Mike Westbrook & Company - Platterback

With music by Mike Westbrook and lyrics by Kate Westbrook, 'Platterback' received it's world premiere at Kettle's Yard in Cambridge on 12th June 1998. Five traveller/musicians are on a journey down from the mountains to the mythical modern city of Platterback. Their story - by turns comic, tender and tragic - is told in songs that evoke the many idioms of contemporary jazz and popular music.

Mike Westbrook: Piano/Tuba/Voice
Kate Westbrook: Voice
John Winfield: Voice
Karen Street: Accordion/Voice
Stanley Adler: Cello/Voice

Reviews:

Love, duty, nostalgia, the uneasy mutual dependence between the rural and the urban, are among the topics explored by Kate Westbrook's intelligent and informal lyrics, yet such is the power of the music and of its performance that the whole piece grips like a thriller. - The Times.

It plays with noise as a master chef plays with ingredients, teasing rare and unexpected qualities out of each musical medium to serve up a dazzling display of sound. - The Independent

There is no denying its power and originality. - Manchester Evening News