EFG London Jazz Festival 2024: Performance, Learning, Outreach

November 29, 2024

The 32nd edition of the EFG London Jazz Festival ran this year from 15–24 November 2024. The biggest pan-city music festival in Europe, reaching over 100k people across 300+ live shows, we took the opportunity to highlight three main pillars of NYJO’s work: Performance, Learning, and Outreach.

Performance has always been a core aspect of NYJO, bringing engaging, high-quality jazz shows to audiences across the country since 1965. We believe in the value of performance to showcase the musical talent and creativity of the young musicians we work with, build their confidence and support their careers, always at the end of an enriching rehearsal and development journey.

Now, NYJO is also a Learning organisation, Performances exist as part of a NYJO Programme: a set of activities linked by a core idea such as an influential musician, iconic record label, or important sociopolitical theme. Programmes combine a focus on product — performances — with process, to create richer, deeper, and more embedded learning experiences for members. Programmes often draw together several areas of our work, beyond just our 18-25 Emerging Professional musicians, to include our Under 18s programme in Woolwich and national education partnerships under a single learning-driven theme.

A third pillar of NYJO’s work is Outreach, where we actively look to bring music-making to communities lacking in opportunities to access the first rungs of music. Jazz is the perfect vehicle for unlocking the benefits of music for young people, with a low barrier for entry (you don’t need to read music or play an instrument to a high standard to instantly engage in and enjoy first-access projects) but almost endless potential for growth (encouraging experimentation, initiative, and creativity).

All three of these pillars were reflected in NYJO’s EFG London Jazz Festival week:

 

Performance

NYJO & Cleveland Watkiss present: Sun Ra Reimagined, at Milton Court Concert Hall

 

On Saturday 23 November, a band of NYJO Emerging Professionals led by multidisciplinary artist, singer and bandleader Cleveland Watkiss took to the stage at Milton Court for the second performance of our tribute to the musician Sun Ra and Afrofuturism.

The programme came about after young musician Taylor Hylton saw Sun Ra’s Arkestra — his ensemble that has continued to perform after his death — at We Out Here festival in 2023, and brought the idea of a tribute to the NYJO team. Our version debuted at We Out Here this summer and was reprised for the London Jazz Festival after a successful first outing. In between the two performances, the programme was developed by workshops spent both with and away from instruments exploring the use and ethics of dress for the show, and a podcast episode featuring three musicians in the band.

Check out the Programme Notes for more info!

 

Photographer: David Biddlecombe

 

 

Learning:

NYJO Under 18s Ensemble & Band, at Toulouse Lautrec Jazz Club

 

Monday 18 November saw a first for NYJO: the London Jazz Festival debut of our Under 18s groups who meet every Saturday at our base in Woolwich Works. Both the Under 18s Ensemble, led by drummer Winston Clifford, and Band, with Olivia Murphy, gave sets at Toulouse Lautrec Jazz Club to a sold-out audience.

Our Under 18s programme is a prime example of a strand of work that has learning at its core, with performances serving larger educational aims of confidence, skills development, and joy. The Living Values that members created together to underpin their musical community give a flavour of the programme’s larger-than-sound ethos: Respect, Creativity, Skills, Teamwork, and Courage.

For our performance programmes to be incorporating more learning activities, and our learning programmes to be including more public performances, is a reflection of deliberately more joined-up thinking across our work.

 

Photographer: Taylor Hylton

 

 

Outreach:

Jam & Workshop for young people at Cardboard Citizens

 

On Wednesday 20 November, a group of NYJO Emerging Professionals visited the theatre company and homeless charity Cardboard Citizens at their new home in Hoxton. Together with educator and spoken word artist Lara Lee AKA FLOetic, they led a jam and workshop to launch the new year of the Cardboard Collective: a new music programme for young people with experience of homelessness, poverty, and inequity.

This is a continuation of several years’ collaboration with Cardboard Citizens, and just one of several outreach partnerships we maintain in London alongside further education college SoundSkool, Age UK Bromley & Greenwich, a growing network of secondary schools, and Music Services in Greenwich, Lewisham, and Southwark.

As well as a participatory music project for young people who have had extremely limited access until now, this was also an opportunity for musicians already engaged in our programmes to deliver paid outreach work, and develop their own skills as workshop facilitators and session leaders. As the pictures above make very clear, this was a day that was enjoyed and valued by all involved!

 

Photographer: Can Mehmethanoglu

 

 

These three activities falling within London Jazz Festival week together represent the breadth of our work, combining public performances for new and current audiences with learning experiences for young musicians, and a commitment to spreading our love of jazz and improvisation far and wide.

If any of this captures your imagination and inspires you with the potential of jazz for the future, please consider supporting our work by becoming a NYJO Friend, starting from £2.50/month. In return, you’ll have opportunities to get even closer to our work, and experience it first-hand — including but going beyond live performances.

Lucy-Anne (EP quote)

“Since joining NYJO, I’m so much more confident as a performer. Especially in terms of being able to entertain and keep the crowd engaged with you. It’s really nice to be able to feel that difference.” 

Lucy-Anne, NYJO Emerging Professional (Vocals)

Georgia (EP quote)

“It’s hard to just learn this music in the practice room but being immersed in the music at NYJO is a great environment to really push my playing. ” 

Georgia Ayew, NYJO Emerging Professional (Drums)

Sam Eastmond (MD quote)

"Giving them space to create whatever they wanted, without setting parameters of idiom or style helped them to conceptualise how they could bring these new concepts into their work without scaring them off, or mystifying the process."

Sam Eastmond, NYJO Educator

Jazzwise quote

"NYJO has never been conformist, never hewing to one particular line, never known for fawning replications and very deliberately these days a vehicle for new possibilities."

Jazzwise Magazine

Lydia (EP quote)

"The past year has been an absolutely incredible experience, pushing me way out of my comfort zone into playing with some of the greatest young jazz players of my generation and getting to call them my colleagues and friends has been beyond inspiring, and also an obscene amount of fun!"

Lydia Cochrane, NYJO Emerging Professional (Saxophone)

Anna (Learning national quote)

"[The NYJO residential in Cumbria] helped me to make friends with other young musicians. I enjoy playing a lot more and I’m quite proud of what I’ve accomplished. I feel more confident now. I have learnt different ways of coming up with solid melodies and also a little bit on harmonies. I think it’s been one of the best experiences I’ve ever had."

Anna, NYJO Learning Widening Access participant

Briony (Learning U18s quote)

"I’ve felt very fortunate to be surrounded by amazing musicians, and I think that the environment at NYJO – which has fostered creativity and improvisation – has allowed my confidence and musical ideas to grow."

Briony, NYJO Under 18s

Oscar (Learning U18s quote)

"I think I’ve progressed a lot in my piano-playing. NYJO has helped me to flourish and really enjoy it. I’ve really enjoyed being engrossed in a high level of playing and learning things in a hands-on-way. I also like the diversity of perspectives and abilities of all the players and teachers which enables me to try things I might not normally."

Oscar, NYJO Under 18s

Jennie (Learning U18s quote)

"NYJO has got me listening to more jazz and learning more changes. It has also helped with working as a band. I’ve really enjoyed the free jazz, learning by ear, the people, and the atmosphere."

Jennie, NYJO Under 18s

Leah-Anais (Learning U18s quote)

"I love the people at NYJO. Everyone here is so encouraging and lovely and it makes the experience worthwhile. Though I have fun I’m still learning on the way which makes me feel productive too."

Leah-Anais, NYJO Under 18s

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