GET the dates in your diary. Marsden Jazz Festival has announced its headline acts and tickets are already on sale.
The award-winning festival runs in the Pennine town from October 11-13 and over a packed 48 hours there will be around 70 events to choose from.
There is a strong international flavour to the headline programme this year.
The big Saturday night schedule at Marsden Mechanics Hall kicks off with Mick Coady’s Synergy featuring David Binney, a quintet led by Irish composer and bassist Mick Coady, featuring in-demand US alto sax player David Binney with British musicians Julian Arguelles (tenor sax), Ivo Neame (piano) and James Maddren (drums).
And if all that was not enough, Italian guitar virtuoso Antonio Forcione plays on Sunday at Marsden Mechanics.
He’ll be playing with his trio which features Brazilian countrymen Anselmo Netto on percussion and Matheus Nova on bass.
There is of course, a strong UK contingent at the festival.
The headline programme has something for everyone from the sophisticated swing of The Pasadena Roof Orchestra to brand new music for jazz synthesiser written specially for the festival by Matthew Bourne.
Celebrated guitarist John Etheridge will also headline with his Trio North and there will be an appearance by jazz rock group Get The Blessing who share a rhythm section with trip-hop legends Portishead.
Listen out too for jazz songstress Tina May in a quartet including pianist Nikki Iles and nine-piece afro-beat outfit the Ariya Astrobeat Arkestra.
As well as gigs, the festival offers plenty of opportunities to get involved, whether you are a serious musician or a toddler wanting to make some sounds.
The festival is one of the Colne Valley’s biggest events and the town expects to host around 8,000 visitors over the weekend.
As well as ticketed concerts there are around 40 free events in pubs, clubs, halls and outdoor venues around the village.
One of the festival highlights in recent years has been its New Stream which champions artists at the cutting edge of jazz.
Leeds-based internationally acclaimed pianist and composer Matthew Bourne indulges his passion for analogue synthesisers and electronics in The Bourne Synthesiser Show, written especially for the festival.
Chris Sharkey will swap his electric guitar for an acoustic and leads new group Batteries to play an entirely improvised gig.
Award winning composer and trumpeter Laura Jurd will join a quartet to play her folk and classical-inflected jazz compositions.
The New Stream closes with Annie Whitehead’s Rude 2.0 – a stellar quartet playing an eclectic fusion of melody, free improvisation and driving funk, jazz and reggae rhythms augmented by electronica.
For more details and to buy tickets, go to the website at www.marsdenjazzfestival.com.
The full programme is expected to be announced later in the summer.
