On Wednesday, the Way Out West jazz night at the Ram Jam Club hosts a collaboration between two renowned saxophonists, former orthopaedic surgeon Art Themen and Tim Whitehead.

Themen, who has been on the London jazz scene since the 60s, will join Whitehead’s quartet for his first appearance at Way Out West.

Whitehead spoke to Will Gore about what they have planned for the gig.

Will Gore: Are you looking forward to teaming up with Art for the Way Out West gig?

Tim Whitehead: I am, for several reasons. He is somebody whom I played alongside a few times at the Bull’s Head in Barnes. He is a great player and a great character – he recently retired from being a surgeon to concentrate on his playing and has loved being able to do that.

WG: How did the show come about?

TW: We saw each other last year as a consequence of my son being in hospital with a broken leg. They thought they might have to operate. I needed some expert advice and, as Art was a surgeon, I got in touch. We talked at length and re- established our acquaintance.

WG: What can people expect?

TW: My plan is to pull out some tunes from the repertoire of the quartet, which I know will fit Art’s approach to playing, plus tunes from the standard song book that we both like.

WG: How will Art fit in with your quartet?

TW: Art is somebody who has a free spirit in his playing. He is improvisational and that is something that not just I can feed off, but also guys in the band like Liam [Noble, pianist], who is a strong player. Liam’s very fearless in following someone into the unknown.

WG: You are creating music for the upcoming JW Turner Colour Beginnings exhibition, at Tate Britain – how is it going?

TW: It is in full swing. At the moment I am surrounded by colour reproductions of Turner paintings. There are zillions of works I have shortlisted but my shortlist is the size of a telephone directory! I have written some music for performances in October and November and the sound relates to the paintings in the exhibitions. They are free, and almost in the hinterland of abstraction, but they are always based in landscape of one form or another. I am persuaded by the atmospherics of it all – it has pushed me into a place where I am doing a concentrated version of what I have been doing until now.

Way Out West presents Art Themen and the Tim Whitehead Quartet, The Ram Jam Club @ The Old Grey Horse, 46 Richmond Road, Kingston, June 24, 8pm, £9/£7, 020 8567 2004, visit jazzinlondon.net/wayoutwest