Artists

Alcyona Mick Quintet (Jazz Services Promoters' Choice)

Young pianist, composer and arranger Alcyona is emerging as an original new voice on the British jazz scene.

Her piano style has links to Thelonius Monk and Ahmad Jamal, and her distinctive compositions seem to straddle classic hard bop, Don Byron-like reflections on the almost trad, and the street rhythms of hip-hop and contemporary R&B.
John Fordham (The Guardian).

She has a superb line up: Mark Hanslip (sax), Robbie Robson (trumpet), Paul Clarvis (drums) and Steve Watts (bass).

Free Spirits (Jazz Services Promoters' Choice)

Free Spirits are aiming to not only create surprising and stimulating music, but are seeking new ways of musical interaction between musicians of differing musical styles and cultures. This exciting ensemble brings together four virtuoso musicians - Dharambir Singh (sitar), Lewis Watson (saxophones), Bhupinder Singh Chaggar (tabla and electric percussion) and Neil Harland (double and electric bass) - from the world of jazz, rock, pop, folk and classical Indian music to explore and expand the boundaries of Eastern and Western musical culture.

A Tribute to Atlantic Jazz

'A Tribute to Atlantic Jazz', led by Jim Corrie pays tribute to the record label that in the 1960's and early 70's embraced the period of 'soul jazz' and produced a new generation of jazz musicians which included Cannonball and Nat Adderley, Horace Silver and Bobby Timmons.

Less well known are Leroy 'hog' Cooper, Hank Crawford, Donald Wilkerson, David 'Fathead' Newman, Marcus Belgrave and James Clay, all at some time veterans of Ray Charles' band who said: 'These cats are up there with Coltrane and Miles...'

'A Tribute to Atlantic Jazz' is an exciting seven-piece band that honours these great musicians.

The BBC Big Band with Clare Teal

The BBC Big Band is one of the most potent forces in music making and is probably best known for its regular Monday night Radio 2 show Big Band Special and its performances on BBC Radio 3's Jazz Line Up. The band has appeared in concert with many great stars including Ray Charles, George Benson, Tony Bennett, George Shearing, Michel Legrand, Phil Woods, Joe Lovano, Cleo Laine and Manhattan Transfer and collaborated with some of the world's great jazz composers such as Bob Brookmeyer, Abdullah Ibrahim and Michael Gibbs.

The BBC Big Band recently won the 'Best Big Band Award' at the 2007 British Jazz Awards.

Clare Teal was British Jazz Vocalist of the Year in 2005 and 2007 and BBC Jazz Vocalist of the Year in 2006. Her breakthrough album 'Don't Talk' topped the British jazz charts and cracked the UK Top 20, shipping 60,000 copies and winning several awards, Critical acclaim poured in from the jazz media and Michael Parkinson, who gave her heavy rotation on his Radio 2 programme. Clare further strengthened her relationship with Radio 2 presenting the Big Band Special series and 'Clare Teal's Jazz Divas'.

Julie Edwards and Kevin Dearden Quintet

This vocalist and saxophone/guitar pair are long time favourites of Scarborough jazz fans. They have produced three CD's which have been featured on Michael Parkinson's and Humphrey Lyttelton's shows on BBC Radio 2 and on local radio stations in the UK and elsewhere. Together they have played to enthusiastic and ever increasing audiences all over the UK at many festivals, including the Cleethorpes, Wigan, Birmingham, Cork, Keswick and Scarborough Jazz festivals, as well as dozens of jazz venues including the award winning Wakefield Jazz.

Jamil Sheriff Octet

Pianist JamilSheriff leads a fine, hard-hitting, post-bop inflenced ensemble that has been taking the country by storm for the last four years and whose second album 'Backchat' has received rave reviews:

'The music is both swinging and sophisticated, with Sheriff showing himself once again to be a constantly inventive arranger'.
(Jazz UK)

The vitality of Sheriff?s horn writing has been making waves for a while'.
(The Guardian)

Jamil has worked with Tina May, Pete King, Don Weller, Alan Barnes, Jim Mullen, Dave Green and many more.

BBC Radio 3's Jazz Line Up

Presented by Claire Martin and featuring music from Lawrence Cottle (bass) Mark Nightingale (trombone) Ian Thomas (drums) Graham Harvey (keyboard) Plus the latest jazz news, interviews and recordings.

Admission Free.

Guy Barker Jazz Orchestra - The Amadeus Project

This project contains music inspired by the stories of Mozart's operas and combines two of Guy Barker's recent commissions, one for San Diego's 'Mainly Mozart Festival' and another for BBC Radio 3's 'Jazz Line Up'. The full Amadeus suite will be played and additionally it will be a Scarborough premiere for two rearranged pieces that have not been performed before in the UK.

Guy Barker is nominated for three different categories in this year's BBC Jazz Awards. He has played with the world's greats including: Mel Torme, Liza Minelli, Sammy Davis Jr, Frank Sinatra, Blur, Elvis Costello, George Michael, Van Morrison, Robbie Williams, Sting, Willard White, Lesley Garrett and the London Symphony Orchestra.

Curious: Tom Cawley Trio

This outstanding piano trio led by Tom Cawley has made a striking impact on the UK jazz scene. The distinctive sound of Curios owes all to the group's chemistry and unrivalled interplay between the musicians. Multiple award-winning pianist Tom Cawley, a member of Acoustic Ladyland and Charlie Watts' Tentet and Professor of Jazz Piano at the Royal Academy of Music, is joined by Ronnie Scott's bassist Sam Burgess, and the phenomenally talented Joshua Blackmore on drums.

Guy Barker Jazz Orchestra - Sound in Black and White

In this second set the orchestra will be playing a brand new arrangement of "Sounds in Black and White" a piece which Guy wrote seven years ago. This has previously been performed at the Barbican and also broadcast by the BBC. And this will be a rare opportunity to hear the haunting sound of the wonderful Theremin, a space controlled electric instrument.

Guy has written a brand new piece, especially for the festival, which is dedicated to the two Vikings who first discovered Scarborough. Another premier for the festival.

Courtney Pine: Transition in Tradition - A Tribute to Sidney Bechet

Winner of '2007 Best Jazz Act' at the Urban Music Awards saxophonist Courtney Pine has remained at the forefront of the UK Jazz scene for more than twenty years. Why Bechet? 'Why not?' says Courtney, 'He was the first jazz saxophone star and I believe jazz icons like this should never be forgotten'.

With his star-studded septet, Courtney will reflect on the tremendous legacy of this inspirational virtuoso and reaffirm his belief that the legacy of jazz is an on-going ever developing art. 'In A Class of His Own' (The Times) Not to be missed!

Gareth Roberts Quintet

'Trombonist Gareth Roberts lusty quintet from Wales got the Jazz Services Promoter's Choice event off to a flying start on the first weekend of the London Jazz Festival - with a Mingus-like ferocity and even a nod to Clark Terry and Bob Brookmeyer'.
(Jazz UK)

Gareth's main trombone influences have been Jimmy Knepper and Gary Valente and compositionally he draws from Charles Mingus - 'the balance he manages to get between arrangement and improvisation is perfect' - Horace Silver and Dave Holland.

Tango Siempre

The UK's leading tango ensemble Tango Siempre features Huw Warren (accordion), Ros Stephen (violin), Jonathan Taylor (piano), Richard Pryce (double bass), and Milo Fell (drums/electronics). Tango Siempre's music is passionate, intense, soulful and unique, breathing new life into nuevo tango with fiery improvisation, sparkling collective interplay and solid grooves.

'... intense, epic and beautiful'
(Independent on Sunday)

'...a brilliant fusion of classical, tango, jazz and roots'
(The Guardian)

'...a rich, hot-blooded brew full of passionate melody, punctilious detail and bravura wit... uniquely exciting and beautiful music
(**** MOJO)

Empirical

Empirical has become one of the most talked-about young jazz ensembles in Europe with Courtney Pine describing them as '... the most exciting jazz band to come out of the UK'.

They walked away with awards in 2007: Jazzwise Album of the Year (ahead of Michael Brecker and Wynton Marsalis); Mojo Jazz Album of the Year; Winner of the European Broadcasting Union Jazz Competition and the Peter Whittingham Award. Trumpet and alto sax front a quintet that is innovative, sophisticated and stylish and at the forefront of an exciting new wave of emerging British jazz.

Alan Barnes' Ellingtonians

This new all-star Octet plays the lesser-known compositions of Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn. The arrangements were written by Ellington authority Tony Faulkner and the resulting charts were recorded for an album 'Harlem Airshaft' on Woodville Records. All the musicians in the band are staunch individualists and have a great affinity for the music of the Duke. 'This has got to be the most exciting band I've ever put together' says Alan Barnes who has won 18 separate British Jazz Awards and was voted Best Instrumentalist at the BBC Jazz Awards in 2001 and 2006.

Claire Martin and Gareth Williams Trio

Acclaimed as the best ever British jazz singer by the leading American publication Jazz Times Magazine, Claire Martin possesses a peerless sense of swing, pure tone and a true improvisor's ear, while her off the cuff wit brings a dash of humour to her fabulous stage performances. She couldn't have better backing than Gareth Williams ( 'the cream of British jazz piano' Metro), the practically unmatched combination of virtuosity, musicianship and top-level creativity of bassist Laurence Cottle, and the solid, powerhouse groove and boundless energy of drummer Chris Dagley.