Jazz breaking news: John Surman, Stuart McCallum and Songs of the Caged Bird premiere for Manchester Jazz Festival

National and international artists coming to Manchester include the great John Surman and new bands from Spain. The festival places the spotlight firmly on a new generation which has emerged with something to say, and fresh ideas that tap into parallel developments in electronica, Indo-fusion, and Afrobeat with an ear for the city’s unique post-punk and dance culture. The Manchester Jazz Festival begins on Friday 13 July with opening day highlights including Pocket Central, at Band on the Wall, playing two 50-minute sets plus a DJ taking over for a club set later. Pocket Central features players such as bass guitarist/singer Neil Fairclough, guitarist Johnny Hayes (known for his work with Dennis Rollins’ Badbone) and drummer Bryan Hargreaves. Expect the Oakland sound of Tower of Power tucked away within the band’s accessible up-for-it persona. The opening night at Manchester’s other main jazz club Matt & Phred’s on Tib Street at 10pm features Joni Mitchell-inspired singer Alice Zawadzki with Songs from Around the World with a stellar band including Beats & Pieces’ musical director Ben Cottrell and saxophonist Ben Watte, and the Cinematic Orchestra’s Stuart McCallum whose album Distilled was a Brit-jazz highlight last year.

Saturday 14 July shows include, at the Festival Pavilion, post-jazz trio A Greater Horror in the Pavilion at 3pm featuring Rodrigo Constanzo on Fender Rhodes while at 5pm nine-piece Spanish band Mastretta led by clarinettist Nacho Mastretta make their UK debut. In the evening Bugalu Foundation take to the Pavilion stage – a latin band influenced by the likes of Ray Barretto and Mongo Santamaria with conguero Sam Bell and Martin Connor providing lead vocals.

Over at Band on the Wall Mancunian institution Mr Scruff still keeps it Unreal at his regular night on Swan Street, while there’s a hefty blast of spiritual Afrobeat courtesy of Leeds band Ariya Astrobeat Arkestra at Matt and Phred’s also in the Northern Quarter from 10pm featuring some fine players including bass guitarist Paul Baxter and drummer Joost Hendrickx.

On Sunday 15 July singer Jessica Berry opens things up with a 1pm set and later in the afternoon at the Midland Hotel the festival’s Afternoon Tea slot sees The Magic Beans trio inject a little decorum into the proceedings. Youth Jazz ensemble Jambone, based in Gateshead, appear at 3pm in the Festival Pavilion ahead of the Albert Square Junk Jam with Global Grooves at 4.30pm. Led by Leon Patel and Holly Prest, Junk Jam brings together a 40-piece percussion orchestra, large wind ensemble, 20 singers and 16 dancers fusing Afro-Brazilian, west African and south Asian percussion disciplines. Band on the Wall later that evening features Sarah Sayeed launching her Indo-jazz and drum & bass-influenced new album while the evening show at the Festival Pavilion features the Afro-Cuban big band sound of Rick Farrow and The Big Red Orchestra.

Monday 16 July highlights include Peter Whittingham Jazz Award winning jazz-rock band Roller Trio – that’s saxophonist James Mainwaring, guitarist Luke Wynter and drummer Luke Reddin-Williams – HSQ+2, Mercury as part of MJF Introduces and a five o’clock show at the Festival Pavilion with The Jazz Department featuring Kathy Dyson on guitar and pianist Mark Donlon on piano. The RNCM Theatre at 6pm presents an open rehearsal of Songs of the Caged Bird, George King’s rehearsal for his specially commissioned pieces to be performed later in the festival. Also that night at St Ann’s church there’s Microscopic, playing the music from Richard Iles’s Miniature Brass Emporium with trumpeter Iles, saxophonist Mike Williams, pianist Les Chisnall, and bassist Percy Pursglove. Band on the Wall has a special BBC Introducing night with Gilles Peterson and Jez Nelson, and at the Festival Pavilion Manchester collective the Beating Wing Orchestra mixes music from refugee communities a project begun by the Manchester International Festival five years ago.

Tuesday 17 July highlights include the Phil Meadows Group at the Festival Pavilion and Steve Hawkins/Sam Healey Quintet at the Pavilion, the KAB Trio in the Pavilion at 3pm, the Zoe Gilby Quintet at 5pm in the Pavilion, a discussion entitled Un-Caged Birds: Justice and Jazz, Then and Now at Matt and Phred’s from 6pm, the Stan Sulzmann Big Band at the RNCM Theatre at 7.30pm, TG Collective at the Festival pavilion at 7.30pm, and the Stop Motion Trio at Matt and Phred’s.

Wednesday 18 July has Noose at the Pavilion in the late morning followed at 1pm in St Ann’s church by Dan Whieldon and Alice Zawadzki with the Kyran Matthews Quartet at the Pavilion at 3pm with the Alex Hutton Trio coming on stage there at 5pm. John Surman plays the RNCM Theatre at 7.30pm for a solo set which comes on the back of the release of his superb album Saltash Bells. In the Pavilion at 7.30pm it’s singer/songwriter Orli Nyles and her band including keyboardist John Ellis while later at Band on the Wall the Zoe Rahman Quartet play music from Kindred Spirits. Matt and Phred’s features the Michael Cretu Sextet in the late evening.

Thursday 19 July at the Festival Pavilion sees the Jonathan Silk Quintet appear while highly rated trumpeter Jack Davies’ band Flea Circus are at St Ann’s Church from 1pm. Juliet Kelly and Jonny Phillips are at the Midland Hotel for an afternoon tea set in the middle of the afternoon while over at the Pavilion it’s the Jamie Safiruddin Trio and at five the Rick Simpson Quartet. The evening highlight is the premiere of George King’s song cycle Songs of the Caged Bird with singer Doreen Edwards, pianist King and the Manchester Camerata Chamber Strings. At Band on the Wall there’s a cracking double bill of Sons of Kemet and the Anton Hunter Trio while at Matt and Phred’s it’s Stuart McCallum with singer Ríoghnach Connolly, bassist Phil France, drummer Luke Flowers and the Prism String Quartet.

Friday 20 July shows include the European Union Quintet at the Pavilion, Avalon Trio at St Ann’s Church, Pete Moser: Sound Games at the Festival Pavilion, Ríoghnach Connolly’s Black Lung, Junior Murvin at Band on the Wall, Spoonful with Neil Yates at Matt and Phred’s with the trumpeter back on Saturday 21 July at the Festival Pavilion playing from lunchtime with his Five Counties Trio.

The final Saturday’s Pavilion shows also include much talked about Scottish band Breach, Prestwich Deluxe, the Hackney Colliery Band, Colman Brothers, and DJ Mike Chadwick. Shake’n’ Bake brings the festival at Band on the Wall to a rousing close in the evening, and Dub Jazz Soundsystem featuring Beats & Pieces trumpeter Nick Walters and singer Sharlene Squire should do likewise at Matt and Phred’s from 10pm.

– Stephen Graham

 John Surman (pictured, top), Stuart McCallum (above right) and George King

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