Arun Ghosh’s A South Asian Suite released last month on the Camoci label marked a real return to form by the clarinettist, a substantial chamber work inspired by the music of Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan, India, and Sri Lanka. Ghosh builds on the momentum of its release by an appearance at the Spitalfields Music Winter Festival festival in Shoreditch Church (St Leonard’s) on 10 December in the Winter Rasa company of pianist Zoe Rahman, oudist Andy Gibson, tabla player Sarathy Korwar, percussionist/taiko drummer Nao Masuda and singer Rioghnach Connolly plus Spitalfields Music’s new all-male choir EastEnd Notes led by Omar Shahryar. Ghosh and Shahryar will discuss collaboration between artists from multiple disciplines and cultural backgrounds in a pre-concert talk. 

Four days later on 14 December at the same venue it’s the turn more than halfway through this year's festival, which runs from 6-17 December, of Norwegian guitarist joined by the distinguished chamber ensemble the Britten Sinfonia drawing on music from Westerhus’ 2012 album The Matriarch and the Wrong Kind of Flowers released by Rune Grammofon. Westerhus is the Nordic cognoscenti’s jazz-and-beyond guitarist of choice, the Terje Rypdal of his generation, and with The Matriarch... Westerhus pulled off a formidable coup as this tantalisingly anti-chillout excursion slowly unfolds slabs of sonic sophistication in a masterfully unhurried style.

The concert is part of the UK-Norwegian collaborative series Conexions, and there’s a free entry pre-concert talk at 6pm featuring Westerhus in conversation with Fiona Talkington. The Market Live sessions also part of the Music Winter festival in the Spitalfields Market neighbourhood on 8 December at participating restaurants Leon, Canteen and Bedales also features music by Alison Beck and Abimaro Gunnell.

More at www.spitalfieldsmusic.org.uk

Arun Ghosh above and Stian Westerhus