Huddersfield Jazz Guitar Festival - this weekend!

If you're not already on your way, check out what the Huddersfield Jazz Guitar Festival has to offer this very weekend - a 3 day celebration of all that's great in jazz guitar.

This is the third annual Huddersfield Jazz Guitar Festival and this year is going to prove to be bigger and better. Held at the Rat and Ratchet, the festival is a celebration of jazz guitar in all its many forms,  from gypsy jazz, funk, fusion and mainstream there will be something for everyone. 

The festival is held over three days although there are some fringe events held around Huddersfield on the run up to the festival. Alan Barnes is joining the Charlie Christian Collective at the Head of Steam on Wednesday 19th July.

The festival a proper begins on Friday 21st July with the ever popular Gypsy Jazz Night. The Saturday and Sunday are packed with free concerts during the day, workshops, jam sessions and competitions. Saturday evening sees two of the counties leading players, Cameron Pierre and Femi Temowo who bring their unique and brilliant blend of jazz guitar to an evening we’ve called Jazz, Roots and Beyond. Sunday is dedicated more towards funk and fusion with the amazing Tom Quayle running a workshop and concert during the day and Adrian Ingram’s Cookbook and Dennis Rollins and Johnny Heyes bringing a blend of funk and groove based music to the evening. All this and some wonderful beer brewed on the premises at the Rat, whats not to like.

For all the details, check out the Huddersfield Jazz Guitar website. Congratulations to the team that work hard to run the festival - may it continue for many years!

Gig Preview: Vein at Huddersfield Jazz, April 29th

Swiss trio VEIN are to perform in Huddersfield on Saturday 29th. Michael Arbenz, Thomas Lahns and Florian Arbenz are recognised throughout the world for their tight interplay and their album Jazz Talks, featuring Dave Liebman, was released to critical acclaim including a 4 star review in the Guardian.

From the Huddersfield Jazz website...

There certainly is no special need any more to mention the fact that today most jazz piano trios are deeply attached to musical interplay (even though this fact isn’t to be taken for granted!).  And yet, even with the most subtle, most distinguished form of interplay there is always one in the trio who plays the part of the primus inter pares – the pianist, of course (usually and by definition leader of the group).  That’s exactly where pianist Michael Arbenz, drummer Florian Arbenz and bassist Thomas Lähns come up with their own idea of musical interplay.  In fact, what they aim to achieve with their music – their understanding of music – is nothing less than the greatest possible balance of their three voices – starting with the way they work out their own compositions and arrangements, and going right through to the soloistic parts, fully assigned to all three of them.  The result is a stupendous musical togetherness, packed with surprising melodic, rhythmic and dynamic turns, played with highest precision even in the most complex, distorted and twisted passages of their compositions, arrangements and solos.

Tickets for the gig cost £14 (£5 for students) and can be bought through the Huddersfield Jazz website.

Johnny Hunter Quartet Tour, March 25th-31st

“The band admirably reflects the independent creativity of the new Manchester scene.” – John Fordham, The Guardian

Drummer Johnny Hunter's quartet made the most of 2016; as well as their normal schedule of gigs ,they also found the time to release their debut album, While We Still Can, on EFPI Records and they were selected to be part of Jazz North's Northern Line scheme.

Starting on Saturday, the group will play a string of dates including Huddersfield, Scarborough, Liverpool and Manchester so there's ample opportunity to catch these exciting musicians live.

From the FB event page...

Johnny Hunter (Blind Monk Trio, Dub Jazz Soundsystem, Nat Birchall Quintet, Marley Chingus) is a drummer, composer and band-leader who performs across the country in many different ensembles. In 2011, he brought together some of the top players from a thriving Manchester scene that is fast becoming UK Jazz’s new centre of gravity; Ben Watte on tenor saxophone, Graham South on trumpet, and Stewart Wilson on double bass. 2016 saw the release of his critically-acclaimed debut album ‘While We Still Can’ on the EFPI label, which also houses all-conquering big band, Beats & Pieces.

Hunter’s music explores the possibilities and challenges afforded by the absence of a harmony instrument, and takes influence from his long-standing interest in the piano-less groups of Sonny Rollins and Joe Henderson, through to the more modern ensembles of Dave Douglas, John Zorn and Chris Speed.

Ben Watte – Tenor sax
Graham South – Trumpet
Stewart Wilson – Double Bass
Johnny Hunter – Drums

“Connects authentically with jazz tradition, whilst developing its own voice through original composition – a fabulous advertisement for British jazz.” – Adrian Pallant, London Jazz News

25.03 The Jazz Room HUDDERSFIELD, 8pm
28.03 Kazimier Gardens LIVERPOOL, 7.30pm
29.03 The Cask Inn SCARBOROUGH, 8.45pm
30.03 Matt & Phred's MANCHESTER, 9pm

Almondbury Jazz Festival, Saturday 19th November

The first Almondbury Jazz Festival takes place tomorrow, Saturday 19th November.

Music will be programmed at three pubs in the village throughout the day - The Woolpack, The Radcliffe and the Con Club. The church will also be open to serve food and act as a meeting point as people travel between venues.

What's more, it's all for a good cause. The money raised will go to Forget Me Not Children's hospice.

We've listed the schedule below but for full information, visit the Almondbury Jazz Festival website.

The Woolpack

1.30pm - The Jade Harris Experience
6.30pm - Julie Edwards
9.30pm - Ben Crosland Quartet

The Radcliffe

2.00pm - Derrick Harris Quartet
4.30pm - Adrian Ingram's Cookbook
8.30pm - Asaxual

The Con Club

1.00pm - Sax Pots
4.00pm - The Hot Five
8.30pm - Cool Hand