Helena Kay Quartet with Tommy Smith

Two generations of Scottish saxophone mastery join forces in this special meeting between Helena Kay and a musician who has helped to guide Helena’s progession into one of the UK jazz scene’s most talented, characterful saxophonists, Tommy Smith.  

Tommy gave Helena both early encouragement and an early recording opportunity when he invited Helena to join the Tommy Smith Youth Jazz Orchestra as a teenager. Helena then featured on the orchestra’s 2016 album, ‘Effervescence’, as one of a group of musicians who have flourished into award-winning players with national and international reputations.  

Having won the Young Scottish Jazz Musician of the Year title and lived and studied in London and New York, Helena then accepted Tommy’s invitation to join the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra and has become a star soloist, an outstanding section player and with the Nu-Age Sounds project in 2024, a significant contributor as composer and orchestrator.  

Here, Helena returns Tommy’s invitation to make music together in their first-ever appearance in front of a small group, playing a carefully chosen repertoire and inspiring each other to create, as with all true jazz, great music in the moment. 

About the curated season 

Thanks to funding from Creative Scotland, The Queen’s Hall has commissioned Helena to curate a series of four jazz concerts across 2024/25. You can see the other concerts in the series at the bottom of the page. 

Presented by The Queen’s Hall. Supported by Creative Scotland