Pete Horsfall (trumpet, vocals); Adrian Cox (clarinet,
vocals); Honey Boulton (guitar); Tom Ward (piano); Simon Read
(double bass) plus a choir of Hackney primary schoolchildren
A wonderful
seasonal evening in London at the beautiful St Peter’s Church De Beauvoir
organised by De Beauvoir Jazz Festival and in support of Médecins Sans Frontières. The evening opened with a talk by a doctor who had worked for Médecins Sans Frontières explaining the work they do and her work with this organisation. An all star
quintet of internationally renowned jazz musicians from the UK had been put
together for this concert most of whom needed no introduction.
This concert took place on the back of a very successful De Beauvoir Jazz Festival in July 2025 which included multiple concerts at various venues in the area to include not only St Peter’s but also the Scolt Head which acted as an HQ for the festival. The Festival organisers were responsible for this event with of course the support of the church which was packed to the rafters.
The evening
opened with an extended and very jazzy version of the Christmas carol Silent
Night which put a packed audience in a Christmas mood from the outset. Next
followed I Cover the Waterfront with Adrian Cox featuring on clarinet
although throughout the concert all musicians had solos. I enjoyed the
interplay between Adrian on clarinet and Pete on trumpet on God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen.
Mel Tormé wrote
the classic number The Christmas Song in
45 minutes in 1945 and it was made famous by Nat King Cole who recorded it four
times. The quintet made a fine job of this song. Set one concluded with Christmas
Time in New Orleans.
The choir of
Hackney schoolchildren performed two songs with great gusto and enthusiasm with
backing from the musicians. Whilst a rehearsal had taken place with the
musicians earlier in the day Pete Horsfall made it clear the children had been
so well taught by their teacher only a short rehearsal had been necessary.
These two songs were Yakety Yak and We Three Kings.
The last three
tunes of the concert were the Milenberg Joys a song by Jelly Roll Morton
and the two Christmas favourites Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas and
White Christmas.
All five excelled. I had seen all the musicians previously but Tom Ward only
once in a duo setting. He is quickly making a name for himself and a few days
after this concert he was playing at the Royal Albert Hall with Guy Barker’s
Big Band. Peter and Honey had a couple of nights before this concert played
with Jamie Cullum at the Royal Albert Hall. Simon Read is in high demand as a
double bass player and as Pete said when introducing Adrian he, Adrian has played with everyone
including the Lincoln Center Orchestra led by Wynton Marsalis.
A brilliant
concert for a very worthwhile cause splendidly organised and supported. Richard Morris
Set list: Silent
Night; I Cover the Waterfront; God
Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen; The Christmas Song; Christmas Time in New Orleans; Yakety Yak; We Three Kings; Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas; The
Milenberg Joys; White Christmas
St Peter’s
Church, De Beauvoir Town, London N1 4DA
stpeterdebeauvoir.org.uk
De Beauvoir Jazz Festival 11-12 July 2026 tickets www.eventbrite.co.uk Instagram @debeauvoirjazzfestival
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