MODERN jazz is by its very nature an intensely cerebral affair that invariably maintains its mystique by the academic approach of its practitioners.

This is plainly not the case with the supremely gifted Mark Latimer who leavens what can occasionally be a slightly heavy mix of dough with a constant stream of merry quips and asides.

It’s a smart tactic. This music – about as post-bebop as it gets – needs to be lifted sometimes, and a receptive audience at Dore Abbey was certainly in the mood for the occasional light relief.

Latimer’s role models are quite obviously the piano innovators who changed the music of the bordello and made it into an art form. Thelonious Monk, Art Hodes, John Coltrane… he draws constantly from this well of talent, yet also injecting much of his own skill and vigour.

My Brother provided ample proof of his compositional skills, as did Messianic and the strangely titled Owde. And although his take on Jerome Kern classics Nobody Else But Me and All The Things You Are might have shattered the monocle of the more conservative jazzer, there was no denying that in Latimer’s hands, even standards can be brought up to date relatively painlessly.

The internationally-acclaimed musician was accompanied by Bob Duck on percussion and Steve Tarner on bass duties. Both these sidesmen showed great empathy with the maestro, laying down a solid rhythm that effortlessly managed to cope with every twist and turn of their leader’s imagination.

This concert was a fitting finale to Dore Abbey Musical Weekend and certainly proved that modern jazz can be fun as well as food for the intellect.