Jazz FM Awards 2026

Winner's Names are in Bold Type

Breakthrough Act of the Year 

Donovan Haffner; Earth-o-Naut; Poppy Daniels 

International Jazz Act of the Year 

Linda May Han Oh; Nate Smith; Samara Joy 

Blues Act of the Year 

Alice Armstrong; Gary Clark Jr.; Mavis Staples 

Soul Act of the Year 

Omar; RAYE; Young Gun Silver Fox 

Press Release: Public nominations are now open for the 2026 Parliamentary Jazz Awards

Public nominations  are now open for the 2026 Parliamentary Jazz Awards. Entries are open to anyone. Public nominations open on Friday 17th April with the final deadline set for midnight on Friday 15th May 2026. The Parliamentary Awards celebrate and recognise the vibrancy, diversity, talent and breadth of the jazz scene throughout the United Kingdom.

"These awards are a great opportunity to celebrate the talents and energies of the great musicians, educators, promoters, record labels, jazz organisations, blogs, jazz magazines and journalists who keep jazz flourishing, in spite of the challenges they faced in the last couple of years”. Lord Mann and Dame Chi Onwurah MP, Co-chairs of APPJG and Jo White MP.

The Awards will take place at World Heart Beat on Tuesday 13th October 2026 at 7pm

Album review: Eddie Gripper - Americana (ECN Music)

Eddie Gripper (piano); Clem Saynor (double bass); Patrick Barrett-Donlon (drums)

Inspired by a six week trip hitchhiking from Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, to Los Angeles the result isn't what you'd expect from the album's title. No hoedown music here, no sirree, just gentle, dreamy reflections on a once beautiful land.

What it may lack in earthy, grandiose, bravura punch is more than compensated for by the rich pastel shades Gripper and his cohorts paint. Capturing the multi-textured background to his journey to perfection. This is the America that was once the Land of Dreams - once...

Single Review - Fogging Up the Windows – Keith Fiala (Wayfarer Records)

Keith Fiala (trumpet and programming.)

Trumpeter Keith Fiala has not-so-quietly been solidifying his place as one of the more creative composers and highly talented trumpeters in the music world. Coming off the charting success of his last Wayfarer release - the moodily beautiful Dream of Me - the Texan has been touring the world as a key member of Arturo Sandoval’s ensemble where he’s a featured soloist and part of the killer horn line.

Fogging Up the Windows continues Fiala’s fine work. What’s most interesting and inviting about his efforts is the fact that, unlike some formulaic presentations of “Smooth Jazz,” (a description this writer finds nebulous and incongruent), Fiala’s compositions and arrangements defy that “norm” structurally and from an improvisational standpoint. He’s much more of a jazzer than some others on the scene. That’s no disrespect, but simply a listener’s observation.

Nick Mondello interviews Steve Lipman of Independent Music Schools

Another pertinent interview by Nick Mondello on the subject of finding the best music school for your child in the USA.

What are the options? Where to look? Who to guide you?

HERE IS A GOOD PLACE TO START. Lance

Stockport Jazz

This Sunday Stockport Jazz welcomes the Mike Hall Quartet to the Moor Club, featuring Mike on tenor sax alongside pianist Dan Whieldon with Gavin Barras (bass) and Eryl Roberts (drums). 

Sunday 19th April 2026

8-10pm, doors open at 7.30pm

£5 entry on the door, all welcome

The Moor Club, 35 Heaton Moor Road, Stockport SK4 4PB  (next to the Elizabethan PH)

Press release: US Guitar Star Julian Lage To Perform Biggest UK Show To Date At 2700-Capacity Royal Festival Hall

Internationally acclaimed guitarist Julian Lage will perform his biggest UK headline show to date at the Royal Festival Hall on May 15, 2026, bringing his new quartet to London following the release of his latest Blue Note album Scenes From Above.

Released earlier this year, Scenes From Above is Lage’s fifth album for Blue Note Records and the second produced by the celebrated Joe Henry. The album introduces a new ensemble featuring keyboardist John Medeski, bassist Jorge Roeder and drummer Kenny Wollesen.

Where 2024’s GRAMMY-nominated Speak to Me presented Lage as an improvising bandleader guiding a large ensemble through an expansive set of compositions, Scenes From Above reflects a different creative approach. Here, Lage positions himself as part of a deeply collaborative group dynamic, exploring new music written specifically for the quartet.

Famous Newcastle music store JG Windows to be transformed into huge restaurant - Chronicle Live

Interesting - read more HERE.

Richard Wetherall Quartet @ the Moor Club, Stockport - April 12

© Jeff Pritchard

Richard Wetherall  (keyboards, vocals); Rick Halliwell (alto/soprano sax); Tim Williams (bass); Eryl Roberts (drums)

As expected there was a good turnout for this show and for a change I decided to take a seat in the middle of the room instead of at the front.

This proved a good move as for a four-piece unit they generated quite a powerful sound.  

Wetherall can do no wrong in my opinion but tonight he had some surprises in store such as singing on a couple of standards and doing a great job of announcing the tunes etc. in a very amusing manner.  

Sunday night @ the Globe: SH#RP Collective - April 12

© Richard Davies

Nigel Robson (trombone); Karen Rann (soprano sax); Mark Squires (piano); Dave Parker (double bass); Michael Howard (drums)

Sunday night at The Globe and tonight’s offering was a group of five musicians at least some of whom who could claim the Globe as their spiritual home. They either volunteer their time there or they are members of the various Globe music programmes like the regular Wednesday session Take it to the Bridge.

Having seen earlier versions of the band I was expecting an entertaining evening of GASbook standards. But there was not an Autumn Leaves or a Summertime in sight. Instead the band set their stall out from the first tune, an original penned by pianist Mark Squires called R and B.  Other originals from the pen of Mr.Squires featured throughout, reflective pieces like What I Think About When I Think About Walking or Pandemonic written during Covid with a Latin groove that allowed sax and trombone to trade off each other to great effect.