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Bebop Spoken There

Kurt Elling: ''There's something to learn from every musician you play with''. (DownBeat, December 2024).

The Things They Say!

Hudson Music: Lance's "Bebop Spoken Here" is one of the heaviest and most influential jazz blogs in the UK.

Rupert Burley (Dynamic Agency): "BSH just goes from strength to strength".

'606' Club: "A toast to Lance Liddle of the terrific jazz blog 'Bebop Spoken Here'"

The Strictly Smokin' Big Band included Be Bop Spoken Here (sic) in their 5 Favourite Jazz Blogs.

Ann Braithwaite (Braithwaite & Katz Communications) You’re the BEST!

Holly Cooper, Mouthpiece Music: "Lance writes pull quotes like no one else!"

Simon Spillett: A lovely review from the dean of jazz bloggers, Lance Liddle...

Josh Weir: I love the writing on bebop spoken here... I think the work you are doing is amazing.

Postage

17602 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 16 years ago. 876 of them this year alone and, so far, 21 this month (Dec. 11).

From This Moment On ...

December

Fri 13: Dean Stockdale Trio @ Auckland Castle, Bishop Auckland. 1:00pm. £8.00.
Fri 13: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 13: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 13: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 13: Bellavana @ Revoluçion de Cuba, Newcastle. 3:00-5:00pm. Free.
Fri 13: Joe Steels Trio @ The Pele, Corbridge. 7:00pm. Free.
Fri 13: Customs House Big Band @ Stocksfield Community Association. 7:00pm. Featuring Ruth Lambert.
Fri 13: Paul Edis & Friends: A Jazzy Xmas @ St Cuthbert’s Centre, Crook. 7:30pm. £15.00.
Fri 13: Strictly Smokin’ Big Band @ Gosforth Civic Theatre, Newcastle. 8:00pm (doors 7:30pm). £19.00. + bf. First night of two.
Fri 13: Fiona's Jazz Express @ Flash House Brewing Co., Northumberland St., North Shields NE30 1DS. 8:00pm. Free. Featuring: Fiona Finden (tenor sax); Stu Finden (flugelhorn); Lara Hopper (trumpet); Keith Barrett (guitar); Andrew Porritt (double bass); Neil Hopper (drums).
Fri 13: Ransom Van @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Fri 13: Boys of Brass @ Hoochie Coochie, Newcastle. 9:00pm. £10.00.

Sat 14: Jambone @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead. 6:15pm. Free but ticketed.
Sat 14: Abbie Finn Trio @ The Vault, Darlington. 7:00pm.
Sat 14: Red Kites Jazz @ Staiths Café, Autumn Dr., Gateshead. 7:00pm. Free.
Sat 14 Lapwing Jazz Trio @ Three Sheets to the Wind, Alnwick. 7:00pm. Free.
Sat 14: Strictly Smokin’ Big Band @ Gosforth Civic Theatre, Newcastle. 8:00pm (doors 7:30pm). £19.00. + bf. Second night of two.
Sat 14: Papa G’s Troves @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.

Sun 15: Musicians Unlimited @ Jackson’s Wharf, Hartlepool. 12 noon. £8.50. Xmas party feat. Musicians Unlimited + Customs House Big Band. SOLD OUT!
Sun 15: Paul Edis & Friends: A Jazzy Xmas @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead. 2:00pm.
Sun 15: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 15: Mitch Laddie Band @ Tyne Bar, Ouseburn, Newcastle. 4:00pm. Free. Superb blues power trio.
Sun 15: Leeway @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 7:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Sun 15: Tweed River Jazz Band @ Barrels Ale House, Berwick. 7:00pm. Free.
Sun 15: Paul Edis & Friends: A Jazzy Xmas @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead. 8:00pm.
Sun 15: Alligator Gumbo @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.

Mon 16: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 16: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ The Wheatsheaf, Benton Sq., Whitley Road, Palmersville NE12 9SU. Tel: 0191 266 8137. 12 noon. £9.95. ‘Festive Turkey Dinner’. Book now: 0191 266 8137.
Mon 16: Paul Edis & Friends: A Jazzy Xmas @ The Fire Station, Sunderland. 7:30pm.

Tue 17: Paul Edis & Friends: A Jazzy Xmas @ Queen’s Hall, Hexham. 7:30pm.
Tue 17: BBC Big Band @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead. 7:30pm. ‘A Swinging Xmas’.
Tue 17: Jam session @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. House trio: Alan Law, Paul Grainger, Abbie Finn.
Tue 17: Bellavana @ Revoluçion de Cuba, Newcastle. 7:45-9:35pm. Free.

Wed 18: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 18: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 18: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.
Wed 18: Hot Club of Heaton @ Elder Beer, Heaton, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘third Wednesday in the month’ session.

Thu 19: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ Spanish City, Whitley Bay. 12 noon. £27.00. (inc. three -course meal).
Thu 19: Jazz Appreciation North East @ Brunswick Methodist Church, Newcastle NE1 7BJ. 2:00pm. £4.00. ‘Christmas comes, but once a year: seasonal tracks & annual quiz’.
Thu 19: Jude Murphy & Dan Stanley @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. Free. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Thu 19: Tees Hot Club @ Dorman’s Club, Middlesbrough. 8:30pm. Free. Guests: Josh Bentham (sax); Dan Johnson (sax); Graham Thompson (keys); Adrian Beadnell (bass).

Reviewers wanted

Whilst BSH attempts to cover as many gigs, festivals and albums as possible, to make the site even more comprehensive we need more 'boots on the ground' to cover the albums seeking review - a large percentage of which never get heard - report on gigs or just to air your views on anything jazz related. Interested? then please get in touch. Contact details are on the blog. Look forward to hearing from you. Lance

Monday, July 05, 2021

EFG London Jazz Festival 2021 programme

 (Press release)

Archie Shepp & Jason Moran: Let My People Go| Friday 12 November | Barbican  
London premiere of this intimate interchange and chemistry between two jazz virtuosos. 

Saxophone player, composer, pianist, singer, musical and political mastermind Archie Shepp and modern jazz icon, pianist, composer and multidisciplinary artist Jason Moran bring their shared devotion for the African American cultural tradition, identity and history into this musical conversation.   

 

Daniel Casimir | Friday 12 November | Purcell Room  

The award-winning bassist and Serious Take Five alum Daniel Casimir has become a regular fixture across the UK jazz scene, providing his heavyweight upright sound for the likes of Nubya Garcia, Ashley Henry, Camilla George, and Binker Golding.  

His debut full length album due out later this year is a celebration of Black British Culture and a critique of the genres, labels and stereotypes which have traditionally been placed upon Black musicians. Daniel’s EFG London Jazz Festival show will be shaped around this new music. 

 

Gwenifer Raymond| Friday 12 November | Kings Place  

Hailing from the Welsh valleys, guitarist/multi-instrumentalist Gwenifer Raymond brings her awe-inspiring technique and musicality to the Festival. 

'It makes for the perfect first gig back: transporting, beautiful, intimate and intense.’ (★★★★★ Guardian) 

 

Black Midi + Moor Mother| Friday 12 November (10.30pm) | Queen Elizabeth Hall Concrete Lates  

A special late-night Concrete Lates event as part of Pitchfork Music Festival London in collaboration with EFG London Jazz Festival. Live performances from breakthrough innovative London-based art-rock band Black Midi with support from the incomparable Moor Mother, plus DJs.  

 

Robocobra Quartet + Archipelago | Saturday 13 November | Kings Place  

The award-winning UK trio Archipelago return to the Festival following the launch of their new album ‘Echoes to the Sky’. Fronted by composer and multi-instrumentalist Faye MacCalman and completed by John Pope and Christian Alderson, Archipelago hails from North East of England’s creative underground music scene.  

Comprising Tom Taboroi and Peter Howard on saxophone, Nathan Rodgers on electric bass and drummer-vocalist Chris Ryan, Robocobra Quartet’s music is described as ‘a cunning marriage of jazz, spoken word and punk’ by Quietus. Their unmatched live performances channel moments of joy and playfulness, and periods of intense fury. 

 

Laufey | Saturday 13 November | Purcell Room 

Singer-songwriter Laufey blends sophisticated jazz melodies and slow-burning R&B grooves. Inspired by a musical family, she took up piano and cello early on. Her teenagerhood muses were Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday.   

During her prestigious Presidential Scholarship at the Berklee College of Music, she began writing her own songs and performing a mix of originals and vintage classics on online platforms, earning support from Billie Eilish and Willow Smith. 

 

Lisbon Underground Music Ensemble | Sunday 14 November | Purcell Room 

Lisbon Underground Music Ensemble is an experimental big band project composed of some of the most experienced Portuguese jazz and classical musicians, created and led by the composer Marco Barroso.  

L.U.M.E.’s music combines written composition with improvisation, and reaches from funk to textural music, from boogie woogie to impressionist environments… with a Zappa-esque twist! They are undoubtedly one of the most exceptional big bands in Europe today and EFG London Jazz Festival is extremely proud to present their debut performance on these shores.  

 

Aynur | Sunday 14 November | Barbican  

Aynur is the most prominent Kurdish singer of our times. Her impressive voice and extraordinary musical narration represent the music heritage of her cultural roots to the world.  

‘Impressive musicianship dominated by Aynur’s emotional, versatile vocals - switching from delicate to powerful and intense passages’ (★★★★★ Guardian) 

Aynur’s success has led to her collaborating with a wide range of acclaimed artists including Yo-Yo Ma, Kayhan Kalhor, Javier Limón, Kinan Azmeh and the NDR Big Band.  

 

Marcel Khalifé and Bachar Mar-Khalifé - Mahmoud, Marcel and I | Monday 15 November | Barbican  

Marcel Khalife and Bachar Mar-Khalife join together in performance to celebrate Marcel Khalife's lifetime of music and his work on Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish. 

Bachar Mar-Khalifé is a French Lebanese singer, composer and multi-instrumentalist. Born in war-torn Lebanon, he is the son of the revered oud virtuoso and composer Marcel Khalifé, an Arab cultural icon. Bachar has collaborated on many projects that fuse jazz, Arab musics, electronica and hip-hop with artists as diverse as Bojan Z, Carl Craig, Francesco Tristano and Murcof.  

 

Damon Locks - Black Monument Ensemble | Monday 15 November | EartH 

The music and dance collective Black Monument Ensemble present their new album NOW on International Anthem, in their highly anticipated first London show. 

Galvanized by Chicago-based multi-media artist/activist Damon Locks’ conceptualizing, poeticizing, and guiding vision, Black Monument Ensemble is a vibrant collective of artists, musicians, singers, and dancers from all facets of the diverse wellspring of Black artistic excellence in Chicago, bringing their unique perspectives and experiences to uplifting, anthemic, and highly animated musical performance. 

 

Shai Maestro | Monday 15 November | Cadogan Hall   
Following the release of his sixth album Human on ECM, with drummer Ofri Nehemya, bassist Jorge Roeder and trumpeter Philip Dizack, pianist and composer Shai Maestro brings his inspiring sound to the EFG London Jazz Festival.  With his unique personal identity and musical fluidity Maestro is taking the music forward while also respecting its sense of tradition. 

‘Hearing Shai Maestro is like awakening to a new world.’ (All About Jazz) 

‘Expressions of joy, introspective thoughts and heightened intensity all come to the fore’ (Downbeat)  

 

Avishai Cohen + Nikki Yeoh’s Café Oran | Tuesday 16 November | Barbican  

Following a sold-out show in EFG London Jazz Festival 2018, we’re delighted to welcome back the internationally acclaimed bassist and composer Avishai Cohen.  

Avishai has his reputation as one of the world’s sought-after bassists; but it is as a composer that his musical statement has grown extensively, attracting large live audiences, listeners and passionate fans. With this new trio line-up featuring pianist Elchin Shirinov and drummer Noam David, Avishai will be presenting his latest trio album ‘Arvoles‘. 

The opening set will feature Nikki Yeoh’s Café Oran trio project which celebrates the music of Maurice El Médioni, combining his music with her own compositions. 

 

Cécile McLorin Salvant | Tuesday 16 November | Cadogan Hall 

Two-time GRAMMY® Award-winner Cécile McLorin Salvant returns to the Festival with her new quintet featuring Marvin Sewell on guitar, Glenn Zaleski on piano, Keito Ogawa on percussion and Alexa Tarantino on alto saxophone. 

Cécile McLorin Salvant is regarded as a singular and fearless voice in music today. With her remarkable vocal technique and on-stage persona, she performs rich interpretations of familiar songs and rare treasures. 

 

London Third Stream: London Sinfonietta | Wednesday 17 November | Queen Elizabeth Hall  

The energy of jazz meets the virtuosity of contemporary classical: four stars of the London jazz scene premiere new, genre-defying ensemble pieces. Evoking the “third stream” which lies between classical and jazz, exciting new commissions by Shabaka Hutchings, Cassie Kinoshi, Elliot Galvin and Laura Jurd combine the explosive unpredictability of improvisatory jazz with the rich and versatile timbre of the London Sinfonietta ensemble, conducted by Geoffrey Paterson. 

 

Steam Down | Wednesday 17 November | The Albany 

Award-winning collective Steam Down return to the Festival. 

Hailing from South East London and founded by multi-instrumentalist, composer and producer Ahnansé, Steam Down is an artist collective, weekly event and music community based in Deptford which has quickly become a household name in London’s music scene. Formed in 2017, it has since become the bedrock for a community of all ages, one in which culture was at the foreground, genre was demystified, and pretentiousness was left at the door. 

 

Ishmael Ensemble| Wednesday 17 November | Jazz Café 

The Bristol-based collective are an explosive new force in the UK jazz scene. Led by producer and saxophonist Pete Cunningham, the group broadly experiments within the realms of jazz and electronics but boasts a diverse range of influences in defining its sound. 
 

Jasper Høiby - Planet B | Thursday 18 November | Purcell Room 

Over the past decade, Danish double bassist Jasper Høiby has become renowned for his fearlessly expressive sound, charismatic stage presence, and distinct compositional prowess – with his power trio Phronesis, his group Fellow Creatures and most recently new trio Planet B with young British saxophonist Josh Arcoleo and adventurous French drummer Marc Michel. 

Planet B’s new music takes Høiby’s compositional skills into uncharted territory, combining the dynamism and warmth of his acoustic tones with expansive electronic soundscapes. 

 

Kaki King | Thursday 18 November | Kings Place 

Brooklyn-based composer and guitarist Kaki King is considered one of the world’s greatest living guitarists, known both for her technical mastery and for her constant quest to push the boundaries of the instrument. 

 

Jason Yarde's ACOUTASTiC BOMBASTiC| Friday 19 November | Purcell Room 

ACOUTASTiC BOMBASTiC is a large ensemble featuring some of the UK's finest multi-instrumentalists and musical mavericks. Helmed by composer, arranger, producer and Musical Director Jason Yarde  

Within the ranks of the ensemble lurks a saxophone quartet, a string ensemble and a choir, that can collectively groove, float, swing and potentially travel the globe from one measure to the next. They will be premiering new explorations as a 10+ piece ensemble with a host of collaborators to be revealed.  

 

The Westbrook Blake - settings of the poetry of William Blake by Mike Westbrook | Friday 19 November | Cadogan Hall 

We celebrate Mike Westbrook's 85th birthday year by bringing back to the concert hall what the IoS called "perhaps the greatest work in all British jazz".   

The Westbrook Blake (also known in different versions as Glad Day and Bright As Fire) is one of Mike Westbrook's most joyous and powerful works.  This concert features the two original singers, Kate Westbrook and Phil Minton: Mike Westbrook leads his own band with a choir directed by Paul Ayres. 

 

Piazzolla x100 Quartet with Daniel “Pipi” Piazzolla| Friday 19 November | Wigmore Hall 

An authentic homage to Tango luminary Astor Piazzolla's legacy, on the occasion of his first centenary, Piazzolla x100 is more than a tribute, a celebration of his music.  

Featuring his grandson Daniel "Pipi" Piazzolla on drums, project’s musical director Federico Lechner on piano, Claudio Constantini on bandoneon and additional arrangements, and Antonio Miguel on double bass, this concert unleashes the jazzy soul of the Argentinian genius, taking Tango through improvisation and exquisitely crafted rework. 

 
Soweto Kinch & London Symphony Orchestra: The Black Peril | Friday 19 November | Barbican  The Black Peril is a dynamic work by Soweto Kinch, inspired by the sounds of ragtime, proto-jazz, West Indian folk music and the classical works of black composers of the period. It revisits a time of momentous social change, also exploring connecting strands to modern forms of dance music including hip hop and trap.  
 
The premiere of this new work took place in EFG London Jazz Festival in 2019 as a co-commission by Serious, London Symphony Orchestra and supported as a part of Help Musicians UK’s Giant Steps scheme and Cockayne Grant for the Arts. The new orchestral version arranged and developed by Soweto Kinch and LSO will be premiered on this occasion. 

 

Charles Lloyd + Nérija | Saturday 20 November | Barbican Charles Lloyd is an essential leading light amongst the living jazz saxophone legends that includes Wayne Shorter and Sonny Rollins. He has spent his entire career on a journey to explore the spiritual realms of wonder and beauty.  In his career spanning over six decades, he worked with jazz, blues and rock giants including B.B. King, Lucinda Williams, Ornette Coleman, Don Cherry, Charlie Haden, Eric Dolphy, The Byrds and The Grateful Dead. 

In this concert Charles Lloyd will be accompanied by a powerful band featuring Gerald Clayton on piano, Reuben Rogers on double-bass and Kendrick Scott on drums, he performs music from a career spanning over six decades. 

Opening set from septet Nérija - taking their pulse from myriad genres - hip hop to afrobeat and township music, European classical to soul - a defiantly multi-faceted and unique sound, drawing as much from Georgia Anne Muldrow as they do Arthur Russell, Duke Ellington and Eric Lau. 

 

Brad Mehldau Trio | Sunday 21 November | Barbican 

Over the last two decades, pianist Brad Mehldau has forged a path which embodies the essence of jazz exploration, classical romanticism, and pop allure. His unquestionable leadership across idioms has grown as he has transformed the paradigm of jazz and classical performance – performing here with his trio. 
Showcasing his diversity and undeniable voice, Mehldau has also had notable collaborations with Pat Metheny, Anne Sofie von Otter, Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, Renee Fleming, Britten Sinfonia, Kevin Hays, Jeremy Denk and Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra. With his rigorous intellect feeding an inspired range of expression and intensity, Mehldau leaves his worldwide audience eager for his next foray. 

 

Fusing Forces: Yazz Ahmed and the BBC Concert Orchestra| Sunday 21 November | Queen Elizabeth Hall 

Trailblazing trumpeter Yazz Ahmed joins forces with the BBC Concert Orchestra at the Festival. 

The British-Bahraini performer and composer brings her boundless musical ingenuity to a collaboration with the orchestra and its Grammy-winning Principal Conductor, Bramwell Tovey. The concert presents new orchestrations of Ahmed’s evocative, colourful works, joined by the artist and her quintet. 

‘This is clearly one of the most important pieces of music in any genre to appear this year’ (Glide Magazine) 

 

Website.

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EFG International is a global private banking group offering private banking and asset management services and is headquartered in Zurich. EFG International's group of private banking businesses operates in around 40 locations worldwide. Its registered shares (EFGN) are listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange.  
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