Ivan Zagni (born 16 October 1942) is a New Zealand-based musician and composer who has been a member of bands such as Jody Grind, Big Sideways and Avant Garage, and has recorded albums with Aynsley Dunbar, Elton Dean, Don McGlashan and Peter Scholes.
Early pop and rock years
Ivan Zagni sang as a boy chorister at Norwich's St John the Baptist Catholic Cathedral and began taking guitar lessons at age 12. In 1958 he performed his own composition "Black Coffee" for a local documentary screened on BBC TV. His first group was The Cadillacs with his brothers John and Frank. He then teamed up with vocalist Mike Patto (Spooky Tooth) in The Continentals, soon renamed The News and signed to Decca for two singles. Zagni moved to London in 1964 where he worked as a freelance guitarist, composer and arranger, session musician for Decca and Transatlantic, and played with a variety of groups including Chicago Line Blues Band with Patto, Tim Hinkley and Louis Cennamo. Patto later joined Timebox who covered Patto/Zagni composition "A Woman that's Waiting" as the b-side to their single "Begging'", which charted in the UK at No. 38 in July 1968. Zagni joined the progressive group Jody Grind and recorded on their first album, then in Bogomas with Louis Cennamo, and then in Blue Whale with Aynsley Dunbar, who disbanded the group to join Frank Zappa.
Mature British works
In 1970 he returned to Norwich to study piano and composition. From 1971 to 1977 he was Choir Master at St John the Baptist Cathedral in Norwich where he composed a number of works for the Cathedral. He then returned to London, becoming increasingly involved in the European improvisation scene and spending six months in Amsterdam. He recorded the album Three's Company with saxophonist Elton Dean (Keith Tippett sextet/Soft Machine), as well as The Electric String Trio with Phillipp Wachsmann and Marcio Mattos. He also performed in Keith Tippett's Arc and in Paris with New York-based Japanese experimental musician Kosugi with whom he recorded a 10-hour performance.
Arriving in New Zealand
Zagni settled in New Zealand in 1980 and has since worked as a teacher, composer and freelance musician. He quickly connected with the independent music scene and recorded a mini-album for Propeller Records with Don McGlashan who was also a member of Blam Blam Blam and From Scratch. In the mid-1980s Zagni formed the group Safe as Houses with McGlashan, Steve Garden and Peter Scholes but only performed once for the Christchurch Arts Festival.
Avant Garage and Big Sideways
In the early 1980s, Zagni formed Big Sideways as part of a government scheme for unemployed musicians. These included Mark Bell (Blam Blam Blam/Coconut Rough), Jacqui Brooks, Scott Calhoun (Wentworth Brewster & Co.), Lee Connolly, Chris Green (The Hulamen/The Neighbours), Paul Hewett (Coconut Rough), Brent 'Sid' Pasley (Newmatics/Miltown Stowaways), John Quigley (The Bongos/Nairobi Trio), Kelly Rogers (Newmatics/Miltown Stowaways), Robbie Sinclair and Phil Steel. They toured nationally with assistance from NZ Rail. Their track 'Conversation With a Machine' later appeared on the compilation Unexplored – A Compilation Of New Zealand Recordings 1982–86. Big Sideways continued without Zagni and released the 3-song 12" Let It Out with new members including Graeme Gash, Debbie Harwood and Tom Ludvigson (Low Profile/Bluespeak). Justin Harwood (Coconut Rough/The Chills/Luna) also spent time in Big Sideways. They supported Split Enz on their 1983 New Zealand tour and were one of the last groups to play Mainstreet in Auckland.
Big Sideways evolved into the more advanced Avant Garage. Zagni's work with Steve Garden (Low Profile) on the Avant Garage album and their subsequent collaboration 'A Selection of Trouble Spots' (1984) recorded in Basement Tapes, Garden's basement studio, set the scene for what would become Garden's label Rattle Records.