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Over 115,000 visitors, enjoying 200, mostly free, performances at 50 plus venues across the city – last year’s Birmingham International Jazz Festival was, as always, a resounding success. Music lovers got to witness shows by an eclectic range of top class national and international acts and the city got to throw a big party and welcome visitors from as far afield as Australia, South Africa and the USA. And in 2009 the event will be celebrating its milestone 25th anniversary, a testament to the hard work of the organisers as well as a sign of the huge support and goodwill the event has enjoyed over the years.
That the event would one day be celebrating its 25th anniversary would no doubt have been far from the mind of festival director Jim Simpson as he organised the M&B Jam Session that started it all, back in 1984. Held in Birmingham’s Cannon Hill Park and fronted by the late Humphrey Lyttlelton, a privileged audience of 800 jazz lovers were treated to a now legendary session from star names such as Digby Fairweather, Dick Morrissey, Randy Colville and Peter King. With Harvey Weston on double bass and Johnny Richardson on drums, the performance was recorded on Richard Branson’s mobile 24 track and went on to become The Sunday Time’s ‘jazz record of the year’. The International Jazz Festival kicked off in earnest the following year and has gone on to become the largest, free jazz party in Europe, attracting a total audience so far of over 3 million visitors. And, in celebration of its quarter century milestone, the festival goes back to its roots this year with an equally star studded jam session to be held at the city’s Botanical Gardens on Thursday 8th July. Digby Fairweather will head a line up of some of the biggest talents in jazz, including Art Themen, David Newton and Val Wiseman. It’s shaping up to be one of the hottest dates in this year’s musical calendar.
Although most of the gigs take place in the usual locations – in the pubs, bars and concert halls across the city – a defining feature of the festival over the years has been its determination to take jazz to unusual settings. So this year, there’s jazz at Snow Hill Station, courtesy of Becky Brine, and Browns Brass Band; performances by Digby Fairweather and Craig Milverton in the Museum and Art Gallery, and poetry by Steve Steinhaus on the city’s buses. New venues this year include the Star City multiplex as well as The Barber Institute of Fine Arts and furniture store, Lee Longlands.
This year’s festival promises to be just as exciting as ever with the high calibre of performers continuing the festival tradition of ‘real music, properly played’. Artists include: Alan Barnes, Alex Price Set, Art Themen, Becky Brine, Bruce Adams, Dave Green, David Newton, Dave Shepherd Quintet, Digby Fairweather, Enrico Tomasso, Eric Delaney, Europa Jazz Band, Fabulous Boogie Boys, Garry Allcock All-Stars Big Band, Greg Abate (USA), Hot Djazz of Krakow (Poland), Ian Bateman, Indigo Blues Band, Kenny Ball & His Jazzmen, King Pleasure & the Biscuit Boys, Kings Bruton Big Band, Mark Nightingale, MJHQ, MYJO, Nearly Dan, Pee Wee Ellis [USA], Petra Ernyei [Czech Republic], Ralph Salmins, Simon Spillett, Tipitina and Val Wiseman.
