Gig Preview: Manjula at GemArts Festival, July 12th

                                          (Manjula - photo by Ian Agnew, Dark Woods Coffee)

GemArts Masala Festival, a week long celebration of South Asian Arts, takes place in Newcastle between 11th and 17th July with support from Arts Council England.

The festival will include a variety of events from photography exhibitions to live music, film screenings to family activities and even dog yoga...!

In a joint promotion by Gem Arts, Jazz North East and Jazz North, the Leeds based band Manjula will perform as part of the festival at the Black Swan venue and bar on July 12th.

From the GemArts Masala Festival brochure...

Manjula (meaning melodious) bring their eclectic sound to Masala Festival, exploring, innovating and combiningrhythms from different cultures, to create a beautiful mix of sounds from around
the globe. This Leeds-based project is an example of forward thinking global music, incorporating Portuguese, African and Latin jazz influences, with the haunting ambience of Indian vocal training and the rhythmic attack of jazz improvisation. Manjula will take your mind on journeys to faraway places, whilst making you feel at home.

The gig starts at 8pm and tickets cost £8.80 full price and £6.60 concessions through the Seetickets website.

Full information about the festival can be found on the GemArts website and for more on Manjula, visit Vanessa Rani's website.

Burton Agnes Jazz Festival, 1st-3rd July

As we move toward summer, it's time for jazz fans to get out their diaries and figure out how many of the numerous summer jazz festivals they can fit in. Burton Agnes Festival takes place from 1st to 3rd July and has become a favourite for all ages due to the picturesque surroundings, varied programme and camping facilities.

This year, the programme contains many of this year's Northern Line acts including Bugalu Foundation, Manjula and Pan Jumby, all of whom bring influences from music and culture around the globe. For fans of vocal jazz, Elaine Delmar appears on Saturday 2nd, performing the music of Cole Porter and George Gershwin.

Those interested in attending should head over to Bebop Spoken Here, Lance Liddle's wonderful blog as he is currently running a competition to win a full weekend pass for a family (the comp runs until May 27th).

For full information on line-up, ticketing and location visit the Burton Agnes Jazz Festival website.

Ribble Valley Jazz & Blues Festival, 28th April - 2nd May

Tickets are on sale for the 7th annual Ribble Valley Jazz & Blues Festival which takes place between April 28th and May 2nd. This festival goes from strength to strength and their 2016 programme features a huge number of events from international artists to local talent. To see the full listings for the festival, visit the Ribble Valley Jazz & Blues Festival website. With far too many to list here, we've selected a few highlights to whet your appetites...

The Bill Laurance Trio (28th April, The Grand Theatre)

An LCoM alumnus and now GRAMMY award winner, pianist Bill Laurance is best known for his work with Snarky Puppy. He returns to perform at the festival after a hugely popular appearance in 2014. With Richard Spaven, Felix Higginbottom and Jon Harvey.

Street Festival (29th April, Castle Street)

Saturday will feature a street festival with a number of bands playing in the open air. You'll hear Clitheroe Ukulele Orchestra, Two Rivers Swing Band, Blowjangles and more. All you need now is the sunshine...

Claire Martin & Ray Gelato (30th April, The Grand Theatre)

One of the UK's favourite vocalists, Claire Martin OBE is joined by saxophonist Ray Gelato for an evening of music from the Great American Songbook. They are joined by pianist Dave Newton.

Manjula (2nd May, Atrium Cafe Bar)

Presented in partnership with Jazz North's Northern Line scheme, Vanessa Rani leads a group that explores music from around the world finding influence in Portuguese, African and Latin jazz.