I recall the first time I saw pianist Paul Grabowsky play. The occasion was the launch of his debut album Six by Three, recorded with his then trio of bassist Gary Costello and drummer Allan Browne. The recital took place on a Sunday afternoon, in 1989, if memory serves, in a downstairs gallery in Flinders Lane. Despite an already well-honed interest in jazz, I was there only because a casual acquaintance – sculptor Victor Meertens – was showing new work from his Angels of Mons series. If I tagged along that day knowing little about Paul Grabowsky, I came away a lifelong admirer; though, back then, I suspect few of us could have foreseen the stellar career that lay ahead of him.

It represents something of a coup for the Woodend Winter Arts Festival to snare Grabowsky for a solo concert in St Ambrose Hall. Even though I can profess to having seen him countless times over the past decades, this was, astonishingly, my first opportunity to hear him play solo. Grabowsky rarely gives solo recitals. Even amongst his extensive discography, there exists just one solo recording, issued by ABC Jazz, simply titled Solo (2014).