Seonaid Aitken Ensemble featuring Helena Kay

Comprising an all-female line-up, violinist Seonaid Aitken formed her six-piece ensemble to perform her 2022 album, ‘Chasing Sakura’, which was commissioned by Edinburgh Jazz & Blues Festival and was Seonaid’s first recording of entirely original material.  

The ensemble brings together five string players plus saxophonist Helena Kay as featured soloist and has appeared at venues and festivals across the UK including Celtic Connections and Ronnie Scott’s in London.  

Fife-born Seonaid is a versatile multi-instrumentalist, vocalist and arranger who specialises in the Hot Club style of swinging jazz. She trained at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London and has played regularly with the Orchestra of Scottish Opera for more than twenty years as well as fronting the popular jazz group Rose Room.  

An in-demand session musician and orchestrator, she has worked with Burt Bacharach, Deacon Blue, Carol Kidd MBE, Eddi Reader, Nashville singer-songwriter Gretchen Peters and jazz guitar master Martin Taylor MBE. Seonaid has twice won the Best Vocalist title at the Scottish Jazz Awards and ‘Chasing Sakura’ was longlisted for the Scottish Album of the Year Award in 2022. 

About Laura Macdonald and Kevin Mackenzie 

Saxophonist-composer Laura Macdonald has been a leading figure on the Scottish jazz scene over the past three decades, having featured in the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra and led groups including her sextet with saxophonist Donny McCaslin and drummer Antonio Sanchez, both now better known for their associations with David Bowie and Pat Metheny respectively. She has recorded with pianist David Berkman, bassist James Genus and drummers Jeff Tain Watts and Martina Almgren and appeared with pianist Zoe Rahman in both duos and larger groups. With guitarist Kevin Mackenzie, whose experience includes recordings with American saxophonist Lauren Stillman, Trio AAB and Hue & Cry as well as leading his own groups including the nine-piece Vital Signs, Laura explores original compositions and standards in a close musical conversation. 

About Helena Kay and the curated season 

Prize-winning saxophonist Helena Kay is one of the UK’s most creative jazz artists, with two critically acclaimed albums and performances at prestigious venues including legendary jazz club Ronnie Scott’s and The Royal Albert Hall. Leader of the Helena Kay Quartet, they are also established as a star soloist with the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra. Thanks to funding from Creative Scotland, The Queen’s Hall has commissioned Helena to curate a series of four jazz concerts across 2024/5. 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