The 21st Scarborough Jazz Festival took place across the weekend of 27-29 September 2024 at Scarborough Spa; our reviewer Adrian Riley was there to sample the great array of musical offerings.
What is jazz? A visitor to Scarborough Jazz Festival this year might not come away with any tight definitions, but then that is central to the diverse mix of music that makes this annual event such a success. From a celebration of the American saxophone legend Ben Webster, to the ‘dark jazz improvisation’ of guitarist David Preston, via band Hejira’s faultless renditions of 1970s era Joni Mitchell, there was a wide variety of ‘jazz’ in both familiar and more surprising forms.
Festival founder, Mike Gordon, who handed over the Artistic Director role to son Mark after last year’s festival, once told me his criteria for booking acts was ‘Does it swing?’. The programming for 2024 suggests that the apple hasn’t fallen far from the tree. If we’re looking at a traditional definition of what it means to swing, then violinist Benet Mclean and quartet provided a fine example of music that seemed to dance from the stage in joyous and often adventurous improvisations launched from a largely classic jazz repertoire.
The Nigel Price Organ Trio also had something to say on the matter – three musicians who seem to be on the verge of creating their own genre, a heady mix of propulsive rhythm, astonishing technical ability, inventive improvisation and dynamics that can fill any size venue. They swing like crazy. That equally applies to 3D Trio, not least the exuberant playing of pianist Jackie Warren, the sort of musician for whom the phrase ‘force of nature’ could have been created. Coming over from the United States, they were possibly one of the less familiar acts at the festival but there won’t be a person in the audience who isn’t still talking about a performance that had the Spa Grand Hall audience on their feet cheering. Likewise the extraordinary playing of pianist Fergus McCreadie weaving Scottish folk themes into an intense yet beautiful rise-and-fall extended improvisation with his trio on Friday evening.
If for you, talk of ‘swing’ or ‘jazz’ instantly brings to mind singers rooted in the popular music of the 1950s, then you would find sturdy confirmation of this in an exceptional performance by Elaine Delmar. Her ability to communicate the meaning and nuances of lyrics demonstrated the difference between merely singing a song and inhabiting it. That she could perform the somewhat over-familiar Gershwin classic ‘Summertime’ and still hold the audience in rapt attention to then explode into rapturous applause shows just how expressive her vocal delivery is.
The creative interplay between Dutch vocalist Fay Claassen, saxophonist Emma Rawicz and pianist Barry Green was made all the more amazing when towards the end of the set Fay announced that the three had only met that morning. East Riding born and bred singer, James Hudson was assisted by some wonderful arrangements from saxophonist Tom Smith whose evening set with his own Big Band – their debut performance outside of London – showcased fantastic original compositions and was, for me, the highlight of the festival.
We were also treated to compere Alan Barnes’ ‘Copperfield Suite’, which interspersed with readings from Dickens’ David Copperfield, took Duke Ellington’s philosophy of composing for specific musicians rather than just a particular instrument. The result was a very classy set of tunes, each inspired by a different character from the book and very much worthy of comparison with the great American Big Band leader.
And if the image of jazz most rooted in your consciousness is a dark smoky club rather than the elegant Spa Grand Hall, well obviously nicotine-filled venues are a thing of the past, but there was the intimacy of regular performances throughout the weekend by guitarist Al Morrison – a regular visitor to Scarborough Jazz Club, with his trio of bass and drums and often with musicians and vocalists ‘sitting in’, both from the main stage and audience alike. The two late night ‘tasters’ provided a noisier bustling environment that gave those with the stamina (and there were plenty) opportunity to end the day feeling they’d experienced a rich selection of what jazz can be, and possibly still creating a little hunger to hunt out more potential definitions – perhaps at next year’s festival.
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Tickets are on sale now for the 22nd Scarborough Jazz Festival, 26-28 September 2025, at Scarborough Spa.
Scarborough’s Cask Inn & Club is also home to the weekly Scarborough Jazz Club, where a fine range of acts appear throughout the year.
