TO GROW from world-renowned classical violinist to hot jazz musician is no easy transition but it is one which virtuoso Nigel Kennedy has made with an astonishing aplomb.

At Ronnie Scott’s, he leads an octet in delivering the compositions of Polish jazz pianist and film composer Krzysztof Komeda (1931-1969), musical genius of Roman Polanski’s 1960s films such as Knife in the Water and Rosemary’s Baby.

Kennedy has a deep love for Poland and its people and has his home in Krakow, although his band all sport Aston Villa shirts apart from  drummer Ed Richardson, a lone Derby County supporter.

Playing in front of projected black-and-white images of Komeda and his circle, Kennedy’s irrepressible enthusiasm and humour leads into the first tune Crazy Girl from Knife in the Water. The timbre of his electric violin timbre scintillates, with his bow attacking the strings like a magic hacksaw on ascents, cadences and outrageous runs above Piotr Kulakowski’s plummeting bass beat.

Trumpeter Tomasz Novak’s solos smoulder with boppish fire, David Heath’s flute notes rise and fly and Peter Adams’s cello has a deep empathy with the sheer excitation of Kennedy’s wild excursions and the contrasting beauty of Komeda’s tender, heartfelt melodies.

The paradoxical, rampaging Lullaby: Part 2 would have awakened the most comatose sleeper, as Kennedy’s scything bow and his bandmates’ rocking rhythm take the roof off, demonstrating that how Komeda’s music has never lost its pulsating and inventive power.

What a startling band — theirs is music truly unchained.