Comprising three improvisers with contrasting backgrounds in jazz (Hanslip), contemporary classical music (Willberg) and rock (Cheetham), HTrio present a fresh angle on the well-familiar tenor sax/bass/drums format, with a strong group identity formed through many hours of jamming. Together they create long-form improvised pieces that range from abstract sound to dense free jazz whilst retaining a strong sense of structure and melody.
In July 2015 the trio played a successful mini-tour of Manchester (Freedom Principle), Birmingham (Fizzle) and Liverpool (Blank Canvas) to full audiences and highly positive reactions. In 2016 HTrio were selected to be ambassador artists for round 4 of Jazz North's 'Northern Line' scheme, during which they played at Manchester Jazz Festival, Derby's Out Front! festival, and Newcastle's On The Outside series in 2016; in 2017 they played opposite Oxford Improvisers, at Fizzle in Birmingham, Blank Canvas in Liverpool, and at No Bounds! festival in Sheffield. For 2018 they are planning a run of gigs with pioneering NY-based trumpeter Nate Wooley.
The trio have recorded sessions at Manchester's Islington Mill and at Hallam Mill in Stockport, which you can hear on their self-titled, self-released first CD here: https://htrio.bandcamp.com/releases . They have also since recorded another session in Manchester which is being prepared for release.