Sun Ra Arkestra, Maceo Parker and Interchange Dectet gather for Gateshead 2018
Wednesday, November 22, 2017
The line-up for next year's Gateshead International Jazz Festival, which runs from 6 - 8 April 2018, has been announced and brings together strong mix of grand masters and rising stars performing across four stages, all under the roof of the iconic Sage venue.
Things kick off with a triple bill topped by veteran space-jazz travellers Sun Ra Arkestra, who still featuring the astonishingly vital 93-year old Marshall Allen on sax. Second on the bill will be former Fela Kuti drum titan Tony Allen with his hard-swinging tribute to Art Blakey, while Zara McFarlane will get things moving with her stirring take on Jamaican jazz.
There's also a strong European strand that includes a quadruple summit of solo pianists in the form of Alexander Hawkins, Kaja Draksler, Bojan Z and Giovanni Guidi, plus tech-obsessed piano trio Tin Men and the Telephone. The Saturday line-up begins with a family show from Tin Men, and continues with food critic and jazz pianist Jay Rayner presenting an array of jazz 'chops' with his 'Afternoon of Food and Agony' show. Further European sounds come from esteemed Estonian artists Kadri Voorand Quartet, The Tormis Project and Heavy Beauty, who showcase their country's rich and varied jazz scene as part of celebrations marking 100 years of their nation.
English jazz vocal grand dame Norma Winstone also appears in a rarefied duo with acclaimed US guitarist Ralph Towner, while there are contrasting sets from two veteran horn heroes with trad trombone master Chris Barber leading his celebrated Big Band and former JBs legend Maceo Parker will be lining-up with UK soul-jazz diva Ruby Turner. There's also a key performance from highly respected US jazz singer Sheila Jordan in what will be her 90th birthday year. She'll be backed by a trio led by a trio led by pianist/composer Pete Churchill and joined by a string quartet for selected numbers.
Gateshead's reputation for tapping into cutting edge sounds continues with the ever-compelling Norwegian trumpeter Arve Henriksen and his quartet Jan Bang, Erik Honore and Eivind Aarset, while adventurous Leeds-based guitarist Chris Sharkey premieres his new project, The Orchid and the Wasp, an incendiary duo with rapid-fire improv drummer Mark Sanders. This concert is supported by one of the winners of the 2018 'Jazz North Introduces' award, the all-female trio J Frisco. Further female artists appearing include Issie Barratt's Interchange Dectet, with the likes of Brigitte Beraha, Tori Freestone and Yazz Ahmed among those performing ten newly commissioned pieces.
– Mike Flynn
For further details visit www.sagegateshead.com