(Press
release)
Since 2013, Jazz North’s northern line has supported
67 jazz artists and ensembles from across the north with over 700 gigs. Now,
seven more northern-based ensembles have been selected to join the scheme. Beyond Albedo, freesetrio, John
Pope Quintet, Nishla Smith Quintet, Not Now Charlie, Rafe’s Dilemma and SogoRock will
have the chance to benefit from the initiative.
The scheme enables the artists to reach new audiences and tour
beyond their home area, which Nishla
Smith from the Manchester-based Nishla
Smith Quintet sees as a great opportunity: “Becoming a northern line artist is really amazing and helpful for us
because my band is fairly new and we’re trying to make inroads and develop out
of Manchester. It’s really exciting to have that opportunity to tour and make
new connections and spread out over the north.”
Jazz North’s northern line Project Manager, Lucy
Woolley, says the bands were selected by an independent panel
of industry
professionals, promoters and musicians: “They were chosen as they represent the variety of high-quality, new
and exciting music being made by fantastic artists and performed in the north
of England.” Previously there have been nine bands chosen for the programme
per year, but this time it will be seven. “A
smaller roster of seven artists allows us to work more closely on artist
development and business skills, alongside their touring activity,” explains
Lucy. “This will create a legacy that
will support these young artists throughout their future musical careers.”
Jazz North’s northern
line is the organisation’s flagship programme
that supports jazz artists through subsidised touring, mentoring and industry
support. All round seven bands can expect subsidised gig performances at
festivals and in venues, minimising financial risk. All artists will perform at
Jazz North’s northern line Showcase Day at Lancaster Jazz Festival on Friday
13th September 2019 in front of national and international jazz promoters. A
promotional pack of each ensemble will be produced and one-to-one mentoring
with Jazz North is on offer to identify individual areas of support.
·
Jazz
North’s northern line Round Seven Artists
Beyond Albedo (Leeds/Sheffield)
Lara Jones saxophones, FX
pedals / Tim Knowles electric guitar, bass guitar, FX pedals /
Ben Gaunt synths / Sarah Heneghan drums, drum machine
Retro-futuristic synth-jazz drawing on
jazz traditions yet pushing in new exploratory and experimental directions:
moments of East-West fusion and Afro-spiritualism give way to pulsating sci-fi
electronica with an energetic and danceable quality.
freesetrio
(Leeds)
Jemma
Freese voice,
keyboards / Chris Sellers bass /
Theo Goss drums
Heavy triphop dark jazz with twisted lyrics,
sliding vocals and eerie harmonies making for a powerful, dark and layered sound.
Dealing with subjects such as self-reflection, inner demons and truths, the
band creates a trance-like atmosphere influenced by Massive Attack, Goldfrapp
and Aphex Twin.
John Pope Quintet (Newcastle/Manchester)
John
Pope double
bass / Jamie Stockbridge alto
saxophone / Faye MacCalman clarinet,
tenor saxophone / Graham Hardy
trumpet / Johnny Hunter drums
Drawing on ‘60s avant-jazz and hard bop, but with a modern,
European sensibility, their open-hearted, quirky compositions and dynamic, ‘anything-goes’
improvisations are played with swinging groove, referencing Ornette Coleman,
Tom Waits, and The Pixies: a joyful racket full of rewards for the adventurous
listener.
Nishla Smith Quintet (Manchester)
Nishla
Smith vocals
/ Aaron Wood trumpet / Richard Jones piano / Joshua Cavanagh-Brierley bass / Johnny Hunter drums
Nishla’s original songs have a delicate,
quirky but deceptively simple air about them – she has a quietly commanding
presence and a relaxed but assured delivery that wins over audiences instantly.
Her often dreamy and melancholic aura is offset with her energetic and
imaginative band of Manchester’s finest young contemporary improvisers.
Not Now Charlie (Newcastle)
Jamie Toms saxophone / Pawel Jedrzejewski guitar / Richard Campbell piano / Ian Paterson bass / Mark Johnson drums
A fast-rising young band playing in a
variety of styles directly connected to their inspirations: traditional jazz,
prog rock, neo-soul, R&B and folk – memorable melodies, infectious grooves
and a keen, finely-tuned sense of tight ensemble playing.
Rafe’s Dilemma (Leeds)
Eleanor
Begley vocals,
loops / Jamil Sheriff keyboards /
Sam Vicary bass guitar / Katie
Patterson drums
Commissioned for Bolton Worktown Festival to
celebrate Bill Naughton’s play Spring and Port Wine, Rafe’s Dilemma
mixes jazz, electronica and rock to tell the story of a family on the edge.
Using spoken word, improvisation, synthesised soundscapes and carefully crafted
songs, the material explores our emotions towards families through music, with
an electric perspective.
SogoRock (Leeds)
Ferenc Lakatos synth / Matt Hines saxophone / Nik Svarc guitar / Bela Horvath
piano, keyboards / Alexander Miller
bass / Joshua Gumbs drums
Led by resident Hungarians Bela and ‘Laky
Franz’ with their fellow LCoM alumni, SogoRock (meaning ‘brother-in-law’)
resists classification: the band blends elements of jazz, fusion, funk, rock
and gospel along with the musical heritage of each player with an open spirit
and impeccable musicianship.
·
Jazz
North
is the jazz development agency in the north of
England funded by Arts Council England as a sector support organisation. Established
in 2012, it has a ground-breaking approach to supporting and nurturing jazz
across the north. Jazz North uses the power of collective partnership working
to build networks between musicians, educators, promoters and venues, to grow
audiences for jazz and to inspire children
and young people to make music: www.jazznorth.org
·
Jazz
North’s northern line project supports and develops a roster of
artists by:
o
encouraging regional promoters and
new/rural promoters to take risks by programming northern line ensembles
o
absorbing some of those risks by
subsidising the cost of artists’ fees
o
offering professional development
opportunities
o
strengthening and extending the northern
touring circuit
o
providing a shop-window for the music,
artists, promoters, the northern jazz scene and Jazz North
o
presenting a day-long showcase at Lancaster
Jazz Festival 2019 at which all selected ensembles perform to the public and
invited promoters
o
filming/recording every showcase
performance for the artists’ showreels
o
offering artist photo-shoots and
interviews for each band
·
Lancaster
Jazz Festival is an artist and volunteer-led organisation that is now in its ninth
year. It aims to promote contemporary and pioneering music from around the UK
in beautiful spaces and stages around the city of Lancaster at an annual
September festival and at selected year-round events. The team, backed up by
the festival's members, work year-round with local arts organisations to help
emerging and developing artists, to promote contemporary music, and to
support music and jazz education. Lancaster Jazz Festival is supported using
public funding by Arts Council England and is a Help Musicians' UK National
Grant Programme Recipient: www.lancasterjazz.com
·
The
attached image is of Jazz North’s northern line Round Seven Artists
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