Jazzwiseの May 2026 の目次

One of the first jazz albums I ever bought was a second hand copy of Decoy by Miles Davis. I still own it on vinyl, complete with its gatefold sleeve and the minimalist Miles paintings inside – admittedly it’s a thin 1980s pressing, and from a critically maligned phase of his output. Listening again now, though, the music has a surprising punch; it’s Darryl Jones’s bass that slaps hardest in the mix. As a fledgling electric bassist myself, Jones’s sparse lines intrigued me, as did the single-chord intensity of the title track’s unrelenting vamp. Like so many who encounter Miles, my life intersected with his music at a formative stage. And while many critics hated – and still hate – this period of his work, his impeccable choice of sidemen…

Just take a long, long look at this Melody Maker advert from 29 October 1967, stand back and take a deep breath! Never before, or arguably since, has there been such a heavyweight line-up of musicians who not only wrote jazz history, but were in the process of writing its future too. And closing the week out was the Miles Davis Quintet’s first UK date following their explosive stay at Chicago’s Plugged Nickel in December 1965. By January 1968 Fender Rhodes electric piano became a mainstay of the quintet’s sound and the road to In A Silent Way had begun. But on that autumnal October night in 1967, as the Summer of Love drew to a close, they had Archie Shepp with Rosewell Rudd to keep them on their toes.…

Buxton International Festival, which runs from 9 to 26 July, has announced details of its 2026 programme, with an expanded jazz strand taking centre stage alongside more than 160 events across opera, classical music, and books. New jazz director Wesley Stephenson launches the festival with a dedicated Jazz Weekender featuring an array of leading names. Headliners include Courtney Pine, Darius Brubeck, Laura Jurd, the Tony Kofi and Denys Baptiste Quintet, and Josephine Davies with Satori and Alcyona Mick. A new late-night series at The Old Clubhouse presents sets from the Gaz Hughes Piano Trio, the Blind Monk Trio, and Hannah Brine with Bim Williams. The Arun Ghosh Quintet and Andrew McCormack Trio also feature across the festival. Commenting on the jazz programme, Stephenson said: "We're living in an incredible period…

The Glorious Assembly Jazz Orchestra, featuring a host of top British jazz musicians, has been put together by Emmy Award-winning film composer David Mitcham for a special concert of his original works in May. This one-off concert will take place at 7pm on Saturday 2 May at The Tithe Barn, Messums West Art Gallery, Court Street, Tisbury in Wiltshire. It follows the formation of the Glorious Assembly Orchestra at London’s British Grove studios in 2025 to record a programme of Mitcham’s new music. The orchestra features a who’s who of UK names, including trumpeters Laura Jurd and Louis Dowdeswell; saxophonists Phil Meadows, Mark Lockheart, Tori Freestone and Claire McInerney; trombonists Mark Nightingale, Callum Au and Andy Wood; flute Gareth Lockrane; clarinet Michael White and Steve Morris; piano Gareth Williams; guitar…

“Miles Davis came to me in a dream and told me he loves jungle.” Emma-Jean Thackray is onstage at Ronnie Scott’s, trumpet in hand, a mixing console to her left, a table colonised by a tambourine, a bundle of seed chimes and a mug of tea to her right. It’s her intro to ‘Tutu’, the final tune in a new show she’s titled Dear Miles, after which – boom! – the 1980s electronic classic comes reimagined with clubby breakbeats and thudding basslines moving densely under that soulful, muted horn. This, then, is Miles Davis, done the EJT way. The Mercury-nominated auteur – a trumpeter, producer, bandleader, composer, multi-instrumentalist, DJ, visual artist, more – has said that stumbling upon Davis by accident as a tween shaped her career path. There she…

Terry Callier At The Earl Of Old Town Time Traveler (LP) Terry Callier (v, g). Rec. 1967 Although by no means a commercial success, Terry Callier’s auspicious 1965 debut The New Folk Sound Of Terry Callier saw the Chicago singer lay down a marker as an important artist working at the populist end of American music. He would go on to create a body of work that had deft sophistication and sumptuous orchestrations but this dazzling performance at The Earl Of Old Town, an historic folk club in the Windy City, shows that Callier was perhaps never better than when on stage with an acoustic guitar and no band at all. Despite the very audible background chatter, Callier’s powerful tone, rising to a righteous gospel shout at opportune moments, and…

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NAME: JEMIMA WHYTE INSTRUMENT: SAXOPHONE EXPERIENCE AND INFLUENCES: Having started playing saxophone at the age of nine, Jemima Whyte is now making her mark as a bandleader, fronting her own seven-piece jazz/soul outfit. She has already been seen at the Jazz Cafe, 100 Club, Love Supreme Festival and Jazz re:freshed, and plays with Orchard, The Five Points Project and Beluga. With upcoming appearances at Pizza Express Jazz Club Soho and the Brighton Fringe Festival, where she supports Oli Howe, her trajectory continues to build. Jemima also hosts a monthly female-led jam at 91 Brick Lane, contributing to the next wave of London’s jazz scene. THIS FUTURE MOVER SAYS: “Being part of the vibrant London jazz scene inspires me so much. I love being surrounded by so many creative, positive people who…

Montgomeryshire in mid-Wales is not exactly known as a hotbed of contemporary jazz – but that could change with the emergence of the Will Barnes Quartet. A 14-date tour of Wales and the west of England followed the release of their second album, Outside the Light (reviewed in the Jazzwise Dec/Jan issue). It revealed dazzling chops and sophisticated writing, along with a welcome lightness of touch. All the more surprising, then, that Barnes himself is an erstwhile metalhead. From the age of 17, he played in a thrash metal band, doing gigs “for no money and a bag of beers” at the Underworld and the Purple Turtle in London’s Camden, and travelling to headbanging clubs in Liverpool, Manchester and Birmingham. “Musically my journey into jazz began through a chance encounter…

In Cuba, jazz has never stood still. As good jazz does, it breathes, mutates, absorbs and reforms. And right now, set against a backdrop of the worst economic and humanitarian crises in the beleaguered island’s history – intensified by the orange madman in the Whitehouse tightening the decades-old US embargo – it endures as something more than music: a lifeline. “My country is suffering difficulties that I have never experienced before – ever,” says the Grammy-nominated jazz pianist and composer Roberto Fonseca, 51, at home in Havana – a loft apartment inside a former cigar factory. He has just returned from a successful tour of Hong Kong and Australia, performing his 2023 album La Gran Diversión – an acclaimed tribute to Cuba’s golden era – with UK and European shows…

Julian Argüelles Echo Fields Escapade Records/Proper ES26 (CD, LP, DL) EDITOR’S CHOICE Julian Argüelles (ts, ss), Larry Grenadier (b) and Jorge Rossy (d). Rec. 18 May 2025 In a world of complexity, what pleasure it is to let music flow through, over and around you. Argüelles has always played with soul, searching the heart of a melody. And now with ostensibly the simplest of jazz line-ups, a chord-free trio, he’s pared his music to its essence. Moreover, as Argüelles reflected with this correspondent, “I’ve just turned 60! And I think with that and losing a couple of friends has made me feel quite sentimental about times, friends and music from the past.” All of which pours into ‘Blues for Dudu’, dedicated to Dudu Pukwana who was such an inspiration to…

Cheltenham Jazz Festival has announced the full line-up for its ‘Around Town’ free programme, offering a wealth of performances across the picturesque spa town’s participating venues from Friday 1 May to Monday 4 May. With the Yamaha Free Stage in Montpellier Gardens serving as a central hub, the programme features a mix of rising stars, community groups, and late-night sessions and complements the wider programme. The Yamaha Stage kicks off on the Friday (1 May) with gifted Gloucester-raised, New York-based keyboardist/multiinstrumentalist Roella Oloro and her Trio (1.30pm), which features drummer Andee Liu and bassist Rio Kai. The afternoon continues with sets from The Music Works artists Chaka (2.45pm) and Crispin (4pm), before a performance from the dynamic Aria Soul (5.15pm), who also appears at the DEYA Arena the following day.…

The sun is shining and there’s blossom on the trees – and despite the horrors of the news cycle – there are some rather tasty albums on the horizon… first up on the Jazzwise radar is a striking new ECM set from sax don Joe Lovano who leads his fresh sounding Paramount Quartet (released May 29), which features a mouth-watering line up of guitarist Julian Lage, Asante Santi Debriano on bass and drummer Will Calhoun, the latter best known for his role with jazz-rock icons Living Colour – here sounding extremely at home with this airy four-piece and bringing some delicate thunder to this high-level session. Commenting on the album Lovano quipped: “I feel like at this point I’m on the rise. We’ve arrived at this unique place with this…

1. Well-Tempered Clavier Book 1 by J.S. Bach performed by András Schiff (1987) “Bach is a constant in my musical life. The intricate design and expressive beauty are endlessly rewarding. I return to this music more than anything else – every listen reveals something new and deepens my understanding.” 2. Relaxin’ with the Miles Davis Quintet by Miles Davis (1958) “Ultra-swingin', outstanding musicianship and ultimately timeless. The epitome of straight ahead jazz.” 3. Graceland by Paul Simon (1986) “To choose any one Paul Simon album is sacrilegious, but this would have to be my desert island disc. Full of joy and energy, shaped by South African influences, with Ladysmith Black Mambazo stealing the show. It’s a summer album I return to every year without fail.” 4. My Funny Valentine by…

Digital radio platform One Jazz is to mark the centenary of Miles Davis’s birth with a two-day continuous broadcast dedicated entirely to the trumpeter’s life and music. 'Miles Runs the Weekend Down' takes place across 23 and 24 May 2026, and is described by the station as one of the most ambitious radio tributes to Davis ever attempted. More than 30 of the station’s regular hosts will contribute programmes across the 48 hours, each approaching Davis’s legacy through the lens of their own specialism. DJ Lubi’s Latin-focused Manteca turns to Latin reinterpretations of Davis classics, while Daniel Spicer’s free jazz show examines Davis’s more experimental work. Caroline Fontanieu, host of The ECM Records Podcast, traces Davis’s influence across the label’s catalogue, and Tony Higgins explores Miles’s longstanding connection with Japan…

The Gilmore – renowned for its prestigious Gilmore Artist Award, often called the “Nobel Prize of piano” – has unveiled the full lineup for the 2026 Irving S. Gilmore International Piano Festival, marking a historic expansion as North America’s largest gathering of keyboard artists shifts from a biennial to an annual event. Running from 30 April to 10 May across Southwest Michigan, the festival will present over 75 events bridging the classical and jazz worlds in a ground breaking celebration of piano artistry. This year’s festival features a homecoming moment with violinist Joshua Bell and pianist Shai Wosner in a special pre-festival recital celebrating the Stulberg Competition’s 50th anniversary. Sullivan Fortner, winner of The Gilmore’s inaugural Larry J. Bell Jazz Artist Award (and a GrammyAward for his recent album Southern…

Editing is a major element of artistry. What to leave out as well as keep in can change everything. Miles Davis was a master of scalpel-sharp decision-making and, had he been alive today he may well have been intrigued by the sight of a key chapter in his personal and creative life dramatised as a stage play. The audience does not see everything that was developed in rehearsal. There are alternate takes, so to speak. “Yes, we actually had more,” says London-based Canadian trumpeter Jay Phelps of Miles. “It could be a two-hour play almost. There were a lot of scenes of Miles’s grandfather’s story as well as the father’s story, and my story gets deeper as well.” As it stands the 90-minute version of the play is wholly satisfying.…

Francesca Confortini & Ryan Mackenzie Mosaico Tessera Records Mosaico brings together vocalist Francesca Confortini and arranger Ryan Mackenzie for a thoughtfully crafted exploration of Brazilian music traversing samba, bossa nova, and MPB with clear affection and respect. Blending a Brazilian rhythm section, strings, and London-based horns, familiar themes, such as Edu Lobo’s ‘Casa Forte’, get exciting, expanded arrangements, this particular track’s vocal harmonies setting up some great call and response passages from the horn section. The muscular rhythm team grooves effortlessly with astute solos from pianist Ed Rice. A contemporary sparkle flashes across all these classic songs, thanks to Mackenzie’s ear for detail, Confortini’s charming, pin-sharp vocals and the highly simpatico band. (MF) Kathy Ingraham Jazz Dreams Self-release Inspired by the 1943 short Heavenly Music and Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler’s piano…

FRIDAY 1 John Crawford Quintet Toulouse Lautrec, 140 Newington Butts, London SE11 1 Oobleck The Cube, Chapel Street Arts Centre, Derby 1 Donovan Haffner PizzaExpress Jazz Club, 10 Dean Street, London W1 1-4 Cheltenham Jazz Festival: Nigel Kennedy, Chris Montague, Joshua Redman, Mica Paris and more Various venues, Cheltenham 1 Kneebody Vortex Jazz Club, 11 Gillett Square, London N16 1 Julian Siegel Quartet Ladbroke Hall, 79 Barlby Road, London W10 1 Ivo Neame Trio with Walter Smith III Ronnie Scott's, 47 Frith Street, Soho, London W1 1 Beverley Skeete 606 Club, 90 Lots Road, London SW10  1 Brigitte Beraha’s Lucid Dreamers Birmingham Jazz, 1000 Trades, 16 Frederick Street, Birmingham 1 Ian Shaw with Steve Taylor Trio Ziggy's, Winchmore Hill, London N21  1-2 Kyle Eastwood Peggy’s Skylight, 3 George Street, NottinghamGGG…

BBC RADIO 2 88-91 FM and DAB Jamie Cullum show (Tues, 9pm) BBC RADIO 3 90-93 FM and DAB 'Round Midnight (Mon-Fri 11.30pm) Jazz Record Requests (Sun, 4pm) BBC RADIO 6 MUSIC DAB Gilles Peterson, Sat 3pm JAZZ FM DAB, Sky, Alexa, smartphone, tablet and online at jazzfm.com (Mon – Fri) 6.30am-10am Jazz FM Breakfast with Nigel Williams, 10am-2pm Danielle Perry, 2pm-6pm Afternoon drive with Simon Phillips, 6pm-7pm Jazz FM’s Greatest, 7pm-9pm Jazz FM’s Dinner Jazz with Mark Walker. (Mon) 9pm-10pm Future Jazz with Ruth Fisher; 10pm midnight Late Night with China Moses. (Tues) 9pm-10pm The Jon Cleary Show; 10pm-midnight Late Night with China Moses. (Wed) 9pm-10pm The Ronnie Scott’s Radio Show with Ian Shaw; 10pm-midnight Late Night with China Moses. (Thur) 9pm-10pm Mica Millar’s Jazz Voices; 10pm-midnight Late Night…

Arts funding needs to end “top-down, London-centric status quo” The Arts Council England (ACE) and Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) have published their formal responses to the Hodge Review (by Baroness Margaret Hodge), promising modernisation while avoiding the structural reforms the sector has been demanding. In its response, ACE outlines plans for “simpler processes” and a new digital platform scheduled for rollout from 2027, focusing on user-centred design and administrative efficiency. Meanwhile, DCMS has allocated £8 million to upgrade ACE’s systems – a move critics argue conflates IT infrastructure with systemic change. The Hodge Review, published earlier this year, identified deep rooted structural failures within arts funding, including an over reliance on the National Portfolio Organisation model, a collapse of arm’s-length independence, and persistent regional imbalances. However, both…