New Jam Session in Manchester

A new jam session has been set up in Manchester at The Thirsty Scholar (just off Oxford Road). The jams will run on the 2nd and 4th Wednesday of each month from 9.30pm and are open to everyone. This week's jam was led by Kathy and John Dyson along with Phil Stevenson and Dave Luven.

The bar doesn't have a website, but you can stay updated through their facebook page.

Gig Preview: Adam Frost Trio in Headingley

Adam Frost Trio
March 6th
New Headingley Club, St Michael's Lane, LS6
8pm
£6

Guitarist Adam Frost is preparing to bring his trio, featuring Matthew Aplin on piano and Sam Jackson on bass to perform at the New Headingley Club in Leeds on March 6th, with hopes that a regular jazz night could develop at the venue.

Adam's trio will focus on the standards repertoire of the 50s/60s, playing arrangements of tunes made popular by the likes of Miles Davis, Sonny Rollins and Benny Golson.

Stay tuned for more news regarding future gigs at the venue...

BBC Introducing Showcase at Montreal Jazz Festival - apply to play!

As part of the 2015 Montreal Jazz Festival, Jamie Cullum will host the first BBC Introducing & PRS for Music Foundation showcase on July 1st.

Cullum, who hosts a jazz radio programme on BBC Radio 2, says he regularly finds music to play on his show through the BBC Introducing uploader, where unsigned groups and musicians can upload their music to heard. Following on from this, he will now be selecting groups to perform live at the Montreal showcase in the same way and is inviting groups to upload their tracks to be in with a chance.

It's expected that more information will be released soon, but for now this article on the BBC website contains links to the uploader and some information on the showcase.

Nicola Farnon Trio on Tour

Sheffield's Nicola Farnon is preparing to embark on a tour with her trio as part of a partnership between Jazz North's northern line and Highlights Rural Touring scheme. The tour will take the trio to 7 venues across Northumberland and County Durham between March 19st and 29th.

From the Highlights North website...

This close-knit, swinging outfit play classy arrangements of popular standards and a mix of swing, Latin and the moving, heart rending ballads that people never tire of. With Nicola Farnon (vocals and double bass), Piero Tucci (piano and tenor sax) and Phil Johnson (drums), you get a lot of musical talent for such a small band.  A joyfully entertaining evening of music and melody to swing yer socks off to.

Yorkshire's Beverley Beirne heads for the Pheasantry

                                 Photo credit: Stephanie Deleg

Ilkley-based jazz singer Beverley Beirne has been receiving lots of attention of late, amongst other things for her performances with tenor saxophonist Duncan Lamont. On March 3rd, she will perform at the Pheasantry in London and ahead of that date, Sebastian Scotney interviewed her about her life and music for LondonJazzNews.

Read Beverley's interview on LondonJazzNews

Read review of Beverley's 2014 Pheasantry performance

Jerry Bergonzi comes to Leeds

It has been announced that US saxophonist Jerry Bergonzi will perform at Sela Bar in Leeds on April 21st.

Bergonzi's annual gig in Leeds has become something of a tradition and is a full house without fail. This year, Bergonzi will perform with his organ trio (for a taster of this, check out his album Lost In The Shuffle with Dan Wall and Adam Nassbaum.

Tickets are priced £15 and are available direct from Simon Kaylor. Tickets will sell out fast so act quick to avoid disappointment!

Gig Preview: Sheffield University Jazz Orchestra, February 20th

Friday 20th February
Sheffield University Jazz Orchestra
Millennium Hall
8.30pm
£8/5


Sheffield Jazz hosts a performance by SUJO on Friday, with a programme which includes big band classics by Duke Ellington and Basie to more contemporary works by likes of Dave Holland and Maynard Ferguson.

The orchestra has existed for the last 15 years and is made up of current and former students of the university. Their versatility as a band has earned them many fans and they regularly gig in Sheffield. Their performance on Friday is sure to be well-attended.

For more information on this gig and the other gigs coming up as part of Sheffield Jazz, visit their website.

Jazz North Education Conference

Jazz North is to host their 3rd Jazz Education Conference at Leeds College of Music on 17th March. 

The event will run from 11am until 4pm and features a number of talks and workshops focused on jazz and improvisation for children and young people.

Who Can Attend?

The event is aimed at -

• Primary and secondary schools, further education colleges, universities
• Senior educational leaders, subject leaders, educational professionals, teachers, teaching assistants, newly qualified teachers, Special Educational Needs Coordinators
• Local authority arts development teams, children’s services, school improvement services, events and festival coordinators
• Youth music services
• Arts organisations, artists and arts practitioners… and anyone who works with and supports those working with young people

Topics covered will include First Access, CPD for music teachers, youth jazz orchestras & more. Sign-up is required and interested parties should email info@jazznorth.org or use the contact form on this website to register their place.

Read a report of last year's conference.

Festival Preview: Gateshead International Jazz Festival

The 11th Gateshead International Jazz Festival will take place at the Sage between 10th and 12th April. The programme displays a wide variety of jazz both from the UK and abroad and there will be seminars and workshops running throughout the weekend, too. Full details of the programme are on the Sage website, but below are the NJN team's highlights...

Friday 10th April

11am - Take The Green Train (A seminar of sustainability in Music by Europe Jazz Network & Julia's Bicycle)
6.30pm - New York Brass Band
7.30pm - Under Milk Wood (50th Anniversary performance with pre-concert talk by Bobby Wellins & Clark Tracey at 6.30pm)

Saturday 11th April

2pm - PlayJazz! workshop with Iain Ballamy
7.45pm - Double Bill: Zoe Gilby's Pannonica & Alice Zawadski Quintet
10.45pm - Beats & Pieces

Sunday 12th April

3pm - What's The Score? Exploring free improvisation with Cath Roberts & Rachel Musson
6.30pm - Jambone and Beats & Pieces

New Releases from Discus Records

Sheffield-based label Discus Records, run by musician and composer Martin Archer, has announced the release of three new albums this week.

Third Opening is the 5th album for trio Inclusion Principle. Featuring Martin Archer, Herve Perez and Peter Fairclough, the group is described as being in a space between electronics, nu-jazz, contemporary electroacoustic music and free improvisation tending towards a minimalist approach. Their new release is a double album.

Bad Tidings from Slackwater Drag is the second album from the AACM-inspired large ensemble, Engine Room Favourites. The band gigged across the North in 2014 with support from Jazz North's Northern Line scheme and the material for this new album was developed during those performances. 

Personnel: Martin Archer, Mick Beck, Laura Cole, Corey Mwamba, Graham Clark, Seth Bennett, Walt Shaw, Johnny Hunter & Steve Dinsdale.

Vestigium is the fourth release from Julie Tippetts & Martin Archer duo. The line-up is a mixture of musicians from both jazz and rock backgrounds (reflecting Tippetts own varied musical career from Brian Auger to Keith Tippet) and is decribed as a homage to the heady days of musical collison and exploration...

Personnel: Julie Tippetts, Martin Archer, Peter Fairclough, Seth Bennett, Gary Houghton, Michael Somerset-Ward, Kim Macari, Lee Hallam, Chris Bywater, James Archer, Michael McMillan, Heather Cordwell, Aby Vuillamy & Mick Bardon.

Northern Bands at Love Supreme Festival

The line-up for the 3rd Love Supreme Festival at the Glynde in Brighton has been announced and the North is well represented within the packed programme of national and international acts.

Submotion Orchestra (pictured above) from Leeds, Manchester's Gogo Penguin and North East group Shiver will all perform over the course of the weekend and they join a roster which includes Hiatus Kaiyote, Joshua Redman & the Bad Plus, Terence Blanchard E-Collective and Ambrose Akinmusire.

Full details of the festival can be found on the Love Supreme website.

Women Make Music at Jazz North East

Jazz North East are presenting a special programme this season dedicated to contemporary Women in Jazz and Free Improvisational Composition.

The concert series was made possible through a grant from the PRSF Women Make Music scheme and will run until July. Laura Jurd's Human Spirit group featuring Lauren Kinsella opened the series on January 27th at the Black Swan.

The Jazz North East website gives full details of the gigs and venues, as well as details of the other gigs happening throughout the year.

Upcoming Gigs:

Thursday February 12th - Zoe Rahman (solo piano) + afternoon workshop
Sunday March 8th - Beatrix Ward-Fernandez Trio/Watching Sideways + afternoon workshop
Saturday April 11th - Zoe Gilby 'Pannonica' Quartet/Alice Zawadski Quintet + afternoon workshop
Sunday April 12th - Sloth Racket/Mussen-Kjaer-Marshall Trio + afternoon workshop
Thursday May 7th - Linda Sharrock
Thursday May 21st - Sarah Gail Brand/Mark Sanders Duo & Faye MacCalman Quartet
Saturday June 27th - Lindsay Hannon Plus & Jam Session
Monday July 6th - Mette Rasmussen/Chris Carsano Duo

Festival Preview: Jazz on a Winter's Weekend, Southport

It's the annual Jazz on a Winter's Weekend in Southport this weekend and there's a whole host of gigs going on throughout the weekend. You can find their full programme on their website but we've chosen three gigs as our weekend highlights.

Friday 6th February

Jam Experiment - 2.30pm

This young band have already built up quite a following and now they open the festival this year. The band features Young Jazz Musician of the Year Alex Bone and they will be introduced by Jo McCallum, leader of the Jazz North Introduces programme which Jam Experiment won last year.

Saturday 7th February

Marius Neset & Daniel Herskedal

Saxophonist Marius Neset received two standing ovations when he performed at Southport in 2013 on his Golden Explosion tour. This time is back with tuba player Daniel Herskedal to play a duo set of music from their latest album, Neck of the Woods.

Sunday 8th February

Birmingham Conservatoire Jazz Orchestra

This ensemble represents the best of the Birmingham Conservatoire jazz course and in this concert, their programme contains music by three great composers; Maria Schneider, Jim McNeely and Bob Brookmeyer. The orchestra last appeared in Southport in 2012 with a concert of Gil Evans' music and this one is sure to be a great way to end the weekend. Directed by Jeremy Price.

International Jarek Smietana Jazz Guitar Competition

The first International Jarek Smietana Jazz Guitar Competition is being held in Krakow this year and applications are now being invited by guitarists across the world.

The competition is in celebration of the year of Jarek Smietana, a polish guitarist whose extensive career included performances with Art Farmer, Joe Zawinul, John Abercrombie and Nigel Kennedy. Smietana passed away in 2013.

The competition will be judged by a panel including Mike Stern, John Abercrombie and Ed Cherry. First prize is $10,000, second prize is $5,000 and third is $2,000. There will also be a special prize funded by Smietana's wife and daugther.

Guitarists who wish to enter the competition are asked to submit two audio files and one video file by March 31st with a 30euro entry fee. Those who are successful will take part in the semi finals and finals in Krakow on 1-4th July. Participants will be required to cover their own travel expenses.

Full details can be found on the Jarek Smietana Jazz Guitar Competition website.

APPJAG Parliament Jazz Award Nominees Announced

The nominees for the 2015 APPJAG Parliamentary Jazz Awards have been announced featuring a number from the Northern jazz scene.

Scarborough's Mike Gordon has been nominated for the Services to Jazz Award, and Manchester Jazz Festival is up for venue of the year. LCoM alumnus Phil Meadows also received a nomination for Ensemble of the Year for his newly formed Engines Orchestra and Tim Garland, who mentored Phil and Engines Orchestra during the recording of their debut album, received a nominated for album of the year.

The ceremony will take place at the House of Commons on March 10th, presented by Moira Stewart and featuring performances from James Pearson and the Ronnie Scott All Stars.

Full List of Nominees

Vocalist of the Year: Georgia Mancio, Norma Winstone, Alice Zawadski, Zara MacFarlane
Instrumentalist of the Year: Laura Jurd, Jason Yarde, Phil Robson
Album of the Year: 'Swamp' - Partisans, 'Circularity' - Julian Arguelles, 'Songs to the North Sky' Tim Garland
Ensemble of the Year: Engines Orchestra, Loose Tubes, Partisans
Newcomer of the Year: Blue Eyed Hawk, Elliot Galvin, Peter Edwards
Venue of the Year: Manchester Jazz Festival, Spice of Life, St Ives Jazz Club
Jazz Media Award: Jazz on 3, LondonJazzNews, The Jazz Breakfast
Jazz Educator of the Year: Dr Tommy Smith, NYJO, Simon Purcell
Services to Jazz Award: Mike Gordon, Evan Parker, Chris Hodgkins

Gig Preview: Fusebox Extravaganza at Seven Arts

On Wednesday February 4th, Fusebox will hold an exciting triple-bill at Seven Arts in Leeds. This gig follows on from the afternoon of music to celebrate the life of Fusebox founder Dave Hatfield which took place at Seven Arts on Thursday 29th January.

Tickets cost £8/6 and the evening begins at 7.30pm.

Read on for full line-up...

Greg Barker wins Richard Turner Jazz Fund

Saxophonist Greg Barker has been announced as the third recipient of the Richard Turner Jazz Fund, set up to support RAM jazz undergraduates in memory of the trumpeter Richard Turner.

The award was set up after Richard suddenly passed away in 2011 and has supported young jazz musicians with a Yorkshire connection since then. Greg joins bassists Alex Davis and Tom McCredie as recipients of this award.

In a press release by RAM, Richard's mother Christine said:

Once again I enjoyed reading all of the applications but Greg had a very clear idea of how the fund was going to help him musically. He has already begun his efforts to add a bass clarinet to his collection of instruments, so I hope that this fund will help him to reach his target. Doubling is almost essential for woodwind players both in classical and jazz. I'm pleased the fund will help him in this regard, and that the connection with Yorkshire continues into the third year too! Richard was always very generous with his knowledge and his time for younger players and I know he would be delighted that we are able in some small way, and in his memory, to help the young jazz musicians at the Academy. I am grateful to the Academy and to Richard's friends for all the work they have done, setting up and administering this award.

Greg Barker attended Chethams School of Music before moving to London to study at the Royal Academy of Music, where he is now in his third year. 

Read full RAM article.