Hedsor Jazz

Autumn is approaching, and we turn away from thinking of means of keeping cool, to means of staying warm! Now in jazz, we have both cool and hot!

BUT last weeks Big Band night with the BBO was just AMAZING! Getting all of the brass and the drums onto Hedsor Club’s stage was almost magic too!

The sound generated was terrific, and some of the well known tunes came out sounding fresh, which was a blessing. How many of us have gone to big band concert events to hear the same arrangements we have all heard before being played again (and maybe not too well!). This time, they were fresh, and the jazz tinged solos we, well “jazzy”!

Many of you will have noticed that amongst the band members were members of other big bands, including some that are very well know!

The tightness of the staging did lead me to some worry. The bass trombone kept coming to within inches of the baritone saxophone players head. And I had to smile in that the sax section was kept in there place at either end by 2 sharps! Mr and Mrs!

It was so good to see John Jordan there after his close inspection of Wexham Park hospital  earlier in the week. It was great to see Joan there too, able to enjoy her birthday WITH John. Their daughter had also gone abundance (a term usually used in Bridge I believe) with the catering. So a memorable night for all who came. AND enough money was raised to pass on £570 to “The Thames Valley Adventure Playground”. So you see, being charitable can also be fun!

 Photos courtesy of Geoff Swaffield

This week (September 27^th) we are back to our normal sized orchestra, who are well able to get together in front of the stage! Our usual suspects on piano, bass and drums will have before them on guitar Max Brittian and on tenor sax Duncan Lamont jr. Two long time supporters of Hedsor Jazz. We will be back to our usual start time of 8.30pm, and our usual £7 entry fee.

It was interesting to note that my printed list of Hedsor Jazz gigs were mostly taken away and not left behind for recycling. Let’s hope that some of the people who enjoyed last Thursday will seek out Hedsor Jazz again this year.

This week I was reading in one of the jazz mags around about how one or two people in the USA have tried to popularise the experience of jazz, keeping it as jazz, but turning it into modern accessible cabaret. So using my intrepid internet travelling kit I looked up “Post Modern Jukebox” and found it described as:-

“ a rotating musical collective founded by arranger and pianist Scott Bradlee in 2011. PMJ is known for reworking popular modern music into different vintage genres, especially early 20th century forms such as swing and jazz. Wikipedia”

THEN I looked that all up in YouTube. I heartily recommend that you do too. Absolutely non-U “fun”. For an overview of a LOT of material, see

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCORIeT1hk6tYBuntEXsguLgTry

or for something outrageous try

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NTmk0Pqk6hs

Sometimes it does us jazz fans good to take a lighter view. And I think Scott Bradlee has extended the jazz audience by doing so.

Slightly more towards the serious and possibly more traditional side of jazz, with a definite touch of the well played tongue in cheek have a look whilst you are on YouTube for “The Hot Sardines”.  https://hotsardines.com

BUT don’t stop by your screen too long, because we need you at Hedsor Jazz. We must keep live jazz ALIVE!!