Press release: NYJO News

The start of 2026 has seen our learning team run incredible workshops all over the country including sessions at Band on the Wall in Manchester, our Welsh Valleys and Leicestershire schools project, and a series of workshops with B:Music’s Beginner and Intermediate Jazz Ensembles for 11–19 year-olds. Led by NYJO Emerging Professional musicians, these courses often culminate in recorded sessions and ensemble performances like the upcoming support sets for our Cobalt Studios gig with Theon Cross this Friday 20 March.

Thanks to Maurice Summerfield for reminding me of this exciting event. Follow the above link for more info.

Ray Stubbs R&B All-Stars @ the Mill Tavern, Hebburn - March 12

© Russell

Ray Stubbs (vocals, blues harp); Steve Hall (guitar); Pat Rafferty (keys, accordion); Max Whitehouse (bass guitar); Rob Walker (drums)

Outside it was cold, wet and windy - the perfect blues scenario. However, inside the Mill Tavern it was warm, with bowls of Bombay Mix on the tables and, later, a free buffet of pizza and chips. On the screens that adorned the walls there was European football with the sound turned down whilst on stage were the Ray Stubbs R&B All-Stars with the sound turned up.

Perfect unless you were a Nottingham Forest fan.

Late night Chicago Radio w. Denny Farrell (March 12 - March 18)

Ray Brown: Love Walked in.

Norah Jones: I've Got to See You Again.

Paul Desmond/Jim Hall: You'd be so Nice to Come Home to.

Michael O'Neal:The Way You Look Tonight.

Benny Goodman/Lionel Hampton: Moonglow.

Joe Pass: Li'l Darlin'.

Beegie Adair: Smoke Gets in Your Eyes.

Tony Bennett: Fly me to the Moon.

Stan Getz: Sweet Lorraine.

Dinah Washington: Ain't Misbehavin'.

Sonny Rollins: 'Round Midnight.

Etta James: At Last.

LISTEN 24/7

Press release: Tonight @ the Mill Tavern

THURSDAY 12th MARCH at 8.30pm. THE RAY STUBBS R&B ALLSTARS will play their no-nonsense brand of BLUES, R&B and ZYDECO at the MILL TAVERN, MILL LANE, HEBBURN. GET THERE SHARPISH FOR A GOOD PEW...Free PIZZA & CHIPS during interval. We are UNLEASHING our new guitarist (not pictured) for your delight.

Album review: The Oscar Peterson Trio at Baker's Keyboard Lounge (Verve)

Oscar Peterson (piano); Ray Brown (bass); Ed Thigpen (drums)

The discovery of new material from old masters is always exciting - it's like hearing them again for the first time. A contradictory sentence I know but hopefully you'll get where I'm coming from.

Oscar Peterson was indeed a master musician of the highest order. Many would say the greatest jazz pianist ever and, in what would have been his hundredth year, I wholeheartedly concur. Tatum may have matched his technique but he didn't have the swing that Oscar generated.

Over the years the personnel varied: The long running version with Herb Ellis on guitar, this one with drum ace Ed Thigpen replacing Ellis, then Bobby Durham took over from Thigpen and finally with Martin Drew on drums and NHOP on bass.

Press release: Durham Hits All The Right Notes With The Launch Of A New Jazz Festival

Durham is set to swing as a major new jazz festival is announced for the city. 

The inaugural Durham Jazz Festival will take place from Friday, October 23 to Sunday, October 25, transforming venues across the city with a vibrant programme featuring top-flight artists from the world of jazz. 

From intimate club-style performances to headline concerts, the three-day festival will celebrate the music and performance of national and northern jazz artists, bringing together established names and the next generation of talent. 

The event has been founded by Alan Patrickson, John Lyons and Richard Turner, who believe Durham’s unique setting – with its historic venues and thriving cultural scene – makes it the perfect home for a landmark event. 

Stockport Jazz

This Sunday Stockport Jazz welcomes Swing 26! featuring Julian Gregory (violin), Matthew Compton accordion), Paul Hartley (guitar) and Grant Russell (bass). Julian and Matthew are past and current members of the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra and play a unique combination of Hot Club jazz and swing, interspersed with the music of Parisian cafés, Eastern Europe and South America.

Sunday 15th March 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: NEWCASTLE JAZZ FESTIVAL 2026

LINEUP

Friday 26 June

CLARK TRACEY

Clark Tracey Quartet: Suites of Stan!

Multi award winning drummer Clark Tracey pays tribute to some of the many quartet suites penned by his legendary father, Stan Tracey CBE.

Saturday 27 June

OUTRI

OUTRI is a solo bass endeavour by established North-East bass player and ‘musical magpie’ (NARC mag) Ian ‘dodge’ Paterson. This project takes inspiration from a love of jazz, folk, electronica, found-sound and cinematic landscapes combining organic shifting loops underpinned with beautiful harmonies and glitchy electronica.

Album review: Catherine Russell - Live at Lincoln Center (Dot Time Records)

Catherine Russell (vocals); Matt Munisteri (guitar); Ben Paterson (piano); Russell Hall (bass); Domo Branch (drums); Jon-Erik Kellso (trumpet); John Allred (trombone); Evan Arntzen (tenor sax, clarinet) + Michela Marino Lerman (tap dance tks 2,4,9,11)

Russell's first live recording and where better to make that debut than Lincoln Center? NYC's cultural home. For this concert Russell crafted a programme honouring the Hot Club of New York, a community of enthusiasts who meet weekly to listen to jazz and blues on 78rpm shellac records. I think that's rather wonderful and, unsurprisingly so does  Catherine as no doubt her father's records (Luis Russell and his Orchestra) will often be amongst those played.

Press release: Taylor and Son.

Last night after my concert in Edinburgh, my son James and I were catching up backstage. Some of you may know that, alongside his work as my manager he is also a speaker, podcast host, and author of a new book called SuperCreativity.

One of the things I’ve always loved about jazz is that it shows creativity in its purest form. You have structure and technique… but in the moment you are also listening, experimenting and creating something new together.

James writes about this same kind of creative process in the book. In fact, there are a few stories that you might enjoy, including moments involving Stéphane Grappelli, Oscar Peterson, and the wider world of jazz and improvisation. Those stories explore how musicians think about creativity, collaboration, and the spark that happens when people play together.