Newcastle Festival of Jazz and Improvised Music 2023

The seventh annual Newcastle Festival of Jazz and Improvised Music 2023 will take place this year over three weekends at various venues across the city.

Artistic Director and Festival Producer, Wesley Stephenson, said: Launched in 2017, the festival continues to respond to the city’s appetite for a contemporary grass roots jazz festival, presenting an innovative and diverse international line up, celebrating and pushing boundaries that challenge perceptions of jazz and improvised music. 

This year we welcome new performance spaces including the Jesmond United Reformed Church  and Blank Studios, alongside our regular venues Bobiks, the Globe and the Newcastle Literary  and Philosophical Society. 

We are also especially delighted to include three performances from the Edith Adamson Carillon at Newcastle Civic Centre. A landmark on the Newcastle Skyline the carillon is the heaviest of its  kind in the world, with a total metal

mass of 22 tonnes, what a treat to hear the 25 bells ringing  out across the city through a specially commissioned festival piece for our three weekends.  

We continue to work with our lead partners Jazz North East, but also other key regional promoters  including Jazz.Coop, GemArts and the Thursday Night Prayer

Meeting. 

Alongside British and International UK based artists this year we’re delighted to be bringing  musicians from Italy, Switzerland, France and multiple Scandinavian regions.  

Newcastle Festival of Jazz and Improvised Music gratefully acknowledges Arts Council England,  associated partners and funders for their support. 

Our festival this year is dedicated in memory of Steve Horowitz who recently passed, a tireless  supporter of the Tyneside jazz scene who will be sadly missed but never forgotten. We hope you enjoy the show!  Wesley Stephenson (Artistic Director and Festival Producer)

Artists:

Jon Bradley with Paul Taylor 

Three Tsuru Origami  

Paul Edis with Graeme Wilson 

Zoe Rahman Band  

John Pope Quintet  

Late Girl  

Shapeshifters 

Sarah Gail Brand/Cath Roberts/Andy Champion/Mark Sanders/David Birchall /Thomas Dixon/John Pope 

Alcyona Mick  

Balo  

Moonfish  

Semay Wu  

Mimam 

Maja Bugge with Sarah Niccols 

Olivia Moore with Adam Fairhall 

Rie Nakajima  

Samuel Blaser Trio  

Laura Toxværd with Jeppe Zeeberg  

Atzi Muramatsu and Fritz Welch  

Ubunye  

Zoë Gilby Quintet with Tony Kofi 

FULL PROGRAMME.