw ( which also featured Asian Dub Foundation’s creator, Dr Das!), and the two have since toured and recorded together, in the UK and in Poland, playing in duos trios and quartets.
As part of a commission received by Jan, to document, compose and record his composition, MIRRORS, he toured with Wojtek as a duo performing and filming in more remoter regions of Poland, with concerts from Warsaw to Przemysl.
Jan and Wojtek continue to develop their collaboration. ZONE K is an exciting international group delivering a mix of jazz propulsion, folk laments, contemporary musical poise and scatter grooves. The music has a special flavour featuring original compositions and improvisations drawing on Polish and English experiences. Zone K moves from atmospheric works for film, to Coltrane inspired jazz pieces performed with virtuosity and passion.
Wojciech’s keyboards complement Jan’s emotional tenor sax style and both have an ear for working in ‘zones’ of feeling rather than structures, stretching sounds on their respective instruments – kaleidoscopic, deceptively structured and emotional. The trio was originally formed with the late Steve Harris who features on their first CD – “ZONE K Kopinski & Konikiewicz”