Bebop Spoken There

Gary Bartz: ''Music is nature's gift to man. It's the only religion. We're living in a terrible era, but what a beautiful thing music is. Look how it brings us together like religion is supposed to; and with no language barriers.'' (Jazzwise September, 2026)

The Things They Say!

This is a good opportunity to say thanks to BSH for their support of the jazz scene in the North East (and beyond) - it's no exaggeration to say that if it wasn't for them many, many fine musicians, bands and projects across a huge cross section of jazz wouldn't be getting reviewed at all, because we're in the "desolate"(!) North. (M & SSBB on F/book 23/12/24)

Postage

18918 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 18 years ago. 782 of them this year alone and, so far this month (Sept. 18.) 61.

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

From This Moment On

September.

Sun 27: Salty Dog @ The Cluny. 12:30pm (doors). Free (donations).
Sun 27: Musicians Unlimited @ West Hartlepool RFC. 1:00pm. Free.
Sun 27: Zach Sewell-Lara Hopper Quintet @ Queen’s Hall, Hexham. 3:00pm. £12.00., £10.00.
Sun 27: Sun 27: Ruth Lambert Trio @ The Juke Shed, North Shields. 3:00pm. Free. RESCHEDULED to Sunday 4 October.
Sun 27: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 27: Alex Hitchcock Quartet @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £16.00., £14.00. A Newcastle Festival of Jazz & Improvised Music event.

Mon 28: Friends of Jazz @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.

Tue 29: Tenderly: The Life & Times of Nat ‘King’ Cole @ Hepscott Parish Hall. 7:30pm. . £15.00., £12.00. (Early Bird advance ticket), £10.00. Off-Broadway production feat. Duane Forrest.
Tue 29: Red Kites Jazz @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Wed 30: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 30: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 30: Tenderly: The Life & Times of Nat ‘King’ Cole @ The Hearth, Horsley. 7:30pm. £15.00., £12.00. (Early Bird advance ticket), £10.00. Off-Broadway production feat. Duane Forrest.
Wed 30: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.
Wed 30: New Ways of Moving in the Counterworlds + Juliana Day & Manon McCoy + Helen Anahita Wilson @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead. 8:00pm. A BBC Introducing-Newcastle Festival of Jazz & Improvised Music event.

October

Thu 01: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ The Millstone, Mill Rise, South Gosforth, Newcastle. 1:00pm. Free.
Thu 01: Rivkala @ King’s Hall, Newcastle University. 1:15pm. Free.
Thu 01: Jazz Appreciation North East @ Brunswick Methodist Church, Newcastle NE1 7BJ. 2:00pm. £5.00.
Thu 01: Hot Club de Heaton @ Newcastle Arts Centre. 7:30pm. Free (donations).
Thu 01: The Scenic Route @ Dorman’s Club, Middlesbrough. 8:30pm. Free.

Fri 02: Alison Gill + Markrokosmos @ The Lit & Phil, Newcastle. 1:00pm. Newcastle Festival of Jazz & Improvised Music (NFOJAIM).
Fri 02: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 02: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 02: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 02: Gilby & Hunter + Andy Champion @ The Lit & Phil, Newcastle. 6:00pm. NFOJAIM.
Fri 02: Abbie Finn Quartet @ Saltburn Community Hall. 7:30pm. The Abbie Finn Trio augmented by Dean Stockdale (piano).
Fri 02: Alexia Gardner Trio @ Warkworth Memorial Hall. 7:30pm. £15.00.
Fri 02: Zoe Rahman Trio @ The Lit & Phil, Newcastle. 8:00pm. NFOJAIM. SOLD OUT!

Sat 03: New Orleans Ragtime Band @ St Augustine’s Parish Centre, Darlington. 12:30pm. £10.00. Darlington New Orleans Jazz Club. Gavin Lee & co.
Sat 03: Anemone Quartet + Jeepe Zeeburg @ The Lit & Phil, Newcastle. 1:00pm. NFOJAIM.
Sat 03: Play Jazz! workshop @ The Globe, Newcastle. 1:30pm. £27.50. Tutor: Steve Glendinning. Caravan. Enrol at: learning@jazz.coop.
Sat 03: Struggle Buggy @ The Peacock, Sunderland. 6:00pm. Free. Excellent blues band.
Sat 03: Bright Street Big Band @ Washington Arts Centre. 6:30pm. £12.50 (inc. bf). Two sets: 7:30-8:15pm & 8:45-9:30pm. ‘Swing Band Dance Night’.
Sat 03: Olie Brice Quartet + Alexander Hawkins + Harper Trio @ The Lit & Phil, Newcastle. 7:00pm. NFOJAIM.
Sat 03: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Red Lion, Earsdon. 8:00pm. £3.00.

Tuesday, January 27, 2026

Press release: North Sea Jazz Festival To Celebrate Historic 50th Anniversary With Star-Studded Line-Up

The NN North Sea Jazz Festival, the world’s largest indoor music festival, returns to Rotterdam’s Ahoy Centre from July 10 – 12, 2026 to celebrate its 50th anniversary with a landmark edition featuring legendary jazz icons, boundary-pushing innovators, and the brightest emerging talent.

Fifty years ago, on July 16 1976, the very first North Sea Jazz Festival opened its doors with six venues, 300 musicians, and around 9000 visitors, and featuring luminaries including Sarah Vaughan, Count Basie, Dizzy Gillespie, and Stan Getz. Since then, the festival has become a cornerstone of international music culture, presenting around 1300 artists across 17 stages to an audience of up to 90,000 each year.

 

The first wave of artists confirmed for this summer includes jazz innovators such as Cassandra Wilson, Charles Lloyd Quartet, Esperanza Spalding, Joshua Redman with his Quartet, Nils Petter Molvær’s Khmer, Steve Coleman & Five Elements, Sun Ra Arkestra, Hiromi's Sonicwonder, and Pat Metheny.

 

Several large-scale and collaborative projects will also feature including Snarky Puppy performing their Somni project with the Metropole Orkest conducted by Jules Buckley, and Marcus Miller’s We Want Miles! The Reunion Tour 2026, featuring Mike Stern, Bill Evans, Mino Cinelu, Russell Gunn, Brett Williams and Anwar Marshall.

 

Artists returning to the festival include Amaro Freitas Trio, Bill Frisell Trio & Greg Tardy, Diana Krall and James Brandon Lewis Quartet while artists making their North Sea debut include Alex Isley, Asaf Avidan, Carrtoons, Sienna Spiro and Adrian Younge.

 

The 2026 edition will reflect the festival’s rich history while celebrating its ongoing influence across jazz, soul, R&B and contemporary music. Chart-topping and Grammy-winning stars such as Charlie Puth, The Roots, John Legend, Nile Rodgers & CHIC, The Isley Brothers, Jon Batiste, Questlove, Joy Crookes and Annie & The Caldwells are also lined up to perform.

 

Across three days, NN North Sea Jazz will present more than 150 performances, alongside workshops, interviews, artist signing sessions, showcases for emerging talent and a programme of visual art. Fifty years on, the festival remains a meeting point for the past, present and future of jazz and its many intersections.

 

NN North Sea Jazz Festival takes place July 10th – 12th 2026 at Rotterdam Ahoy. Tickets available from www.northseajazzfestival.com.

 

NN North Sea Jazz Festival 2026 Line-Up (more names to be announced in due course):

 

Friday 10 July

Asaf Avidan
Bilal
Diana Krall
esperanza spalding
Grace Bowers
Jalen Ngonda
James Brandon Lewis Quartet
Jon Batiste
Joshua Redman Quartet
Patricia Brennan Septet
Questlove & Friends
Sienna Spiro
Snarky Puppy & Metropole Orkest conducted by Jules Buckley
Steve Coleman & Five Elements
The Isley Brothers
The Roots with special guests Bilal and Jon Batiste
Vincen Garcia

Saturday 11 July

Alain Pérez y la Orquesta
Adekunle Gold
Alex Isley
Amaro Freitas Trio
Anouar Brahem 'After the Last Sky' with Django Bates, Anja Lechner and Mats Eilertsen
Bill Frisell Trio & Greg Tardy
Cassandra Wilson
Charlie Puth
Estrella Morente
Incognito
Joy Crookes
Kiefer
Marcus Miller presents We Want Miles! with Mike Stern, Bill Evans, Mino Cinelu, Russell Gunn, Brett Williams, and Anwar Marshall
NILS PETTER MOLVÆR - KHMER
Riley Mulherkar Quartet
Selah Sue and The Gallands
Sun Ra Arkestra


Sunday 12 July

Adrian Younge 'Something About April III'
Annie & The Caldwells
Carrtoons
Charles Lloyd Quartet
Fred Hersch Trio
Frenna & The Gang
Hiromi's Sonicwonder 
John Legend
Kris Davis Trio
KWN
Mari Froes
Mei Semones
Nate Smith
Nile Rodgers & CHIC
Pat Metheny
RYMDEN - Bugge Wesseltoft, Dan Berglund, Magnus Öström
SML

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