Monthly Archives: August 2017

Jazz at the Four Horseshoes | Sherfield-on-Loddon

Jazz at The Milk Bar | No Room For Squares | Reading

Sounds Echoed with The Paul Jordanous Jazz Ensemble | Maidenhead

Bracknell Jazz – Simon Cook Trio with Mark Bassey

Gin and Jazz with Fleur Stevenson | Wallingford

Ade Holland Trio | Caversham

Duncan Lamont & Son | Pangbourne Jazz Club

Jam in Reading – Mark Burton Quartet | Reading NOTE CANCELLED THIS MONTH |

Jazz in the Queenshed – Lea Lyle Quartet | Reading

Gli Avanzi Jazz Quintet | Reading

Ade Holland Trio | Caversham

Anthony Kerr with the Frank Toms Trio | Marlow

Fleur Stevenson hosts Jazz Singers Night | Reading

Jazz at the Magpie and Parrot – Robert Otwinowski Quartet | Shinfield

Jazz at Progress | Jazz Stars of the Future: Tom Smith Septet | Sold out!

Fri 18 Aug | Progress Theatre, Reading | 7:30pm | £15.00 (£13.00 concessions) plus maximum 5% booking fee.

Tom Smith alto sax, Alex Hitchcock tenor sax, Alistair Martin trumpet, Olli Martin trombone, Will Barry piano, Daisy George double bass and Dave Storey drums.

Jazz in Reading is delighted to announce that, in conjunction with Marc Edwards of Brecon Jazz Futures, we have managed to secure the inspiring Tom Smith Septet for the Progress Theatre on Friday 18 August.

Led by Tom Smith, BBC Young Jazz Musician Finalist in 2014 and 2016, the band includes many of the most talked about young jazz musicians working in London today.

Each member of the septet is on the current jazz circuit, in the capital and nationwide, as sidemen with other groups or leaders in their own right: Will Barry with Jasper Hoiby’s Fellow Creatures, Dave Storey with Tom Barford’s Asterope, Daisy George with Jonny Mansfield Quartet, Olli Martin with Billy Marrows Octet, Alistair Martin with the NYJO and Alex Hitchcock with the Alex Hitchcock Quintet (see them at the Progress on 22 September).

Drawing from the swing and blues traditions, Tom Smith Septet’s unbounded energy and enthusiasm will get your head nodding and your feet tapping. Featuring new compositions and arrangements of jazz standards, the band provides an exciting, unique and uplifting evening of music – it’s an experience not to miss!

The band has been described as ‘Passionate, punchy and joyful!’ (Django Bates), ‘Something really special’ (London Jazz News) and ‘Technically outstanding abilities and a punchy, soulful tone’ (Soweto Kinch).

Tom himself is a very active composer and arranger, the septet being the vehicle for his own compositions, one of which was broadcast on BBC4 and Radio 3 with Tom playing alongside the Gwilym Simcock trio as part of his appearance on the BBC Young Jazz Musician of the Year in 2014 and three more were broadcast as part of the 2016 competition.

This will be a very special event, the first of several in which we want to bring Jazz Stars of the Future to the Progress Theatre for your delight.

Rhythms at the Yurt | Didcot

Jazz at Progress | Tom Smith Septet | Sold out!

Ade Holland Trio | Caversham

Fleur Stevenson Trio | Wallingford

Berkshire Jazz Jam: Ken Thompson Trio | Reading

Live Jazz and Blues Night | Reading

Dinner jazz at The Angel – Robert Otwinowski Quartet | Woolhampton

Mike Miller Trio | Sandhurst

May & June

Where is the year going? Soon be into the summer festival season and the unwarranted General Election beforehand. Still, plenty of good jazz around to keep us sane.

May, Friday 5th sees Jazz In Reading at Progress Theatre feature a group of musicians rarely found in these here parts, Partikel. More used to playing London and city venues, the guys are showcasing their latest album which is what one may term contemporary, groove driven with some electronic enhancement.

Ever popular Alan Barnes, guests at Pangbourne Jazz Club Sunday 7th and he never fails to deliver the goods.

Bracknell Jazz on Friday 12th finds the wonderful reeds player Ian Bellamy as the main guest. Expect original interpretations of familiar and not so, plus original compositions. On the same night, but many miles away, Goring Jazz has Art Themen-sax, John Etheridge-guitar, Lianne Carroll-vocals making Friday night swing. Great line up.

Digby Fairweather wields his faithful trumpet at Fleet Jazz Club on the 16th. with fellow main streamers for an evening of foot tapping music .

I think there is a special treat lined up by Bracknell jazz Young Musicians on Saturday 27th at South Hill Park. The guests are Simon Allen-sax, Quentin Collins-trumpet with BBC Young Jazz Musician Winner 2016, Alexandra Ridout-trumpet with The Purcell Jazz Octet. This is a terrific line up and reflects the fact that young musicians want to play jazz. Not that it is easy to earn a living doing so and us jazz fans need to support these youngsters in order to keep the music alive and evolving. Purcell head of music and former Pendulum star Simon Allen and Ronnie Scott’s regular Quentin Collins lend their experienced chops to the occasion. Highly recommended.

June

As we know, female USA jazz vocalists have always been the setters of standards in the genre of jazz. Naturally, they would because that is where it began. The likes of Bessie Smith, Ethel Waters who were exponents of Blues and Jazz vocals in the 20s/30s/40s, were followed by Billy Holliday, Ella Fitzgerald and all the great divas that we fans can surely list. For decades our sole UK true jazz vocalist represented on the international scene was surely Annie Ross. She was so acclaimed in the states that she became part of Lambert, Hendricks and Ross, forerunners and influencers of Manhattan Transfer, as well as innovators and lyricists. However, over the last twenty years I would contend that Europe has developed vocalists to match the past greats.

Jazz In Reading has persuaded our own UK international star in the galaxy of female vocalists, Claire Martin to perform an exclusive gig at Progress Theatre on Friday 23rd June. Claire had a long standing partnership with the sorely missed pianist and composer Richard Rodney Bennett and they performed many times together as a duo. For this gig, Claire pairs with another sumptuous exponent of vocalist accompaniment, in the shape of David Newton. David was for many years the pianist in Stacey Kent’s rhythm section and features strongly on her early albums. Jazz In Reading have actually hired a baby grand piano for the occasion….whoooo!!

This gig must not be missed by any lover of jazz vocalists. Except me, I am foolishly away on holiday!

Jazz In Reading has two gigs lined up this month and preceding Claire’s is Art Themen’s New Directions Quintet on the 2nd June. Steve Fishwick rejoins the line up that starred at the Kamuli Jazz Festival last July when Laura Jurd deputised in Steve’s absence. Another superb gig is assured.

Local jazzman Nat Steele on vibes is joining sax player Alison Neale as guests of Bracknell Jazz on June 9th and I am sure that this will be an evening of relaxing swinging jazz on a summers evening at South Hill Park. Why not have an alfresco meal overlooking the beautiful grounds beforehand?

My final choice for is an interesting performance of Benny Goodman’s small group jazz. This is by Julian Bliss-clarinet who became a fan of Goodman’s from a very early age and has created a septet that includes Martin Shaw on trumpet, Empirical’s Lewis Wright-vibes and Colin Oxley-guitar. All superb. A free pre gig talk precedes the performance at Reading Town Hall -The Concert Hall on June 15th.

You can find all these events listed on the gigs calendar with links to the venues for tickets.

Enjoy live Jazz,

Bob

Jazz n Stuff

Fleur Stevenson | Kinecroft Wallingford

August 2017
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August 2017
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