Cenk Esen & Graeme Flowers and Aykan Esen live at SJQ in Dalston

Wed, 6 Nov, 19:30 - 23:00

Gotobeat is teaming up with SJQ to welcome Cenk Esen & Graeme Flowers and Aykan Esen on Wednesday, November 6th. Tickets £10 online + £1.5 booking fee - more on the door / +18 7:30pm —> Doors —> AYKAN ESEN —> CENK ESEN & GRAEME FLOWERS CENK ESEN - Cenk Esen is an Istanbul-born, London-based pianist and composer. Born to a family of musicians, Cenk grew up listening to post-bop classics alongside mid-noughties pop, shaping a musical sensibility as diverse as the soundscapes of his hometown. After graduating from the Berklee College of Music, where he was a student at the prestigious Global Jazz Institute, Cenk moved to London, quickly establishing himself as a mover and shaker in the scene. The last few years have seen him tour and collaborate with artists like Kamaal Williams, Romarna Campbell, Şam, MckNasty and Tom Driessler; perform in venues like Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club, Cadogan Hall, Southbank Centre and Royal Albert Hall; and events like Montreux Jazz Festival, London Jazz Festival and We Out Here Festival.

Cenk’s first full-length album “It’s a Family Thing” (2021) had its live debut at the Istanbul Jazz Festival in 2021. 2022 saw Cenk collaborate with US-based drummer Jasper Williamson on “Peace Achievement” (2022), adding to two self-released EPs. His sophomore album, recorded at London’s hallowed AIR Studios and slated for a late 2024 release, is sure to make waves for the young talent. [embed]https://open.spotify.com/artist/3PWZ0cUSuhr8EhdM4xU8v5?si=5uEuZfKJRei1Jf0rBZaAEw[/embed] GRAEME FLOWERS - On TV and in concert, Graeme has performed live with Quincy Jones, Taylor Swift, Paul Weller, Harry Styles, Duran Duran, Robbie Williams, Cee Lo Green, Michael Buble, Rick Astley and the Jonas Brothers. Graeme performed with Kylie Minogue on her ‘X’ world tour, playing at all the major arenas globally, including the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles. Graeme recently played on Gary Barlow’s UK tour. In the studio, Graeme has recorded on the albums of Leona Lewis, John Newman, Caro Emerald, Simply Red, Moloko, George Ezra and James Blunt. Graeme has toured extensively with Kyle Eastwood, Clint Eastwood’s bass playing son, and has performed on, and written music for three Clint Eastwood movie soundtracks (Flags Of Our Fathers, Letters From Iwo Jima, Grace is Gone), and played at all the major Jazz festivals and jazz clubs in America, Japan, Europe, Indonesia and South Africa, including the Blue New New York and the Monterey Jazz Festival. Graeme has also played live with Tom Scott, Charlie Hunter, Deodato and Gregory Porter,

This summer Graeme has being touring Europe with Rita Ora, and will be performing with Take That, later this year.

AYKAN ESEN - Hailing from Istanbul and currently based in North London, Aykan Esen combines the Breakbeat, Broken Beat and UK House music culture of his present home with the instrumental improvisation based influence of his upbringing. DJ’ing in clubs in Istanbul, London, and Milan in recent years, his sets have been described as energetic musical adventures constantly introducing listeners to new grooves. Coming from a music production background, in 2019 his live house music trio Mysthree were signed to London’s Inside Out Records and released the 5-track ‘Part of Me Is Still Human.’ The eclectic sound of this album featured catchy bass-lines and unique chords and melodies over house and minimal-house inspired hypnotic grooves. 2021 saw him self-release the ‘Time Like Dust’ EP, which took a turn into live drum territory with more influences from rock, funk, and synthwave. In the years since his focus has been on collaborations with his brother pianist Cenk Esen on albums including ‘It’s a Family Thing.’ which featured over 20 international artists and had its live debut at the Istanbul Jazz Festival in 2021. Aside from producing and DJ’ing, Aykan is also one of the main in-house producers for Attack Magazine while heading up Voice-to-MIDI pioneer Vochlea Music’s collaboration projects. His new album cementing the direction of his sound and influences is expected in Spring 2025. [embed]https://open.spotify.com/artist/64PBWe9foMWApzOxPlG03e?si=l_7W8XpYQcy_Zq42CYr-Kg[/embed]