Jazz musician Chris Ingham and folk musician Chris Wilbraham cast their expert eyes over the local music scene
JAZZ with Chris Ingham: cjr.ingham@outlook.com/www.chrisingham.co.uk
Thursday, January 16
RONNIE SCOTT’S ALL STARS (The Apex, Bury, 7.30pm, £28, theapex.co.uk) The popular multi-media presentation plus live jazz tells the story of the famed Soho jazz club. Led by pianist and Ronnie Scott’s musical director James Pearson.
Friday, January 17
TIM GARLAND (Hunter Club Arts Centre, Bury, 7.30pm, £20, headhunterslive.org, 07799 650009) A rare, not-to-be-missed UK club appearance from saxophone superstar (who spent 17 years with Chick Corea) and lauded composer. Tonight Tim blends bewitching original pieces with some of his favourite standards. With Chris Ingham (piano), Malcolm Creese (bass), George Double (drums).
FOR THE DIARY
Sunday, January 19
THE WONDER OF STEVIE (Venue 16, Ipswich, 2.30pm, £15/£7.50, ipswichjazzandblues.com) Fronted by Morrissey Mullen and Manfred Mann’s Earth Band vocalist Noel McCalla and saxophonist Derek Nash, a sizzling, jazz-infused selection of arrangements of songs by the great Stevie Wonder.
Wednesday, January 22
JAZZ AT THE MOVIES (Stoke By Nayland Golf Club, 8pm, £22, fleecejazz.org.uk, 01787 211865) Relieved of Christmas duties for another year, the film music repertoire quintet deliver jazzy spins on tunes from the silver screen, featuring Joanna Eden (vocal), Chris Ingham (piano/MC), Mark Crooks (clarinet/saxophone), Joe Pettitt (bass) and George Double (drums).
Thursday, January 23
CLARK TRACEY’S JAZZ CHAMPIONS (Hidden Rooms, Cambridge, 7.30pm, £22 & £16.50, cambridgejazz.org, 01223 514777) Internationally recognised jazz drummer, band leader, composer and arranger Tracey leads an all-star quintet playing his own music and that of Stan Tracey, his father. With Art Themen (saxophone), Simon Allen (saxophone), Dave Newton (piano) and Andrew Cleyndert (bass).
Friday, January 24
DJANGOLIERS (Diss Corn Hall, 7.30pm, £18, thecornhall.co.uk, 01379 652241) Inspired by the music of the late, great Belgian guitarist, Djangoliers interpret Django’s classic arrangements and compositions Nuages, Swing 42 and Manoir Des Mes Reves and explore the thrilling contemporary developments of ‘Gypsy Jazz’. With Simon Hurley (guitar), Robert Ford (guitar), Zak Barrett (clarinet) and Andy Staples (bass).
Wednesday, February 12
CHRIS COOULL’S BLUE NOTE SEXTET (Stoke By Nayland Golf Club, 8pm, £22, fleecejazz.org.uk, 01787 211865) A broad array from the much loved recordings of Lee Morgan, Dexter Gordan, Donald Byrd, Hank Mobley, Freddie Hubbard, to name a few from the golden era of the '50s and '60s. With Chris Coull (trumpet), Andreas Panayi (saxophone), Mark Bassey (trombone), Terry Seabrook (piano), Dan Sheppard (bass) and Peter Cater (drums).
FOLK with Chris Wilbraham: chris.wilbraham@tinyonline.co.uk
Last month I passed on information about folky Christmas music gained reading an article in The Guardian, by Welsh music journalist and BBC broadcaster Jude Rogers.
On BBC Sounds I discovered a splendid four-part series created by her for Radio 4 entitled A Life In Music. Beginning with Childhood Years there are episodes on Teenage Years, Adult Years and Later Years, exploring the effect that music has on our brains and how it can enhance each stage of our lives. Much of what I heard resonated for me.
In Childhood Years, Jude describes her first memory of playing music at a piano aged seven, trying to express her sadness at the loss of her dad. She had lessons later but apparently never regained the same feeling of expression. We also hear from Nigerian musician Femi Kuti, son ofAfrobeat pioneer Fela Kuri who dismissed the idea of lessons, handing Femi a series of instruments at various times in his early life, telling him to find his own way. Femi provided lessons for his own children, one of whom has joined him on stage, but I agree that finding the right instrument might be more important than having lessons. I was lucky to have piano lessons in childhood and trumpet lessons later but never played either as much as my guitar in later life, which I progressed on without lessons. My son had weekly piano lessons but never improved. Within a few months of showing him rudimentary guitar chords he was starting a band and writing songs. He even taught me a couple of chords. In support of lessons, neuroscientist Adel Habibi does describe evidence that music lessons increase a child’s ability to wait longer for reward than non musicians.
Brain chemistry is also mentioned in the Teenage Years episode, describing how the frontal lobe develops faster with exposure to music, maturing forward planning skills earlier. We hear how Nadine Shah, a Pakistani growing up in Newcastle, found her friends through Indie music and escaped post 9/11 related bullying to become a jazz singer in London and witnessed friend Amy Winehouse performing her own songs, which changed her attitude to music, leading her to eventually successfully break through in her own right.
In the next episode, the agency of self expression through music is explored further with singer/songwriter John Grant. Born into a strict Methodist society in America, as a child he realised he was gay and engineered his escape, mentally and physically, through music. Jude speaks of music helping with post natal depression and Dr Daniel Levitin describes how music can lead to the release of opioid-like hormones into our brains, explaining why it can make us feel so good.
In the last episode, we meet Jude’s neighbour, Effie Evans, the third generation of his family to perform in his villages male voice choir and are reminded how choirs reduce the loneliness which is common in later life. Marianne Faithful compares how she prefers a recording of As Tears Go By made in her 70s to the one that brought her notoriety in the 1960s. “It’s got something, a tranquillity.” Her description of the importance of music to her finishes the programmes.
“It’s my soul. It’s how I show who I am. And it’s what I have to give.”
If you are interested enough in music to read this article, you will certainly enjoy these programmes.
Hopefully, you will enjoy some of these gigs too:
Friday, January 10
The Beer Café, Bury St Edmunds, 3.30-5.30pm, Folk Session.
Golden Hind, Cambridge, 8pm, Cambridge Folk Club: Open Stage with special guest Tom Conway. £3.
Saturday, January 11
Canopy Theatre, Beccles, 8pm, Edwina Hayes. £15.
Thursday, January 16
The Junction, Cambridge, 8pm, Martyn Joseph. £25.
Friday, January 17
Risbygate Sports Club, Bury St Edmunds, 8pm, Milkmaid Folk Club, Tony Winn/John and Pauline Pearce. £10.
Golden Hind, Cambridge, 8pm, Cambridge Folk Club: Christina Alden and Alex Patterson, support from Helen Woodbridge. £12.
