Anna Mudeka / Jesse Barrett Trio (Sonic Wave)

Norwich has such a vibrant and varied music scene, with an enviable choice of superb venue spaces and a thriving number of local artists, that it is sometimes easy to neglect the world beyond the city gates. And yet, journeying just a few miles further, venturing beyond the bright lights of Norwich to the more rural market towns that surround us, uncovers a further wealth of music venues, theatres and live art events.

One such example is The Cut, in Halesworth. A market town situated just 24 miles south-east of Norwich, Halesworth can be reached by public transport in about an hour from Norwich using local bus services. Other options include cycling, train (slightly tortuous, as you need to travel first to Lowestoft, then change onto a southbound train via Beccles), or by car (all public car parks are free after 6.00pm). The Cut itself is a former maltings, purchased from its previous owners in 2001 and opened as a 220 seated capacity theatre space in 2003, complete with licenced bar and café.

I ventured there on Saturday evening for a double bill of live music organised by Françoise Lamy and Graham Daniels of artist collective Addictive TV for Sonic Wave, and featuring Zimbabwean-British musician Anna Mudeka, and propulsive jazz outfit the Jesse Barrett Trio.

Whilst enjoying a pre-show drink in The Cut's cafe-bar, we were entertained by members of Halesworth Harmony, a Suffolk-based community choir who will be performing in their own 'Songs for a Midsummer Evening' at The Cut on Saturday June 20th.

Those who have experienced Anna Mudeka's 90 minute, one woman, 'Mama Afrika' show, dedicated to the life and work of South African musician and civil rights activist Zenzile Miriam Makeba, will already know what a compelling presence Mudeka is on stage. Tonight's show, whilst still empowering, and still filled with her convictions for women's freedom and rights, perhaps also displayed a more informal side to her musicality, passionate and championing as always, but tonight encouraging us to whistle and return her high-pitched ululated call as she guided us through a number of songs imbued with the colours and traditions of her homeland, and accompanying herself on the mbira, a traditional Zimbabwean instrument with metal pronged keys attached to a wooden sounding board and amplified by a hollowed out gourd.

After the interval the Jess Barrett Trio took to the stage, seating themselves cross-legged amidst a range of musical instruments and electronica. Their debut album 'Adhyatma' (a Sanskrit term that translates approximately as 'wisdom of the self') was released towards the end of last year, and it provided the inspiration for much of the evening's largely improvised performance. Barrett (formerly percussionist with acclaimed contemporary jazz outfit Mammal Hands) is mesmerising to watch – one hand is tapping out the most complex of rhythm patterns on the tablas, the other is holding a stick and striking a small snare, whilst his right foot is operating a compact bass drum. Meanwhile, fellow musicians Peter Beardsworth and Owen Morgan are doing their thing with saxophone and flute, and electric bass, respectively. It is part meditative and one part propulsive, the rhythm patterns continuously evolving and changing as the pieces progress. With its roots firmly planted in classical Indian music, but with the trio's own instinctive appetite for jazz and improvisation, the Jess Barrett Trio are an outfit that I can just never hear enough of.

A splendid first outing to The Cut in Halesworth for me, and thanks to Françoise and Graham for the invite. The next Sonic Wave event is scheduled for Saturday June 6th at Wingfield Barn, near Fressingfield, when Addictive TV will be performing their multi-media and live music 'Orchestra of Samples' show, together with an exciting collaborative performance from film-maker Bill Jackson and jazz clarinettist František Holčík (aka Time Fracture).