Liddard became a saxophonist during his lessons at school in Buntingford, a small town surrounded by undulating crop fields. His teacher, Brian Filby, regaled stories of his own performing career from entertaining the Cray Twins in Soho to “puking up on Broadway” during a cruise stop-over. Brian introduced importance of the un-played notes and other concepts that are apparent in Aaron’s playing today. Filby’s passion for the musical life had a profound effect.
A feature of the sax is its infinite tonal variation, as with the human voice this lends itself to a myriad of genres. Liddard’s discography encompasses jazz, rock, pop, reggae, samba, gospel, fusion, rock & roll, blues, soul and funk. He has performed in almost every type of venue, from arenas to back rooms of pubs, in fact if you can think of a role for a sax player, he’s probably done it.
Alongside performing as a sideman, Liddard has a history of composing and collaborating in experimental music. He is the figurehead for DrumCake and Nylon Jungle, and has also been instrumental in the development of other experimental groups such as London Jazz Collective, Tove, deLatin Sound and Shez Raja Collective. His unusual perspective leads to diverse compositions and arrangements.
Aaron takes his sax everywhere he goes and never misses an opportunity to jam with local musicians. You can see from the Gallery that what he calls a ‘holiday’, we might describe as ‘field study’. When you listen to Liddard play you may notice the worldly influence that he has picked up in the capitals of Russia, Africa, USA and Europe.