Mary Halvorson – Amaryllis Sextet live in Amsterdam at the BIMHUIS, 7 November 2025

Fasiel and Broz were there from Sicily. Alix and her friend Rocco were fresh from his band’s gig in Rotterdam. Costa and I came from London. We arrived in Amsterdam from different European countries, and Mary Halvorson’s Amaryllis Sextet was the reason for this end of year reunion trip.

My expectations were high. I bought tickets back in June, assuming she wouldn’t play London this autumn. I was wrong: she appeared at the Vortex at the end of September with Tomeka Reid-but I couldn’t make it then.

The BIMHUIS is a superb venue for a sextet. It seats about 300, and the stage backs onto a huge glass wall that opens to the city: waterways, boats, moving trains, Amsterdam living. The urban views suit the band’s music.

I wondered who Halvorson would bring, given the “sextet” is now official and the players are among the busiest in the new Brooklyn scene. Would they all have time to come to Europe? Most of the personnel from the three albums were there: Mary Halvorson (guitar), Jacob Garchik (trombone), Patricia Brennan (vibraphone), Nick Dunston (bass), and Tomas Fujiwara (drums). The trumpet chair-usually Adam O’Farrill-was filled on the night by a sterling Jonathan Finlayson. The last two numbers featured a guest flautist, Ketija Ringa Karahona, who added soulful color and reminded me of the ensemble’s openness.

Halvorson walked on stage with a black bag she set aside, then sat at the far corner, almost hidden from the rest of the band. She isn’t a natural stage beast; she seemed slightly shy facing a full room of attentive, adoring listeners who warmed to the performance. She remained in her corner throughout.

Her presence was everywhere in the music. She’s the maestro, leading increasingly structured compositions-everyone had score sheets-where intricate, surprising melodies emerge just after those familiar “bent corners.” Broz, a deep listener, recognized tunes from About Ghosts; I believe there were pieces from Cloudward as well, though I can’t name them confidently. What I can say is that, tune after tune, I was struck by the clarity and rigor of the writing and by the natural flow from solo passages or tight ensemble writing into moments of profound freedom and group improvisation. It all held together beautifully. After roughly 90 minutes of deep focus and concentration, I left happy, thoroughly absorbed by the music.

It was my first occasion seeing Halvorson live. About Ghosts, her latest record with the sextet, shows the breadth and appeal of some of the most advanced music you can hear in 2025. It was also my first time seeing Patricia Brennan live, whose album won last year’s record of the year honours, and who will surely be in many end of year polls in 2025 with her newly released Of The Near And Far. She brought natural warmth and a funky edge to the music, and her clear enjoyment was contagious. I’d also never seen Tomas Fujiwara live; his drumming held the band together in a constant, solid, movable groove that locked perfectly with Nick Dunston’s bass. Their solos were fantastic-challenging the notion that bass and drums should stick strictly to rhythm-building melodic lines and crisp, impressive patterns that excited the audience and never overstayed their welcome. As for Finlayson: he’s first class. His work with Steve Coleman is consistently exciting, and I loved his recent Third Time Around. He fits this group beautifully.

And Jacob Garchik: I’ve known his playing in Halvorson’s band for a long time, but only recently have I explored more of his own work-with real excitement at his extraordinary musical mind, both as an arranger and in his “Ye Olde” series (trombone, drums, and three or four top guitarists working on odd sci fi conceptual quests). Especially notable is his role as the trombone player in Banda de los Muertos, the finest traditional Mexican band in Brooklyn.

It was good to be with friends: my enthusiasm was confronted and enriched by their observations. Alix was confused-we didn’t dig into why, but I suspect the music’s rich textures had something to do with it. Rocco felt it was a bit academic; he’s a soulful European improviser and prefers looser playing, which is fair but doesn’t detract from the richness of the band’s composition and improvisation. Fausto liked the drummer and bass most. Broz and I were on the same wavelength, noting the courage in Halvorson’s guitar work. Alongside her familiar bent notes, delays, and manipulated sounds, it was possible to hear her searching improvisation laid bare: comping in the background, soloing in her turn, and at other times twanging strangely distorted chords and acerbic tones while she continued probing the fretboard for the most out there combinations. Her playfulness and curiosity never stopped. It was great to lose oneself in the flow of notes that edged toward squeaks before re emerging as fabulous, convincing melodies.

What a night – and what an extraordinary promise of future gigs, I don’t want to miss any of the band’s members own live performances. Maybe November and the London Jazz festival will be an opportunity.