NYJO at Ronnie Scott’s – January 2012
February 4, 2012 by Steve
This wasn’t the best of times to pull audiences, but there were HOUSE FULL notices outside Ronnie Scott’s for the first three nights of January when the National Youth Jazz Orchestra paid its established annual visit to the club. Any fears possibly harboured by long term fans that the band would enter a more cerebral [...]
Read more ...NYJO at Ronnie’s – the plaudits keep coming…
February 4, 2012 by Steve
NYJO’s three-night residency at Ronnie Scott’s at the beginning of January continues to generate lots of positive press. Brain Blain, reviewing the BP sponsored residency for Jazz UK, was keen to reassure NYJO’s long term fans that Bill Ashton’s retirement would not result in the band entering “…a more cerebral phase”. He was impressed that, [...]
Read more ...Callum Au
January 12, 2012 by Steve
Callum Au is a professional trombonist, composer, orchestrator, and arranger. A member of NYJO from 2005, he held the lead trombone chair with the band from 2008 – 2012, and contributed over 50 charts to the band’s library. He was taught by ex-Syd Lawrence trumpet player Terry Reaney, and has since studied with jazz trombonist [...]
Read more ...NYJO Impresses at Ronnie’s
January 12, 2012 by Steve
NYJO’s three-night residency at Ronnie Scott’s at the beginning of January was an unqualified success – the band playing to full houses each night, with the final session actually being a sell-out! The high-profile gig generated a great deal of positive press – even prior to the event. Ivan Hewett, writing in the Saturday Telegraph [...]
Read more ...NYJO at Ronnie Scott’s – 3rd January 2012 (second night of three)
January 12, 2012 by Steve
Sir John Dankworth famously said of NYJO, “Forget the word ‘youth’, this is one of the best bands you will ever hear,” an apt tribute for a band that’s as innovative and important as this. Innovative for the fact that the entire program, save two tunes, was either arranged or composed by current or past [...]
Read more ...Sector 7 at Lauderdale House – December 2011
January 11, 2012 by Steve
Sector 7 is a four-singer line-up led by Sarah Ellen Hughes and featuring also Emma Smith, Kwabena Adjepong and Shakka Philip. Their gig at Lauderdale House in December featured a mix of individual showcases and ensemble features with good harmonic interplay between male and female voices and excellent arrangements. The eclectic material ranged from standards [...]
Read more ...Sarah Ellen Hughes Big Band @ The Manor – 18th December 2011
December 23, 2011 by Steve
In The Band: Sarah Ellen Hughes (vocals/flute, centre front) & Anna Hughes (vocals/trumpet/flugel, 2nd left front) co-leading (from left) Dorian Ford (keyboard); Matt Skelton (drums, hidden); Jeremy Brown (bass); Mark Crown (set 2 only), Gabriel Garrick, Jack Davies (trumpets); Jonty Hill, Simon Walker, Mat Walton (tenor trombones); Andy Lester (bass trombone); saxes: Tommy Laurence (hidden) [...]
Read more ...NYJO @ The Manor – 11th December 2011
December 23, 2011 by Steve
In The Band: Bill Ashton directing Chris Eldred (piano): Conor Chaplin (bass); Rob Luft (guitar); Scott Chapman (drums); Olly Sarkar (percussion); James Copus, Jacob Phillips, Louis Dowdeswell, Jeremy Fry, Harrison Cole (trumpets); Barry Clements (bass trombone), Pete Whitehouse, Callum Au, Ross Anderson, Raphael Clarkson (tenor trombones); Anna Drysdale (French horn); saxophones: Jim Gold & Shahan [...]
Read more ...NYJO @ The Manor – 20th November 2011
December 23, 2011 by Steve
In The Band: Bill Ashton directing Joe Armon-Jones (piano): Grant Russell (bass/bass guitar); Rob Luft (guitar); Scott Chapman (drums); Max Mills (percussion); Tom Dennis, Jacob Phillips, Louis Dowdeswell, Rob Greenwood, James Copus (trumpets); Barry Clements (bass trombone), Pete Whitehouse, Ross Anderson, Alex Paxton, Maddie Dowdeswell (tenor trombones); Anna Drysdale (French horn); saxophones: Nadim Teimoori & [...]
Read more ...NYJO’s on the Wireless on Boxing Day…
December 22, 2011 by Steve
BBC Radio4’s Today programme is not normally renowned for its innovative jazz content – but that is all about to change on Boxing Day! That’s because Lord (Sebastian) Coe – well-known as a former athlete, now the head of the 2012 London Olympics and a NYJO Vice-President – has been invited to guest-edit the 26th [...]
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