The annual campaign and ceremony has been held in October since 2020 and this move sees it return to springtime during “awards season”
PPL and PRS for Music return as the headline sponsor
The campaign will once again culminate in a star-studded Central London ceremony.
Jazz FM has announced that the globally revered annual Jazz FM Awards campaign that celebrates the greatest jazz, soul and blues musicians of today will return in spring 2024, following a hiatus in 2023, with the most recent ceremony having taken place late October 2022.
The Awards, which was launched in 2013 has seen high profile winners across the years from new comers such as Lady Blackbird, Mica Miller, Ezra Collective and Laura Mvula alongside established artists like Gregory Porter, Tony Bennett, Norah Jones, Herbie Hancock, George Benson, Dame Cleo Laine, Courtney Pine and the Rolling Stones.
Nick Pitts, Jazz FM and Scala Radio’s Content Director and Jazz FM Awards Director explained:
“When launched in 2013, the Jazz FM Awards, like all other ceremonies of worth, took place in ‘Awards Season’ towards the start of the year, looking back at the previous calendar year. Due to the pandemic and the lockdown-delayed ceremony of 2020, the Jazz FM Awards has since found itself taking place in the autumn reflecting a mid-year to mid-year release and activity period. The knock-on effect of this was a confusing narrative while celebrated artists were unable to maximise on their nominations and wins in their summer tours and concerts. With this change, we can revert to something that allows artists to really maximise on their celebration.”
The industry bodies PPL and PRS for Music will also return as joint headline sponsors of the new look campaign. This is the fourth time that they have been headline sponsor, although have both been involved as sponsors since the Awards’ inception.
Nick Pitts added: “I’m incredibly pleased that our friends at PPL and PRS for Music will continue to support the Jazz FM Awards at such a high level. They are integral partners of the Jazz FM Awards and we are proud that they wish to retain their involvement of our annual celebration.”
Peter Leathem OBE, CEO of PPL said:
“The Jazz FM Awards are a vital platform for celebrating this diverse genre, and PPL is delighted to return as co-headline sponsors in 2024 alongside PRS for Music. Just last week previous Jazz FM Award winners (and PPL Momentum funded) Ezra Collective were the first jazz act to win the Mercury Prize – a testament to the thriving scene which the Jazz FM Awards shine a light on.”
Andrea Czapary Martin, CEO, PRS for Music, added:
“Our continued commitment to Jazz FM as joint headline sponsors with PPL reflects our dedication to championing the exceptional talents within our membership from across the jazz, soul, and blues communities. The Jazz FM Awards celebrate creativity, artistry, and culture. We look forward to the ceremony which is always a truly special night and inspiring.”
When the Jazz FM Awards returns in spring 2024, it will for this year reflect music from May 2022 until December 2023 so that the hiatus does not miss anyone out who is deserving of an award. It will once again be held at a central London venue featuring live performances and surprises following a 2-month campaign on Jazz FM that celebrates the nominees in the run up to the ceremony.
Stars Honoured at Jazz FM Awards 2022 with PPL and PRS for MusicStars from across the international music scene descended on Grade II listed Shoreditch Town Hall in East London this evening for the return of the Jazz FM Awards with PPL and PRS for Music. Hosted by US actor Clarke Peters, and featuring a dazzling array of live performances, the ceremony once again recognised a varied selection of up-and-coming talent, contemporary icons and legendary figures from across the jazz, soul and blues spectrum.
A roll call of esteemed music industry personalities were in attendance including Hugh Laurie, who presented pianist and broadcaster Jools Holland with this year’s Impact Award, Level 42’s Mark King, who presented fellow bassist Marcus Miller with the Gold Award, Marcus Brigstocke, who presented fast-rising LA-based singer Lady Blackbird with the award for this year’s International Jazz Act Of The Year, and Tom Watson, who was on hand to give Scottish pianist Fergus McCreadie his Instrumentalist Of The Year award.
Jools Holland OBE:
“I’m honoured to have received Jazz FM’s Impact Award. Their radio station and my “Later with…” TV show have been aligned for 30 years; spreading the word about jazz, blues and improvised music, breaking new artists and bringing them to a wider audience. As well as being a regular listener to the station I’ve also been an occasional presenter for them over the years, so I’m delighted to be a part of their awards show alongside some truly incredible talent.”
The annual celebration, which since its inception in 2013 has become one of the most anticipated events in the UK jazz calendar, featured performances from this year’s Lifetime Achievement Award winner Norma Winstone, who was accompanied by guitarist John Parricelli for a version of Ladies in Mercedes, Soul Act Of The Year Mica Millar, Fergus McCreadie, who scooped this year’s Instrumentalist Of The Year, and Jools Holland, who teamed up with Blues Artist Of The Year Christone “Kingfish” Ingram and brought the evening to a rip-roaring close.
A selection of the UK scene’s most exciting young artists were also recognised this year with awards going to tenor saxophonist Chelsea Carmichael, Scottish singer Georgia Cécile, jazztronica duo Blue Lab Beats, and multi-instrumentalist and producer Emma-Jean Thackray.
- JAZZ FM AWARDS 2022 with PPL and PRS for Music
LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Norma Winstone
GOLD AWARD
Marcus Miller
IMPACT AWARD
Jools Holland
BREAKTHROUGH ACT OF THE YEAR
Chelsea Carmichael
INTERNATIONAL JAZZ ACT OF THE YEAR
Lady Blackbird
SOUL ACT OF THE YEAR sponsored by Boisdale
Mica Millar
BLUES ACT OF THE YEAR sponsored by Imagine Cruising
Christone ‘Kingfish’ Ingram
VOCALIST OF THE YEAR sponsored by Hampstead Jazz Club and Lateralize Records
Georgia Cecile
INSTRUMENTALIST OF THE YEAR
Fergus McCreadie
THE DIGITAL AWARD
Summer of Soul
INNOVATION AWARD sponsored by Mishcon de Reya
Blue Lab Beats
UK JAZZ ACT OF THE YEAR
Georgia Cecile
ALBUM OF THE YEAR
Emma-Jean Thackray – Yellow
The Jazz FM Awards 2022 is made possible with the support of its sponsors PPL and PRS for Music, Mishcon De Reya, Imagine Cruising, Boisdale, Hampstead Jazz Club, Lateralize, Rathbones and Yamaha, plus additional partners including Denbies, Lotus, Mama Shelter, Savile Row Gin and Shoreditch Town Hall.
Nick Pitts, Content Director, Jazz FM:
“Not only am I proud of all the winners and what they have and will continue to achieve, but I am also incredibly proud of the entire Jazz FM team who have worked so incredibly hard to pull this year’s event together. We’ve succeeded once again in bringing the jazz community together to celebrate its incredibly varied and diverse scene and to honour these artists who continue to bring joy to all of our lives through the wonderful music they make.”
Peter Leathem, Chief Executive Officer, PPL:
“PPL has supported the Jazz FM Awards for many years and each year is an impressive showcase of the talent present in UK jazz. It is a pleasure to help recognise and celebrate these artists and organisations and we hope tonight acts as a catalyst for further success for the winners, nominees and the sector as a whole.”
Andrea Czapary Martin, CEO, PRS for Music:
“Our warmest congratulations to the winners of the Jazz FM Awards. We are proud to support, acknowledge and recognise the quality of songwriting and performances that we have seen from the Jazz community over the past year. We hope that these accolades help to shine a light on the remarkable musicians and works of those honoured.”
Robert Glasper, Mavis Staples, Levon Helm, Questlove, Trombone Shorty, Lady Blackbird, Kokoroko, Omar Amongst Artists Nominated For Annual Celebration Of Jazz, Blues & Soul
Trio of music icons confirmed as recipients of this year’s Special Awards
US actor Clarke Peters confirmed as host for the ceremony at Shoreditch Town Hall on October 20th
This year’s nominees include Robert Glasper, Mavis Staples, Levon Helm, Questlove, Trombone Shorty, Lady Blackbird, KOKOROKO and Omar
The Jazz FM Awards with PPL and PRS for Music have announced that Jools Holland, Marcus Miller and Norma Winstone are the recipients of this year’s special awards, presented annually to three musicians who have made contributions of exceptional significance to their art. The awards will be presented in-person on the evening of Thursday October 20th at the ceremony at Shoreditch Town Hall, which will be hosted by US actor and star of The Wire and Treme Clarke Peters.
This year’s Impact Award will be presented to pianist and broadcaster Jools Holland OBE DL who over the course of an illustrious 50-year career has become a doyen of the international music scene. Alongside presenting his “Later with…” TV show for 30 years, which has helped launch the careers of countless jazz artists, Holland has toured his rhythm and blues orchestra around the globe, sold millions of albums and was awarded an OBE in 2003 for his services to the British music industry.
Jools Holland OBE:
“I’m honoured to be receiving Jazz FM’s Impact Award. Their radio station and my “Later with…” TV show have been aligned for 30 years; spreading the word about jazz, blues and improvised music, breaking new artists and bringing them to a wider audience. As well as being a regular listener to the station I’ve also been an occasional presenter for them over the years, so I’m delighted to be a part of their awards show alongside some truly incredible talent.”
The recipient of this year’s Lifetime Achievement Award is the eminent UK vocalist Norma Winstone MBE. Throughout a remarkable career, the 81-year-old east-London-born singer has influenced and inspired generations and is now widely regarded as one of the all-time greats of European jazz. “There is no jazz singer in the country to touch her” The Times.
Norma Winstone MBE:
“I was thrilled a few years ago when I received the “Vocalist Of The Year” at the Jazz FM Awards in 2017 and now to be honoured with a lifetime achievement award for doing what I love, is humbling. Looking forward to the ceremony and singing a little something for you all!”
Receiving the Gold Award is one of the most distinctive artists of the modern era – bassist, producer, composer and bandleader Marcus Miller. A key figure in the late career of Miles Davis, Miller has released a string of acclaimed albums under his own name and his instantly recognisable bass playing has graced a vast catalogue of musical hits from Bill Wither’s “Just The Two Of Us” and Luther Vandross’ “Never Too Much”, to songs by the likes of Chaka Khan, Herbie Hancock, Eric Clapton, Aretha Franklin, George Benson and Elton John to name a few.
Marcus Miller:
“I am delighted to accept the Jazz FM Gold Award. Jazz is a vital artform that continues to bring communities and cultures together, feeding souls and bringing joy to so many of us. Thank you Jazz FM for your continued support of what I do and recognising the hard work of so many musicians through these awards along with providing such an invaluable platform to so many artists at all stages of their careers.”
Jools Holland, Norma Winstone and Marcus Miller join a long list of esteemed musicians to have received a Jazz FM Special Award including the likes of Tony Bennett, Herbie Hancock, Quincy Jones, Gregory Porter, Norah Jones, Dame Cleo Laine, George Benson, Pat Metheny, Georgie Fame and Ahmad Jamal.
- JAZZ FM AWARDS 2022 with PPL and PRS for Music
- GIFTED AWARD CATEGORIES
GOLD AWARD
Marcus Miller
IMPACT AWARD
Jools Holland
LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Norma Winstone
BREAKTHROUGH ACT OF THE YEAR
Chelsea Carmichael
Jasmine Myra
Mica Millar
INTERNATIONAL JAZZ ACT OF THE YEAR
Lady Blackbird
Theo Croker
Trombone Shorty
SOUL ACT OF THE YEAR sponsored by Boisdale
Alex Isley
Cleo Sol
Mica Millar
BLUES ACT OF THE YEAR sponsored by Imagine Cruising
Christone ‘Kingfish’ Ingram
Joanne Taylor Shaw
Mavis Staples and Levon Helm
VOCALIST OF THE YEAR sponsored by Hampstead Jazz Club and Lateralize Records
Brigitte Beraha
Georgia Cecile
Omar
INSTRUMENTALIST OF THE YEAR
Emma Rawicz
Fergus McCreadie
Mark Kavuma
THE DIGITAL AWARD
jazzed
Summer of Soul
We Out Here
INNOVATION AWARD sponsored by Mishcon de Reya
Blue Lab Beats
Café OTO
Jazz Is Dead
PUBLIC VOTE
UK JAZZ ACT OF THE YEAR
Blue Lab Beats
KOKOROKO
Georgia Cecile
PUBLIC VOTE
ALBUM OF THE YEAR
Cleo Sol – Mother
Blue Lab Beats – Motherland
Emma-Jean Thackray – Yellow
Fergus McCreadie – Forest Floor
Kurt Elling – SuperBlue
Robert Glasper – Black Radio III
GIFTED AWARD CATEGORIES
The Jazz FM Awards 2022 is made possible with the support of its sponsors PPL and PRS for Music, Mishcon De Reya, Imagine Cruising, Boisdale, Hampstead Jazz Club, Lateralize, Rathbones and Yamaha, plus additional partners including Denbies, Lotus, Mama Shelter, Savile Row Gin and Shoreditch Town Hall.
Nominees Announced For Jazz FM Awards 2022 with PPL and PRS for MusicRobert Glasper, Mavis Staples, Levon Helm, Questlove, Trombone Shorty, Lady Blackbird, Kokoroko, Omar Amongst Artists Nominated For Annual Celebration Of Jazz, Blues & Soul
Winners to be announced at a ceremony at Shoreditch Town Hall in London on October 20th 2022
London, September 8th 2022: Jazz FM have today announced the nominees for the Jazz FM Awards 2022 with PPL and PRS for Music, which will once again recognise the best new talent, contemporary icons and established stars from across the jazz, soul and blues spectrum.
This year’s nominees include the multi-Grammy-winning pianist, composer and producer Robert Glasper, legendary vocalists Mavis Staples and Levon Helm, superstar drummer and co-founder of the Roots Questlove (nominated for his internationally acclaimed film Summer Of Soul), New Orleans icon Trombone Shorty, powerhouse US singer Lady Blackbird, and UK soul veteran Omar.
Jazz FM’s continued commitment to supporting and celebrating up-and-coming UK artists is evident with nominations for a selection of the most exciting young artists on the UK scene including the likes of jazztronica duo Blue Lab Beats, who are nominated in three categories including Album Of The Year, six-piece afrobeat group Kokoroko, fiery tenor saxophonist Chelsea Carmichael, Manchester singer-songwriter Mica Millar, multi-instrumentalist and producer Emma-Jean Thackray, revered Scottish singer Georgia Cécile, trailblazing saxophonist Emma Rawicz, and the hotly-tipped Scottish pianist Fergus McCreadie.
The recipients of this year’s special awards will be announced in due course.
Since launching in 2013, the Jazz FM Awards with PPL and PRS for Music has honoured some of the true greats of the genre including the likes of Tony Bennett, Herbie Hancock, Quincy Jones, Gregory Porter, Norah Jones, Dame Cleo Laine, George Benson, Pat Metheny, Georgie Fame and Ahmad Jamal.
Votes can be submitted via www.jazzfmawards.com and, for the very first time, via Amazon smart speakers by using the command “Alexa, vote for the Jazz FM Awards”.
Nick Pitts, Content Director, Jazz FM:
“I’d like to say a huge congratulations to all of the artists nominated for awards this year. The scene both in the UK and abroad continues to thrive, and competition for nominations is as fierce as ever so all of those we’ve included on the list are special talents who continue to push the boundaries and create incredible music.”
Peter Leathem, Chief Executive Officer, PPL:
“We are proud to once again be co-headline sponsors for the Jazz FM Awards alongside PRS for Music. Each year the Awards showcase the great depth of talent that the jazz genre has in the UK, celebrating not just established artists but also showcasing those whose careers are just beginning. It also recognises the important work of Jazz FM in providing a platform for these artists and for supporting their work. Congratulations to all those shortlisted and we look forward to celebrating their work in October.”
Andrea Czapary Martin, CEO, PRS for Music:
“PRS for Music is proud to be the co-headline sponsor of the Jazz FM Awards, alongside PPL. It’s incredible to see the exceptional, daring and distinctive music being created by the UK’s finest Jazz, Soul and Blues songwriters and musicians. Congratulations to this year’s nominees, we look forward to celebrating with you!”
- JAZZ FM AWARDS 2022 with PPL and PRS for Music: NOMINEES
BREAKTHROUGH ACT OF THE YEAR
Chelsea Carmichael
Jasmine Myra
Mica Millar
INTERNATIONAL JAZZ ACT OF THE YEAR
Lady Blackbird
Theo Croker
Trombone Shorty
SOUL ACT OF THE YEAR sponsored by Boisdale of Canary Wharf
Alex Isley
Cleo Sol
Mica Millar
BLUES ACT OF THE YEAR sponsored by Imagine Cruising
Christone ‘Kingfish’ Ingram
Joanne Taylor Shaw
Mavis Staples and Levon Helm
VOCALIST OF THE YEAR sponsored by Hampstead Jazz Club and Lateralize Records
Brigitte Beraha
Georgia Cecile
Omar
INSTRUMENTALIST OF THE YEAR
Emma Rawicz
Fergus McCreadie
Mark Kavuma
THE DIGITAL AWARD
jazzed
Summer of Soul
We Out Here
INNOVATION AWARD sponsored by Mishcon de Reya
Blue Lab Beats
Café OTO
Jazz Is Dead
PUBLIC VOTE
UK JAZZ ACT OF THE YEAR
Blue Lab Beats
KOKOROKO
Georgia Cecile
PUBLIC VOTE
ALBUM OF THE YEAR
Cleo Sol – Mother
Blue Lab Beats – Motherland
Emma-Jean Thackray – Yellow
Fergus McCreadie – Forest Floor
Kurt Elling – SuperBlue
Robert Glasper – Black Radio III
GIFTED AWARD CATEGORIES
GOLD AWARD
TBA
IMPACT AWARD
TBA
LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
TBA
Public voting is open now at www.jazzfmawards.com/vote and via Alexa and will close on Monday 26th September at 6pm.
The Jazz FM Awards 2022 is made possible with the support of PPL and PRS for Music, Mishcon De Reya, Imagine Cruising, Boisdale of Canary Wharf, Hampstead Jazz Club, Lateralize, Savile Row Gin, Shoreditch Town Hall and Lotus.
Tony Bennett and Courtney Pine Amongst Stars Honoured At Jazz FM Awards 2021 with PPL and PRS for MusicSadiq Khan, Sir Michael Parkinson, Adil Ray, Nick Hornby, Danny John-Jules, Johanna Konta and many more turn out to celebrate the best in jazz, soul and blues
The Jazz FM Awards with PPL and PRS for Music took place at Under the Bridge in London this evening with a star-studded ceremony that honoured some of the biggest artists from across the jazz, soul and blues spectrum.
Amongst the evening’s highlights were Tony Bennett performing a specially-recorded version of The Way You Look Tonight from his home in New York in recognition of receiving this year’s Lifetime Achievement Award, Courtney Pine CBE in attendance to collect The Gold Award, and revered UK education and artist development organisation Tomorrow’s Warriors, who celebrated their 30th anniversary this year, picking up The Impact Award.
Tony Bennett:
“I listened to jazz musicians to develop my own vocal style. They are such expert craftsmen which allows them to be spontaneous and stay in the moment and always change what they were doing. That really appealed to me and it’s one of the reasons I have gravitated to always having jazz musicians perform and record with me over the years.
I would like to thank all the jazz greats I have worked with over the decades for this honor and thank you to Jazz FM for celebrating this treasured art form.”
Streamed live via Jazz FM’s website, the evening was hosted by UK saxophonist Soweto Kinch and Jazz FM presenter Anne Frankenstein and featured an array of star artists, guests and award-givers including Sir MIchael Parkinson, who gave a heartfelt tribute to his longtime friend Tony Bennett, Nick Hornby, Sadiq Khan, Adil Ray OBE, Danny John-Jules, Robert Elms and Johanna Konta.
Additional winners on the night included US pianist and singer Jon Batiste, who received both the Album Of The Year and Soul Act Of The Year awards, legendary alto saxophonist Gary Bartz, who was presented with International Jazz Act Of The Year and trailblazing trumpeter Emma-Jean Thackray, who picked up UK Jazz Act Of The Year. The EFG London Jazz Festival won the Digital Award for last year’s online festival and received a message of congratulations from London Mayor Sadiq Khan.
Performances came from Breakthrough Act Of The Year Jas Kayser, Vocalist Of The Year Ego Ella May and an all-star Tomorrow’s Warriors band featuring Gary Crosby OBE, Soweto Kinch, Daniel Casimir, Alex Ho, Maddy Coombs and Romarna Campbell.
Jazz FM Content Director Nick Pitts:
“We’re extremely proud of this year’s event, which once again highlighted the incredible amount of talent, diversity and community spirit that exists within the global jazz scene.
This year’s Jazz FM Awards with PPL and PRS for Music was also something incredibly special because every nominee and eventual winner had worked their hearts out to continue to make the music and the art relevant throughout a terrifying pandemic and difficult period for everyone. Our congratulations go to every single one of them.
I’d also like to thank all of our partners and sponsors who made tonight possible, and of course our listeners for continuing to tune in and make us the UK’s best-loved jazz platform.”
Peter Leathem, Chief Executive Officer, PPL:
“As supporters of the Jazz FM Awards since launch, we are proud once again to help celebrate the genre’s fantastic array of artistic talent, both from the UK and internationally. To take on our new role of co-headline partners with PRS for Music in a year when both Tony Bennett and Courtney Pine are among the winners is a real honour and we congratulate them both for their special awards. It is also great to see recognition for a new generation of artists who are taking jazz in different directions and making the genre their own.”
Andrea Czapary Martin, CEO, PRS for Music:
“On behalf of everyone at PRS for Music, I would like to congratulate all of the winners at this year’s Jazz FM Awards. Across every category, the immense talent of the songwriters and composers in the jazz, soul and blues communities shines through for all to see. Despite the challenges of the pandemic their music has undoubtedly left an indelible mark, inspiring listeners and peers alike, and is a testament to the strength of music creators in the UK and around the world.”
JAZZ FM AWARDS 2021 with PPL and PRS for Music: GIFTED AWARD CATEGORIES
LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Tony Bennett
GOLD AWARD
Courtney Pine CBE
IMPACT AWARD
Tomorrow’s Warriors
JAZZ FM AWARDS 2021 with PPL and PRS for Music:
ALBUM OF THE YEAR
Jon Batiste: WE ARE
BLUES ACT OF THE YEAR
Ruthie Foster
BREAKTHROUGH ACT OF THE YEAR
Jas Kayser
THE DIGITAL AWARD sponsored by Raisin UK
Kansas Smitty’s
THE INNOVATION AWARD sponsored by Mishcon de Reya
EFG London Jazz Festival
INSTRUMENTALIST OF THE YEAR
Daniel Casimir
INTERNATIONAL JAZZ ACT OF THE YEAR sponsored by Travelzoo
Gary Bartz
SOUL ACT OF THE YEAR sponsored by LouisianaTravel.com
Jon Batiste
UK JAZZ ACT OF THE YEAR
Emma-Jean Thackray
VOCALIST OF THE YEAR sponsored by Hampstead Jazz Club Presents
Ego Ella May
The ceremony was followed by a NOLA themed afterparty for the winners and special guests hosted by LouisianaTravel.com with a special DJ set by Jazz FM’s Big Easy presenter, DJ Lil’Koko.
The Jazz FM Awards 2021 is made possible with the support of PPL and PRS for Music, Mishcon De Reya, Travelzoo, Raisin UK, Hampstead Jazz Club Presents, LouisianaTravel.com, Sky VIP, Denbies, David Arnold Music and Yamaha.
Launched this year on the Jazz FM Premium app is a Jazz FM Awards channel that celebrates the rich history of the Awards with non-stop, ad break free music from winners and nominees. Jazz FM Premium launched earlier this year and offers its subscribers 20 exclusive Jazz FM stations along with a host of additional content.
Tony Bennett To Receive Lifetime Achievement Award at Jazz FM Awards 2021 with PPL and PRS for MusicLegendary vocalist to be honoured at ceremony on Thursday October 28th 2021
Courtney Pine CBE to be presented with The Gold Award and Nubya Garcia, Celeste, SAULT, Jon Batiste, Floating Points, Emma-Jean Thackray and Gary Bartz amongst nominees
US vocalist Tony Bennett will be honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award at this month’s Jazz FM Awards with PPL and PRS for Music. The legendary singer, who has sold over 50 million records during the course of an illustrious 70-year career, will be presented with the award at the ceremony at Under the Bridge in West London on October 28th.
Also being honoured at this year’s ceremony will be revered UK saxophonist Courtney Pine CBE, who is the recipient of The Gold Award. Pine and Bennett join a long list of illustrious artists to have received one of Jazz FM’s Special Awards including the likes of Herbie Hancock, Quincy Jones, Gregory Porter, Norah Jones, Dame Cleo Laine, George Benson, Pat Metheny, Georgie Fame and Ahmad Jamal.
Jazz FM Content Director Nick Pitts:
“We are absolutely thrilled that the legendary Tony Bennett, one of the true greats of jazz whose music has touched so many millions of people around the world, has agreed to receive this year’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
In the meantime, we can’t wait for the world to see this year’s ceremony which is not only topped off by this Award for Tony alongside the Gold for Courtney Pine, but there will be some real surprises in the room along with some stunning performances. Roll on 28th October.”
This year’s Jazz FM Awards ceremony will be hosted by Jazz FM presenter Anne Frankenstein and British jazz saxophonist Soweto Kinch and can be watched live on the station’s Facebook page. Nominees include star saxophonist Nubya Garcia, chart-topping singer Celeste, London soul collective SAULT, US pianist and singer Jon Batiste, fast-rising trumpeter Emma-Jean Thackray, producer and DJ Floating Points with the London Symphony Orchestra and Pharoah Sanders, neo-soul singer-songwriter Ego Ella May, revered British-Italian singer Georgia Mancio, and the legendary alto saxophonist Gary Bartz.
Plus, for the first time, the event will be followed by a NOLA themed afterparty for the winners and special guests hosted by LouisianaTravel.com with a special DJ set by Jazz FM’s Big Easy presenter, DJ Lil’Koko.
JAZZ FM AWARDS 2021 with PPL and PRS for Music: NOMINEES
BLUES ACT OF THE YEAR
Eric Bibb
Marcus Bonfanti
Ruthie Foster
BREAKTHROUGH ACT OF THE YEAR
Jas Kayser
Nathaniel Cross
Secret Night Gang
THE DIGITAL AWARD sponsored by Raisin UK
Bandcamp Fridays
jazz re:freshed
Kansas Smitty’s
THE INNOVATION AWARD sponsored by Mishcon de Reya
Blue Note Re:imagined
EFG London Jazz Festival
SAULT
INSTRUMENTALIST OF THE YEAR
Amanda Whiting
Daniel Casimir
Ed ‘Tenderlonious’ Cawthorne
INTERNATIONAL JAZZ ACT OF THE YEAR sponsored by Travelzoo
Christian McBride
Gary Bartz
Maria Schneider
SOUL ACT OF THE YEAR
Ego Ella May
Jon Batiste
Omar
VOCALIST OF THE YEAR sponsored by Hampstead Jazz Club Presents
Celeste
Ego Ella May
Georgia Mancio
PUBLIC VOTE CATEGORIES
ALBUM OF THE YEAR
Fergus McCreadie: Cairn
Floating Points, London Symphony Orchestra, and Pharoah Sanders: Promises
Jon Batiste: WE ARE
Matthew Halsall: Salute To The Sun
Nubya Garcia: SOURCE
SAULT: UNTITLED (Black Is)
UK JAZZ ACT OF THE YEAR
Archipelago
Emma-Jean Thackray
Fergus McCreadie
GIFTED AWARD CATEGORIES
GOLD AWARD
Courtney Pine
IMPACT AWARD
TBC
LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Tony Bennett
The Jazz FM Awards 2021 is made possible with the support of PPL and PRS for Music, Mishcon De Reya, Travelzoo, Hampstead Jazz Club Presents, Raisin UK, Louisianatravel.com and Yamaha.
Launching this year on the Jazz FM Premium app is a Jazz FM Awards channel that celebrates the rich history of the Awards with non-stop, ad break free music from winners and nominees. Jazz FM Premium launched earlier this year and offers its subscribers 20 exclusive Jazz FM stations along with a host of additional content.
Courtney Pine CBE To Receive The Gold Award at Jazz FM Awards 2021 with PPL and PRS for MusicThis year’s ceremony takes place at Under the Bridge on October 28th and will be hosted by Anne Frankenstein and Soweto Kinch
Nubya Garcia, Celeste, SAULT, Jon Batiste, Floating Points, Emma-Jean Thackray and Gary Bartz amongst nominees
It is announced today that legendary British saxophonist Courtney Pine is to receive the prestigious Gold Award at this year’s Jazz FM Awards with PPL and PRS for Music. Pine, one of the most celebrated UK jazz musicians of all time whose glittering three-decade career has included being awarded both an OBE and CBE for services to music, will collect the award in-person at the ceremony at Under the Bridge in West London on Thursday October 28th.
Pine will join a long list of illustrious artists to have received one of Jazz FM’s Special Awards including some of the true greats of the genre such as Herbie Hancock, Quincy Jones, Gregory Porter, Norah Jones, Dame Cleo Laine, George Benson, Pat Metheny, Georgie Fame and Ahmad Jamal.
Courtney Pine:
“I would sincerely like to thank all the hard-working members of Jazz FM for recognising me in this way. An award of this stature to someone like me is amazing, I never thought that I would be acknowledged for trying to perform jazz in the United Kingdom in this way. I am deeply honoured and truly realise the significance of a youth from North West London being given this Gold Award during these times. UK stand tall.”
The Gold Award will be presented to Pine on the night by the Jazz FM Awards headline sponsors PPL and PRS for Music.
Peter Leathem, Chief Executive Officer, PPL:
“Courtney Pine CBE is a truly deserving winner of this year’s Gold Award. Since the 1980s he has been an instrumental figure in the UK jazz scene, releasing critically acclaimed solo work as well as regularly collaborating with his contemporaries in bands like Jazz Warriors. The lasting impact of these collaborations, which aimed to promote black jazz artists, can be seen today in the outstanding talents currently on the UK jazz scene, for whom Courtney and his peers blazed a trail. Congratulations Courtney and thank you for your contribution to UK jazz.”
Andrea Czapary Martin, CEO, PRS for Music:
“We are delighted to be a headline sponsor of the Jazz FM Awards this year, it is an important moment to recognise and celebrate the creative excellence of the UK’s jazz community. In particular, all of us at PRS for Music would like to extend our warmest congratulations to Courtney Pine for his Gold Award. With a career in the British jazz scene spanning over thirty years, Courtney continues to break new ground with a string of highly acclaimed recordings and numerous accolades.”
This year’s Jazz FM Awards ceremony will be hosted by Jazz FM presenter Anne Frankenstein and British jazz saxophonist Soweto Kinch and nominees include star saxophonist Nubya Garcia, chart-topping singer Celeste, London soul collective SAULT, US pianist and singer Jon Batiste, fast-rising trumpeter Emma-Jean Thackray, producer and DJ Floating Points with the London Symphony Orchestra and Pharoah Sanders, neo-soul singer-songwriter Ego Ella May, revered British-Italian singer Georgia Mancio, and the legendary alto saxophonist Gary Bartz.
JAZZ FM AWARDS 2021 with PPL and PRS for Music: NOMINEES
BLUES ACT OF THE YEAR
Eric Bibb
Marcus Bonfanti
Ruthie Foster
BREAKTHROUGH ACT OF THE YEAR
Jas Kayser
Nathaniel Cross
Secret Night Gang
THE DIGITAL AWARD sponsored by Raisin UK
Bandcamp Fridays
jazz re:freshed
Kansas Smitty’s
THE INNOVATION AWARD sponsored by Mishcon de Reya
Blue Note Re:imagined
EFG London Jazz Festival
SAULT
INSTRUMENTALIST OF THE YEAR
Amanda Whiting
Daniel Casimir
Ed ‘Tenderlonious’ Cawthorne
INTERNATIONAL JAZZ ACT OF THE YEAR sponsored by Travelzoo
Christian McBride
Gary Bartz
Maria Schneider
SOUL ACT OF THE YEAR
Ego Ella May
Jon Batiste
Omar
VOCALIST OF THE YEAR sponsored by Hampstead Jazz Club Presents
Celeste
Ego Ella May
Georgia Mancio
PUBLIC VOTE CATEGORIES
ALBUM OF THE YEAR
Fergus McCreadie: Cairn
Floating Points, London Symphony Orchestra, and Pharoah Sanders: Promises
Jon Batiste: WE ARE
Matthew Halsall: Salute To The Sun
Nubya Garcia: SOURCE
SAULT: UNTITLED (Black Is)
UK JAZZ ACT OF THE YEAR
Archipelago
Emma-Jean Thackray
Fergus McCreadie
GIFTED AWARD CATEGORIES
GOLD AWARD
Courtney Pine
IMPACT AWARD
TBC
LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
TBC
Public voting is open now at www.jazzfmawards.com/vote/ and will close on Friday September 24th.
The Jazz FM Awards 2021 is made possible with the support of PPL and PRS for Music, Mishcon De Reya, Travelzoo, Hampstead Jazz Club Presents, Raisin UK, Louisianatravel.com and Yamaha.
Launching this year on the Jazz FM Premium app is a Jazz FM Awards channel that celebrates the rich history of the Awards with non-stop, ad break free music from winners and nominees. Jazz FM Premium launched earlier this year and offers its subscribers 20 exclusive Jazz FM stations along with a host of additional content.
Nominees Announced For Jazz FM Awards 2021 with PPL and PRS for MusicNubya Garcia, Celeste, SAULT, Jon Batiste, Floating Points, Emma-Jean Thackray, Gary Bartz amongst acts nominated for this year’s Jazz FM Awards
Ceremony to take place at Under the Bridge in West London on October 28th 2021
The nominees for the Jazz FM Awards 2021 with PPL and PRS for Music have been announced, once again recognising a diverse array of artists from the UK and abroad who have made a significant impact on the genre. This year’s ceremony will take place at Under The Bridge in West London on October 28th 2021 and will be available to livestream via Jazz FM. The Awards will celebrate music created and released between 1st January 2020 to the end of May 2021 to reflect the jazz community’s enduring creativity and innovation during the pandemic.
As announced in a special Jazz FM programme hosted by Anne Frankenstein, nominees this year include star saxophonist Nubya Garcia, chart-topping singer Celeste, London soul collective SAULT, US pianist and singer Jon Batiste, fast-rising trumpeter Emma-Jean Thackray, producer and DJ Floating Points with the London Symphony Orchestra and Pharoah Sanders, neo-soul singer-songwriter Ego Ella May, revered British-Italian singer Georgia Mancio, and the legendary alto saxophonist Gary Bartz. The recipients of the special award categories – Lifetime Achievement Award, Gold Award and Impact Award – will be announced in due course.
Since launching in 2013, the Jazz FM Awards has become one of the most anticipated events in the international jazz calendar honouring some of the true greats of the genre including the likes of Herbie Hancock, Quincy Jones, Gregory Porter, Norah Jones, Dame Cleo Laine, George Benson, Pat Metheny, Georgie Fame and Ahmad Jamal.
Jazz FM Content Director Nick Pitts:
“We are of course delighted that the Jazz FM Awards will return in 2021 to celebrate the incredible level of innovation, creativity and joy that the global jazz community has to offer. Jazz has provided a lifeline for so many of us over the last year and a half and we look forward to bringing everyone together again for what is sure to be a very special occasion.
We also welcome PPL and PRS for Music who are the Jazz FM Awards headline sponsors for 2021. They have both been outstanding supporters of the Jazz FM Awards since its inception in 2013 and I’m so pleased that they have cemented their position as true supporters of the UK’s greatest jazz, soul and blues music awards”.
Peter Leathem, Chief Executive Officer, PPL:
“Having supported the Jazz FM Awards since it began in 2013, we are delighted to be this year’s headline partners alongside our colleagues at PRS for Music. We are proud champions of jazz music at PPL and are delighted to help fund the careers of artists through our talent development work. Indeed, it’s a pleasure to see a number of artists we have supported through the PRS Foundation PPL Momentum Music Fund amongst those shortlisted this year. The UK is a hotbed of jazz music talent and we look forward to the sector’s continued success in the future.”
Andrea Czapary Martin, CEO, PRS for Music:
“We are incredibly proud to be joint headline sponsor of this year’s Jazz FM Awards, alongside PPL. Even in the face of a global pandemic, songwriters and composers in the jazz, soul and blues communities continued to produce inspired music, and we are honoured to support Jazz FM in acknowledging and recognising them for their exceptional work. Congratulations to all of this year’s nominees and we look forward to celebrating with you in person at this truly special event.”
JAZZ FM AWARDS 2021 with PPL and PRS for Music: NOMINEES
BLUES ACT OF THE YEAR
Eric Bibb
Marcus Bonfanti
Ruthie Foster
BREAKTHROUGH ACT OF THE YEAR
Jas Kayser
Nathaniel Cross
Secret Night Gang
THE DIGITAL AWARD sponsored by Raisin UK
Bandcamp Fridays
jazz re:freshed
Kansas Smitty’s
THE INNOVATION AWARD sponsored by Mishcon de Reya
Blue Note Re:imagined
EFG London Jazz Festival
SAULT
INSTRUMENTALIST OF THE YEAR
Amanda Whiting
Daniel Casimir
Ed ‘Tenderlonious’ Cawthorne
INTERNATIONAL JAZZ ACT OF THE YEAR sponsored by Travelzoo
Christian McBride
Gary Bartz
Maria Schneider
SOUL ACT OF THE YEAR
Ego Ella May
Jon Batiste
Omar
VOCALIST OF THE YEAR sponsored by Hampstead Jazz Club Presents
Celeste
Ego Ella May
Georgia Mancio
PUBLIC VOTE CATEGORIES
ALBUM OF THE YEAR
Fergus McCreadie: Cairn
Floating Points, London Symphony Orchestra, and Pharoah Sanders: Promises
Jon Batiste: WE ARE
Matthew Halsall: Salute To The Sun
Nubya Garcia: SOURCE
SAULT: UNTITLED (Black Is)
UK JAZZ ACT OF THE YEAR
Archipelago
Emma-Jean Thackray
Fergus McCreadie
GIFTED AWARD CATEGORIES
GOLD AWARD
TBC
IMPACT AWARD
TBC
LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
TBC
Public voting is open now at www.jazzfmawards.com/vote/ and will close on Friday September 24th.
The Jazz FM Awards 2021 is made possible with the support of PPL and PRS for Music, Mishcon De Reya, Travelzoo, Hampstead Jazz Club Presents, Raisin UK, Louisianatravel.com and Yamaha.
Launching this year on the Jazz FM Premium app is a Jazz FM Awards channel that celebrates the rich history of the Awards with non-stop, ad break free music from winners and nominees. Jazz FM Premium launched earlier this year and offers its subscribers 20 exclusive Jazz FM stations along with a host of additional content.
Jazz FM Awards Winners RevealedThe landmark fifth Jazz FM Awards at Shoreditch Town Hall and hosted by Chris Philips and Jez Nelson saw a star-studded list of winners come to the stage to collect their awards.
Taking place on UNESCO’s International Jazz Day, the evening also provided performances from an all-female, cross-generational line-up of established acts and rising stars. Celebrated US vocalist Cecile McLorin Salvant delivered a spellbinding performance following her International Jazz Artist of the Year win, while multi-Grammy award-winning US bassist and vocalist Esperanza Spalding, who won Digital Initiative Of The Year, and 26-year old London-based saxophonistNubya Garcia, who was named as the Breakthrough Act of the Year, electrified the audience with their exclusive performances, accompanied by British pianist and the evening’s Musical Director Ashley Henry.
The matriarch of British vocal jazz, Dame Cleo Laine DBE brought the evening to a fitting finale as she collected the prestigious PPL Lifetime Achievement Award, which she followed with a surprise rendition of “I’ve Got A Crush On You”.
Legendary guitarist and singer-songwriter George Benson was presented with the Impact Award by founding Jackson 5 member Tito Jacksonwhilst million-selling jazz guitarist Pat Metheny was in town to collect the PRS for Music Gold Award in recognition of his exceptional contribution to jazz performance, composition and education. Musician and DJ Goldie, a self-proclaimed jazz enthusiast, was on hand to congratulate Metheny:
“I’m really happy you’re getting this award; you’ve been a massive inspiration to people around the world, and especially to me.. Who would have thought… Goldie’s drum and bass music, all my arrangements, all my ideas were looking at your music over the years and listening… The whole world of you Pat has been amazing. God bless and keep going man!”
The popularity of the UK’s thriving young jazz scene, which continues to receive widespread international praise, was reflected this year with wins for explosive five-piece Ezra Collective, who collected two awards for UK Jazz Act of the Year and Live Experience of the Year, pioneering saxophonist and clarinetist Shabaka Hutchings,who picked up the Jazz Innovation of the Yearhonour for his multiple award-winning projects including the fiercely popular Sons of Kemet, who’s debut major label releaseYour Queen Is A Reptile was released on impulse! Records in March, while Zara McFarlane fought off stiff competition to reign supreme as Jazz FM’s Vocalist of the Year for the second time since receiving the honour in 2015.
International winners on the night included genre-defying bassist Thundercat, whose critically acclaimed Drunk was voted Album of the Year,Robert Cray for International Blues Artist Of The Year and Moonchild for International Soul Artist Of The Year.
To listen back to the Jazz FM Awards 2018, click here or to see all winners, click here.
WIN TICKETS NOWOne of the most prestigious events in the jazz calendar, the Jazz FM Awards shine a light on the broad range of talent that the worlds of jazz, soul and blues have to offer. The evening will feature performances from a selection of acclaimed artists and YOU could be there.
We’re offering you and a guest the chance to attend this exclusive event at Shoreditch Town Hall in London with a stay overnight at the 5-star Grange St Paul’s Hotel. Nestled beside St Paul’s Cathedral, the Grange St Paul’s Hotel is a stunning luxurious hotel and is a short taxi ride to the venue.
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Nominations announced for Jazz FM Awards 2017The nominations for the 2017 Jazz FM Awards have been announced and, notably, the ceremony will take place on 25th April, the 100th anniversary of Ella Fitzgerald’s birth – a celebration of her music will be included on the night. Ella holds a very special place in Jazz FM’s heart and history having launched the station in 1990 with two concerts at the Royal Albert Hall and was one of the first voices to be heard on air.
Coinciding with a particularly significant year for jazz, which sees noteworthy anniversaries occurring across the year including 100 years since the very first jazz recording as well as centenaries for Ella, Thelonious Monk and Dizzy Gillespie, this year’s gala will present thirteen awards to a range of stand-out artists responsible for carving the way forward in the worlds of jazz, blues and soul.
Organisers have confirmed that pioneering R&B and jazz vocalist Georgie Fame will receive the PPL Lifetime Achievement Award, and will perform a one-off, exclusive show with a quartet led by Guy Barker. La La Land and Whiplash director Damien Chazelle (who on Sunday won the Best Director award at the 2017 Oscars) will receive the Impact Award for the notable impact his work is having on bringing jazz to wider audiences.
Public voting is open now for three of the categories and will close on 31 March 2017.
The Jazz FM Awards 2017 is a partnership between Jazz FM and Serious and is made possible with the support of Mishcon De Reya, PRS For Music, Rathbones, Pollitt & Partners, Oris Watches, Grange Hotels, RCS, Denbies Wine Estate, Arqiva, Fever Tree, Yamaha, The Piano Bar Soho and PPL.
Here’s the full list of 2017 Nominees:
BREAKTHROUGH ACT OF THE YEAR
Sponsored by Yamaha
– Ashley Henry
– Nubya Garcia
– Yussef Kamaal
INTERNATIONAL JAZZ ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Sponsored by Oris Watches
– Brad Mehldau
– Donny McCaslin
– Robert Glasper
VOCALIST OF THE YEAR
Sponsored by PRS for Music
– Carleen Anderson
– Norma Winstone
– Polly Gibbons
INSTRUMENTALIST OF THE YEAR
Sponsored by Rathbones
– Nikki Yeoh
– Gwilym Simcock
– Tim Garland
BLUES ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Sponsored by The Piano Bar Soho
– Bonnie Raitt
– Eric Bibb
– Rolling Stones
SOUL ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Sponsored by RCS
– Jordan Rakei
– Laura Mvula
– William Bell
JAZZ INNOVATION OF THE YEAR
Sponsored by Mishcon de Reya
– Darcy James Argue
– Jaimeo Brown
– Moon Hooch
DIGITAL INITIATIVE OF THE YEAR
Sponsored by Pollitt & Partners
– Dave Douglas – Greenleaf Music
– Gilles Peterson – Worldwide FM
– Jaimeo Brown – Transcendence: Work Songs
ALBUM OF THE YEAR (PUBLIC VOTE THROUGH MARCH)
Sponsored by Arqiva
– Anderson .Paak – Malibu
– Donny McCaslin – Beyond Now
– Gregory Porter – Take Me To The Alley
– Kurt Elling – The Beautiful Day
– Madeleine Peyroux – Secular Hymns
– Rolling Stones – Blue & Lonesome
UK JAZZ ACT OF THE YEAR (PUBLIC VOTE THROUGH MARCH)
Sponsored by Grange Hotels
– Dinosaur
– Shabaka Hutchings
– Soweto Kinch
LIVE EXPERIENCE OF THE YEAR (PUBLIC VOTE THROUGH MARCH)
– Ashley Henry Trio at Jazz Re:Fest, Royal Festival Hall
– Cory Henry & The Funk Apostles at Glee Club Birmingham
– Julian Arguelles with Frankfurt Radio Big Band, Django Bates & Steve Argüelles at Cheltenham Jazz Festival
– Orphy Robinson All Stars – The Bobby Hutcherson Songbook at St James The Great, London
– Roberto Fonseca Trio at Gateshead International Jazz Festival, Sage Gateshead
– Wayne Shorter Quartet at EFG London Jazz Festival, Barbican
PPL LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
– Recipient: Georgie Fame
IMPACT AWARD
– Recipient: Damien Chazelle
La La Land Director Damien Chazelle and Georgie Fame to be honoured at the 2017 Jazz FM Awards
*Taking place on the 100th anniversary of Ella Fitzgerald’s birth, the Jazz FM Awards 2017 will feature a special live tribute to the legendary singer*
**Gregory Porter, The Rolling Stones, Wayne Shorter, Laura Mvula, Gilles Peterson, Madeleine Peyroux, Robert Glasper and Yussef Kamaal amongst artists also up for awards**
The nominations for the 2017 Jazz FM Awards have been announced and, notably, the ceremony will take place on 25th April, the 100th anniversary of Ella Fitzgerald’s birth.
Coinciding with a particularly significant year for jazz, which sees noteworthy anniversaries occurring across the year including 100 years since the very first jazz recording as well as centenaries for Ella Fitzgerald, Thelonious Monk and Dizzy Gillespie, this year’s gala will present thirteen awards to a range of stand-out artists responsible for carving the way forward in the worlds of jazz, blues and soul.
While the majority of winners will be announced on the evening, the organisers have confirmed that pioneering R&B and jazz vocalist Georgie Fame will receive the PPL Lifetime Achievement Award and La La Land and Whiplash director Damien Chazelle, who on Sunday won the Best Director award at the 2017 Oscars for La La Land, will receive the Impact Award for the notable impact his work is having on bringing jazz to wider audiences.
Speaking to Jazz FM about La La Land, Damien Chazelle said:
“What’s interesting about jazz now is that it’s an art form that is kind of at a crossroads and maybe has been for some time. An art form where there’s a lot of debate about what it’s supposed to be… It was important to me to have that said out loud in the movie….[The views of the characters] are the two sides of my brain …purity and tradition versus the need to keep an art form alive and modern.”
The night will also host several performances from a range of acclaimed artists, including a one-off, exclusive show from Georgie Fame with a quartet led by Guy Barker, as well as a tribute to Ella Fitzgerald performed by a special guest performer. Ella holds a very special place in Jazz FM’s heart and history having launched the station in 1990 with two concerts at the Royal Albert Hall and was one of the first voices to be heard on air.
Nominated artists this year include Laura Mvula, Stax Records icon William Bell, and neo-soul singer-songwriter Jordan Rakei who are up for Soul Artist of the Year, US heavyweights Brad Mehldau, David Bowie collaborator Donny McCaslin, and genre-bending pianist Robert Glasper who will fight it out for International Jazz Artist of the Year, and groove duo Yussef Kamaal, pianist Ashley Henry, and Nubya Garcia who represent the outstanding British talent that has emerged in 2016 and are up for Breakthrough Act of the Year.
The Rolling Stones have been nominated for two awards under the categories of Album of the Year and Blues Artist of the Year for Blues & Lonesome, with US singer-songwriters Bonnie Raitt and Eric Bibb also in contention for the latter award. Another dual nominee is drummer and social activist Jaimeo Brown for Jazz Innovation and Digital Initiative of the Year, where he will be up against DJ Gilles Peterson and US trumpeter Dave Douglas.
Once again, Album of the Year, UK Jazz Act of the Year and Live Experience of the Year will be decided by public vote and the nominees for these categories include Shabaka Hutchings, Gregory Porter, Wayne Shorter, Madeleine Peyroux, Soweto Kinch, Anderson .Paak, Kurt Elling, Roberto Fonseca and Julian Arguelles.
Public voting is open now at www.jazzfmawards.com and will close on 31 March 2017.
The Jazz FM Awards 2017 is a partnership between Jazz FM and Serious and is made possible with the support of Mishcon De Reya, PRS For Music, Rathbones, Pollitt & Partners, Oris Watches, Grange Hotels, RCS, Denbies Wine Estate, Arqiva, Fever Tree, Yamaha, The Piano Bar Soho and PPL.
Full list of 2017 Nominees:
BREAKTHROUGH ACT OF THE YEAR
Sponsored by Yamaha
Ashley Henry
Nubya Garcia
Yussef Kamaal
INTERNATIONAL JAZZ ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Sponsored by Oris Watches
Brad Mehldau
Donny McCaslin
Robert Glasper
VOCALIST OF THE YEAR
Sponsored by PRS for Music
Carleen Anderson
Norma Winstone
Polly Gibbons
INSTRUMENTALIST OF THE YEAR
Sponsored by Rathbones
Nikki Yeoh
Gwilym Simcock
Tim Garland
BLUES ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Sponsored by The Piano Bar Soho
Bonnie Raitt
Eric Bibb
Rolling Stones
SOUL ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Sponsored by RCS
Jordan Rakei
Laura Mvula
William Bell
JAZZ INNOVATION OF THE YEAR
Sponsored by Mishcon de Reya
Darcy James Argue
Jaimeo Brown
Moon Hooch
DIGITAL INITIATIVE OF THE YEAR
Sponsored by Pollitt & Partners
Dave Douglas – Greenleaf Music
Gilles Peterson – Worldwide FM
Jaimeo Brown – Transcendence: Work Songs
ALBUM OF THE YEAR (PUBLIC VOTE)
Sponsored by Arqiva
Anderson .Paak – Malibu
Donny McCaslin – Beyond Now
Gregory Porter – Take Me To The Alley
Kurt Elling – The Beautiful Day
Madeleine Peyroux – Secular Hymns
Rolling Stones – Blue & Lonesome
UK JAZZ ACT OF THE YEAR (PUBLIC VOTE)
Sponsored by Grange Hotels
Dinosaur
Shabaka Hutchings
Soweto Kinch
LIVE EXPERIENCE OF THE YEAR (PUBLIC VOTE)
Ashley Henry Trio at Jazz Re:Fest, Royal Festival Hall
Cory Henry & The Funk Apostles at Glee Club Birmingham
Julian Arguelles with Frankfurt Radio Big Band, Django Bates & Steve Argüelles at Cheltenham Jazz Festival
Orphy Robinson All Stars – The Bobby Hutcherson Songbook at St James The Great, London
Roberto Fonseca Trio at Gateshead International Jazz Festival, Sage Gateshead
Wayne Shorter Quartet at EFG London Jazz Festival, Barbican
PPL LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Recipient: Georgie Fame
IMPACT AWARD
Recipient: Damien Chazelle
Stars Line Up For the Jazz FM Awards 2016The highest achievers from the worlds of jazz, blues, soul and beyond have been honoured at the third annual Jazz FM Awards produced by Serious, which took place last night at a star-studded ceremony at the Bloomsbury Ballroom in London.
Hosted by writer, actor and broadcaster Hardeep Singh Kohli, the ceremony featured performances from some of the hottest acts across the genre and was attended by a host of well-known faces including Jon Snow, Cerys Matthews, Nitin Sawhney, Soweto Kinch, the Brand New Heavies and others.
Highlights this year included awards for Gregory Porter and Quincy Jones. Multi-platinum-selling Porter picked up the Impact Award, presented to a jazz artist who’s made an outstanding impression on the wider global music scene. Porter thanked Jazz FM for their unwavering support having previously credited the station with initiating his chart-topping collaboration with Disclosure. In typical Gregory warm-hearted fashion he thanked his audiences saying:
”Thank you to everybody because it is you who inspire me and then I just give it back to you. I’m inspired and impacted by you.”
Legendary composer, arranger and producer Quincy Jones was honoured with The PPL Lifetime Achievement Award and thanked the station via a specially recorded video message:
“What can I say Jazz FM? I’m so moved… To be so young and receive an award like this it’s astounding; I’m only 83, man! It’s with great honour and pride that I’d like to say thank you and show you my gratitude and my respect and love, I really appreciate it, thank you. It always feels good, man!”
Other awards included Digital Initiative of the Year, which was presented to Jacob Collier, a young artist whom Quincy Jones hailed as “absolutely mindblowing”. Collier has captured the public’s attention with his groundbreaking acapella videos, which have received millions of hits across social media..
California-based saxophonist Kamasi Washington took home the title of International Jazz Act of the Year, affirming his status as one of the biggest acts to emerge from this year. Revered trumpeter Christian Scott won the Jazz Innovation of the Year award for his Stretch Music project and saxophonist Soweto Kinch presented much-hyped London-based duo Binker and Moses with Breakthrough Act of the Year. The duo were big winners on the night and also took home the UK Jazz Act of the Year Award. EFG London Jazz Festival’s The Langston Hughes Project at the Barbican with Ice-T and Ron McCurdy picked up the Live Experience Award voted for by the public.
Performances on the night came from Kansas Smitty’s House Band, Liv Warfield, who also accepted the Vocalist of the Year Award on behalf of Lauren Kinsella, and rising star singer/pianist Kandace Springs, an artist championed by Prince who will release her debut album Soul Eyes on Blue Note Records in July. The event came to a climax with a performance from Hiatus Kaiyote, who were honored with the prestigious award for Album of the Year for their critically acclaimed Choose Your Weapon.
The full list of winners is as follows:
Instrumentalist of the Year
Winner: Mark Lockheart
Soul Artist of the Year (Sponsored by RCS)
Winner: Jill Scott
Breakthrough Act of the Year
Winner: Binker & Moses
Blues Artist of the Year
Winner: Gary Clark Jr.
Vocalist of the Year
Winner: Lauren Kinsella
International Jazz Artist Of The Year (Sponsored by Yamaha)
Winner: Kamasi Washington
Album Of The Year – Public Vote (Sponsored by Arqiva)
Winner: Hiatus Kaiyote
UK Jazz Act of the Year (Sponsored by Grange Hotels)
Winner: Binker & Moses
Digital Initiative of the Year (sponsored by 7digital)
Winner: Jacob Collier
Jazz Innovation of the Year (sponsored by Mishcon de Reya)
Winner: Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah
Live Experience of the Year – Public Vote
Winner: Ice-T and Ron McCurdy – The Langston Hughes Project at the Barbican
Impact Award
Gregory Porter
PPL Lifetime Achievement Award
Quincy Jones
The Jazz FM Awards, produced by Serious, has announced legendary US composer, producer and musical pioneer Quincy Jones will be the recipient of this year’s PPL Lifetime Achievement Award. This year’s award ceremony will take place at the Bloomsbury Ballroom in London on Tuesday 26th April and will be hosted by British personality, broadcaster and comedian Hardeep Singh Kohli.
One of the most prestigious events in the jazz calendar, the Awards shine a light on the broad range of talent that the worlds of jazz, blues and soul have to offer. The evening will once again feature performances from a selection of acclaimed artists with special appearances to be revealed on the night. This year’s event will honour Grammy award-winning vocalist and songwriter Gregory Porter with the Impact Award, and once again, the Jazz FM team will present an hour of highlights straight after the event featuring music and interviews with nominees and winners. Listeners will have a chance to hear whether the artists they voted for in the Album of the Year, UK Jazz Act of the Year and Live Experience of the Year categories will take home the acclaimed prizes.
Hardeep Singh Kohli on hosting the 2016 Jazz FM Awards:
“Jazz is where all modern music started. Hundreds of years ago. I am old enough to have been there when it started. I’m lucky enough to be here now to host these awards.”
Following in the footsteps of last year’s winner Hugh Masekela, iconic composer, arranger, producer and humanitarian Quincy Jones will be awarded with the PPL Lifetime Achievement Award, an accolade that recognizes his prolific contribution to the music industry throughout the course of a career that has spanned over six decades and seen him garner a record 79 Grammy Award nominations and 28 Grammys. Quincy’s work has shuffled pop, soul, hip-hop, jazz, classical, African and Brazilian music into many dazzling fusions, traversing virtually every medium, including records, live performance, movies and television, successfully bringing jazz to the attention of the mainstream.
Quincy Jones on being honoured with the PPL Lifetime Achievement Award:
“What can I say Jazz FM? I’m so moved… To be so young and receive an award like this it’s astounding; I’m only 83, man!”
The nominations for the 2016 Jazz FM Awards have been announced. The most prestigious ceremony in the jazz, soul and blues calendar is this year taking place on Tuesday 26th April at London’s Bloomsbury Ballroom and will feature a performance by Gregory Porter, who will also receive the Jazz Impact Award.
Once again the public will be able to vote for the winner of three categories Album of the year, UK Jazz Act of the Year and Live Experience of the Year. Voting will be open from 24th February to the 31st March via the Awards website. This year also sees the addition of a new award, the Digital Initiative Award, that has been created to recognise a musician who has harnessed the power of technology to engage with audiences.
This year’s nominees include Kamasi Washington who is up for two awards Album of the year and International Jazz Artist of the Year following the success of his 2015 album ‘The Epic’. US trumpeter Christian Scott has also received two nominations for Album Of The Year and Jazz Innovation of the Year after his genre bending work on the album ‘STRETCH Music’. Rounding off the trio of double nominees is prodigious newcomer Jacob Collier who is nominated for Breakthrough Act of the Year and the new Digital Initiative Award after independently gaining over 10 million views on Youtube.
Other categories include Soul Artist of the Year whose nominees include US vocalist Jill Scott, Leon Bridges fresh from the release of his debut album ‘Coming Home’ and Lizz Wright. Blues Artist of the Year will see Alabama Shakes, Buddy Guy and guitarist Gary Clark Junior battle it out. Home-grown talent is once again
celebrated in the UK Jazz Act of the Year category which sees nominations for Manchester based DJ, bandleader and trumpeter Matthew Halsall, London duo Binker & Moses and 4-piece jazz group Sons of Kemet.
“We are delighted to announce this year’s Jazz FM Awards nominees celebrating the extraordinary work from established international Grammy-winning superstars to up and coming homegrown talent, this is sure to be our biggest and best year yet”
Jonathan Arendt, CEO, Jazz FM
The Jazz FM Awards 2016 is a partnership between Jazz FM and Serious and is made possible with the support of Grange Hotels, Mishcon de Reya, PPL, Yamaha, Arqiva, 7digital, and Denbies Wine Estate.
Full list of 2016 Nominees:
Breakthrough Act of the Year
- Binker & Moses
- Jacob Collier
- Nerija
International Jazz Artist of the Year
(Sponsored by Yamaha)
- Kamasi Washington
- Marcus Miller
- Maria Schneider
Blues Artist of the Year
- Alabama Shakes
- Buddy Guy
- Gary Clark Jnr
Soul Artist of the Year
- Jill Scott
- Leon Bridges
- Lizz Wright
Instrumentalist of the Year
(Sponsored by Arqiva)
- Mark Lockheart
- Theon Cross
- Zoe Rahman
Vocalist of the Year
- Eska
- Lauren Kinsella
- Liane Carroll
Jazz Innovation of the Year
(Sponsored by Mishcon de Reya)
- Black Top
- Christian Scott Atunde Adjuah
- David Virelles
Digital Initiative of the Year
(Sponsored by 7digital)
- Chassol
- Jacob Collier
- Tin Men and the Telephone
Album of the Year (Public Vote)
- Christian Scott ‘Stretch Music’
- Hiatus Kaiyote ‘Choose Your Weapon’
- Kamasi Washington ‘The Epic’
- Maria Schneider ‘The Thompson Fields’
- Charenee Wade ‘Offering’
- Snarky Puppy ‘Sylva’
UK Jazz Act of the Year (Public Vote)
(Sponsored by Grange Hotels)
- Binker & Moses
- Matthew Halsall
- Sons of Kemet
Live Experience of the Year (Public Vote)
- Ice-T and Ron McCurdy – The Langston Hughes Project at the Barbican
- Maria Schneider at Symphony Hall Birmingham
- Taylor McFerrin at Rio Club, Glasgow Jazz Festival
Grammy-Winning Gregory Porter To Receive Award And Will Perform On The Night – The Jazz FM Awards produced by Serious will return in 2016, taking place at the Bloomsbury Ballroom in London on Tuesday 26th April.
One of the most prestigious events in the jazz calendar, the Awards shine a light on the broad range of talent that the worlds of jazz, blues and soul have to offer and will once again feature performances from a selection of acclaimed artists and groups.
Following on from the success of last year’s ceremony, which was presented by actor and comedian John “Fast Show” Thomson and saw performances from Hugh Masekela and Rebecca Ferguson in front of a star-studded audience of guests including Laura Mvula, Cerys Matthews, Denis Lawson and Jon Snow, the organisers have confirmed the first performer for this year’s event, the Grammy Award-winning vocalist and songwriter Gregory Porter. As well as showcasing new material, Porter will also be honoured with the Impact Award, presented to a jazz artist who’s made an outstanding impression on the wider global music scene.
Speaking about being presented with the award, Porter says:
“The UK audience was the first audience to propel me really all over the world. I launched myself from the experiences I was having in the UK. France got jealous and Germany was like ‘OK what’s all this commotion about?’ and so the energy that was created is what pushes me and so I’m delighted to have the UK be the first place that I exercise this new music. In a way, you’ve let me know who I am in the past, so I’m going to lay the music on you and I hope you’ll do it again.”
“Jazz FM got my name out there, and my sound, even to the point where Howard and Guy from Disclosure heard one of my songs on Jazz FM, and that’s how they decided to call me and do the song that we did, which ended up being a number one dance song around the world. So I have you to thank for many reasons, for advancing my jazz career and doing special things like that. I’m thankful for Jazz FM’s approach, and for embracing me and my sound.”
The Jazz FM Awards 2016 will present the following awards on the night:
* Breakthrough Act
* Instrumentalist of the Year
* Album of the Year
* Jazz Innovation of the Year
* Live Experience of the Year
* UK Jazz Act of the Year
* International Jazz Artist of the Year
* Blues Artist of the Year
* Soul Artist of the Year
* Vocalist of the Year
* Jazz Impact Award – to be presented to Gregory Porter
* Digital Initiative Award
* Lifetime Achievement
The Digital Initiative Award, a new award for this year, has been created to recognise a musician who has harnessed the power of technology to engage with audiences and to take their music or performance to another dimension.
The Jazz FM Awards 2016 is a partnership between Jazz FM and Serious and is made possible with the support of the Grange Hotels, Mishcon De Reya, PPL, Yamaha and Denbies Wine Estate.
The second Jazz FM Awards, in partnership with Serious, took place tonight at the Great Halls at Vinopolis, London Bridge. The night, hosted by actor and The Fast Show’s ‘Jazz Club’ Louis Balfour, John Thomson, featured stunning performances from PPL Lifetime Achievement winner Hugh Masekela who performed with Larry Willis, a beautiful tribute from Rebecca Ferguson, celebrating the centenary of Billie Holiday, and the House Gospel Choir. A surprise performance of the night came from Soul Artist Of The Year winner Jarrod Lawson.
Album of the Year (Public vote):
WINNER: Dianne Reeves (“Beautiful Life”)
Nominees: Ambrose Akinmusire (“The Imagined Savior is Far Easier to Paint”), D’Angelo (“Black Messiah”), Chris Potter Underground Orchestra (“Imaginary Cities”), Polar Bear (“In Each and Every One”), Troyka (“Ornithophobia”)
Live Experience of the Year, sponsored by 7digital (Public Vote):
WINNER: Loose Tubes at Cheltenham Jazz Festival
Nominees: Blue Note 75th Birthday at EFG London Jazz Festival, Jamie Cullum at Love Supreme Jazz Festival
UK Jazz Act of the Year sponsored by Yamaha Music (Public Vote):
WINNER: GoGo Penguin
Nominees: Polar Bear, Sons of Kemet
Breakthrough Act, sponsored by Aberdeen Asset Management:
WINNER: Bill Laurance
Nominees: GoGo Penguin, Peter Edwards
Instrumentalist of the Year:
WINNER: Shabaka Hutchings
Nominees: Alex Hawkins, Laura Jurd
Vocalist of the Year, sponsored by CityJet:
WINNER: Zara McFarlane
Nominees: Alice Zawadzki, Lauren Kinsella
Jazz Innovation of the Year, sponsored by Mishcon de Reya:
WINNER: Jason Moran
Nominees: Henry Threadgill, Theo Croker
International Jazz Artist of the Year, sponsored by Taylor’s Port:
WINNER: Gregory Porter
Nominees: Snarky Puppy, Antonio Sanchez
Blues Artist of the Year:
WINNER: Dr John
Nominees: Otis Taylor, Valerie June
Soul Artist of the Year, sponsored by Conrad London St. James:
WINNER: Jarrod Lawson
Nominees: D’Angelo, Lalah Hathaway
PPL Lifetime Achievement:
Hugh Masekela
John Thomson, a.k.a Fast Show “Jazz Club” host Louis Balfour, has been announced as the host for the Jazz FM Awards 2015. The British actor, best known for his roles in ITV’s Cold Feet as well as BBC sketch show The Fast Show, will oversee the glamorous night on Wednesday 10 June at London Vinopolis where the Awards will celebrate unprecedented talent within the jazz, soul and blues worlds.
Also confirmed for the event is the hugely talented House Gospel Choir who wowed the audience at last year’s Glastonbury with their uplifting show and have since gone on to play at Latitude festival, Buckingham Palace and have performed on Later… with Jools Holland and the New Year’s Eve Special of Top of the Pops. The night will also feature a performance from Rebecca Ferguson who will celebrate the centenary of Billie Holiday in addition to a very special performance from Hugh Masekela with Larry Willis, and Hugh will also receive the Lifetime Achievement award on the night.
The full list of nominations for the second prestigious Jazz FM Awards have already been announced with Gregory Porter, Snarky Puppy, D’Angelo, GoGo Penguin, Birdman soundtrack composer Antonio Sanchez and Zara McFarlane all up for awards on the night.
Full List of Nominations Announced for the Jazz FM AwardsThe full list of nominations for the second Jazz FM Awards was announced today. Taking place on 10 June 2015 at London’s Vinopolis, one of the most glamorous nights of the jazz, soul and blues calendar will feature a very special performance from Hugh Masekela, who will also receive the Lifetime Achievement award. Rebecca Ferguson will also perform as part of a celebration of Billie Holiday’s centenary.
Despite the shock that Antonio Sanchez’s Birdman soundtrack was disqualified for an Oscar nomination, the album’s composer and drummer Antonio Sanchez receives a nomination for International Jazz Artist. He is joined by the only previous Jazz FM award winner, Gregory Porter whose album ‘Liquid Spirit’ continues to reach the UK top 10 album chart. New York based instrumental fusion band Snarky Puppy, complete the trio of nominees. The wider Jazz FM playlist is also celebrated this year with the inclusion of Soul Artist and Blues Artist awards. Soul Artist nominations include D’Angelo (also nominated for Album of the Year) who after a 12 year break returned with a new album and sold out two UK shows, California’s Jarrod Lawson whose meteoric rise saw him sell out two nights at Ronnie Scott’s and the Grammy award winning queen of power and vulnerability, Lalah Hathaway. Blues Artist nods at the legendary Dr John and Otis Taylor, as well as overnight UK hit Valerie June.
Kicking off the British nominations, Manchester’s GoGo Penguin receive their second nomination (also up for the public voted UK Jazz Act of The Year) in the Breakthrough Act category. They are nominated following the release of their critically acclaimed second album ‘v2.0’ in September 2014 and will compete with pianist, composer and bandleader Peter Edwards whose debut album ‘Safe and Sound’ was among MOJO magazine’s top 10 jazz albums of 2014. The category is completed by pianist, keyboard player, composer, producer and arranger Bill Laurance who, alongside his work with Snarky Puppy (also nominated for an award), released the critically acclaimed album ‘Flint’.
London females entirely dominate the British Vocalist category as East London’s Zara McFarlane receives a nomination alongside London vocalist and violinist Alice Zawadzki and London based vocalist and composer Lauren Kinsella.
The final British only category is the Instrumentalist Award. Pianist, organist and composer, Alexander Hawkins; trumpeter, composer and improviser, Laura Jurd; and saxophonist, band leader and composer Shabaka Hutchings all receive their first Jazz FM Award nominations. Shabaka is also nominated in the public voted category UK Jazz Artist of the Year with his project Sons of Kemet.
Jazz Innovation recognises artists whose compositions are pushing boundaries of the music and features nominations for saxophonist and flautist Henry Threadgill, pianist Jason Moran and trumpeter Theo Croker.
Three other Audience Vote Awards: Live Experience of the Year, UK Jazz Act of the Year and Album of the Year were announced previously with voting open until 10 May via www.jazzfmawards.com/vote.
Full Nominations are:
Album of the Year (Public vote): Ambrose Akinmusire (“The Imagined Savior is Far Easier to Paint”), D’Angelo (“Black Messiah”), Dianne Reeves (“Beautiful Life”), Chris Potter Underground Orchestra (“Imaginary Cities”), Polar Bear (“In Each and Every One”), Troyka (“Ornithophobia”)
Live Experience of the Year (Public Vote): Loose Tubes at Cheltenham Jazz Festival, Blue Note 75th Birthday at EFG London Jazz Festival, Jamie Cullum at Love Supreme Jazz Festival
UK Jazz Act of the Year (Public Vote): GoGo Penguin, Polar Bear, Sons of Kemet
Breakthrough Act: Bill Laurance, GoGo Penguin, Peter Edwards
Instrumentalist: Alex Hawkins, Laura Jurd, Shabaka Hutchings
Vocalist: Alice Zawadzki, Lauren Kinsella, Zara McFarlane
Jazz Innovation: Henry Threadgill, Jason Moran, Theo Croker
International Jazz Artist: Antonio Sanchez, Gregory Porter, Snarky Puppy
Blues Artist: Dr John, Otis Taylor, Valerie June
Soul Artist: D’Angelo, Jarrod Lawson, Lalah Hathaway
Lifetime Achievement Award: Hugh Masekela
Jazz FM Awards 2015 ReturnIn the week it celebrates its 25th birthday, Jazz FM is delighted to announce that the Jazz FM Awards will return for a second year on Wednesday 10 June 2015, this time in the Great Halls at Vinopolis, London Bridge.. This very special event will feature a unique performance from the legendary Hugh Masekela who will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award on the night.
The Jazz FM Awards 2015, produced by Serious, will present eleven awards on the night to honour musicians and performers that have made an exceptional contribution within the worlds of Jazz, Blues and Soul. The awards are confirmed as:
- Breakthrough Act
- Instrumentalist of the Year
- Album of the Year
- Jazz Innovation of the Year
- Live Experience of the Year
- UK Jazz Act of the Year
- International Jazz Artist of the Year
- Blues Artist of the Year
- Soul Artist of the Year
- Vocalist of the Year
- Lifetime Achievement – to be presented to Hugh Masekela
This unique event presented by Jazz FM and Serious will celebrate the wealth of talent demonstrated in jazz music over the last 12 months. Guests will be treated to a special evening with live performances and award presentations including Hugh Masekela who will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award. A highlight to the evening’s entertainment will be a performance by Hugh Masekela, who will be joined onstage by American jazz pianist Larry Willis.
Hugh Masekela is a world-renowned multi-instrumentalist, bandleader, composer, singer and defiant political voice who remains deeply connected at home, while his international career sparkles. Born in the town of Witbank, South Africa in 1939, the celebrated South African trumpeter has enjoyed a solo career spanning 5 decades, during which time he has released over 40 albums (and been featured on countless more) and has worked with such diverse artists as Harry Belafonte, Dizzy Gillespie, The Byrds, Fela Kuti, Marvin Gaye, Herb Alpert, Paul Simon, Stevie Wonder and the late Miriam Makeba.
A pillar of the anti-apartheid movement, Hugh returned to his home country in 1990 following a 30-year exile. In 2010, President Zuma honoured him with the highest order in South Africa: The Order of Ikhamanga. He maintains a busy international tour schedule as his fan base around the world continues to grow.
Jazz FM Chairman Richard Wheatly said: “We’re proud to be celebrating 25 years of Jazz FM at this year’s Awards which recognise the best musicians and performers. The evening is set to be a fantastic occasion, bringing together the jazz world’s finest with Hugh Masekela headlining what will be an unforgettable night.”
It is not only the industry that get to revel in Hugh’s achievements this summer, fans have two opportunities to see him perform live in the UK. Hugh plays the Barbican in London on Monday 8 June and Love Supreme Festival on 5 July.
The Jazz FM Awards first took place in 2013 creating a memorable night of glamour, live music and celebration of all things jazz. From stunning performances, including a world first collaboration by Jamie Cullum and the inaugural Jazz FM Awards lifetime Achievement winner Ahmad Jamal, to highlighting amazing accomplishments from the likes of Robert Glasper, Gregory Porter, Kurt Elling and many more.
The Jazz FM Awards 2015 is a partnership between Jazz FM and Serious and is made possible with the support of Aberdeen Asset Management, Taylor’s Port, Mishcon De Reya and Arqiva.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: And the Winners are…UK Jazz Artist Of The Year (Public Vote) Sponsored By Place 2 Be
Neil Cowley Trio
International Jazz Artist Sponsored By Thai Airways
Kurt Elling
Cutting Edge Award For Jazz Innovation Sponsored By BMW
Robert Glasper
Album Of The Year Sponsored By Delta Air Lines
John Surman: Saltash Bells
Jazz Media
Jazzwise (Magazine)
Best UK Newcomer Sponsored By Aberdeen Asset Management
Beats & Pieces Big Band
UK Vocalist Of The Year
Carleen Anderson
UK Instrumentalist Of The Year Sponsored By Chapel Down
Nathaniel Facey
Live UK Shows Of The Year
Gregory Porter
Best UK Jazz Venue
Ronnie Scott’s
Gold Award For Outstanding Contribution To Jazz
Ramsey Lewis
Lifetime Achievement Sponsored By Klipsch
Ahmad Jamal
Tomorrow night, One Marylebone will be filled with jazz superstars from the around the globe for the Jazz FM Awards Powered by Klipsch.
For the first awards bash expert caterers The Recipe will be on hand to supply the delicious menu. Before they fire up the ovens and set the tables, check out some of the incredible dishes the guests will enjoy.
Succulent lamb, olive potato cake and blackened red pepper puree
Black olive crushed potato cake, topped with a slice of herb crusted fillet of lamb & a char-grilled red pepper puree
Honey & soy glazed salmon brochette
Skewer of honey and soy glazed salmon with a sprinkle of toasted sesame seeds
Bombay chaat, tamarind & green mango
Tiny house baked puri bread with a green mango salsa, tamarind and natural yogurt the-tasting
The rest of the menu will be revealed on the night.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: One week to go… Performers: London Youth Gospel ChoirPerformers: London Youth Gospel Choir
The London Youth Gospel Choir will get the night of live music underway when they perform for the guests at the drinks reception.
The LYGC are an ever-growing gospel choir whose aim is to bring young people together to have fun and perform around London. This high-energy group has performed with the likes of Mike King and also appeared on BBC1 and ITV.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: One week to go… Jazz FM Awards Performers: Cerys MatthewsPerformers: Cerys Matthews
Singer Cerys Matthews will join the Jazz FM Awards House Band on stage at the awards at One Marylebone
Distinguished singer and songwriter Cerys Matthews has had a very exciting career, from being lead singer of Welsh rock band Catatonia to performing with Tom Jones. She is also celebrated for her work as a presenter on BBC 6 and as a documentary maker on BBC 2 and 4.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Legends of Jazz Honoured
The inaugural Jazz FM awards will honour two artists who have had a huge impact on not only the jazz world, but the whole music industry. Up first to accept an award will be iconic pianist and groove merchant Ramsey Lewis who will accept the Gold Award for Outstanding Contribution to Jazz, before treating guests to a performance. Another legend set to grace the stage is pianist Ahmad Jamal whose innovations influenced the young Miles Davis and have captivated generations of jazz fans since. Jamal will collect the Lifetime Achievement award before closing the show with a 20 minute set which will feature a much-anticipated surprise collaboration.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Roll out the Red CarpetLegends of Jazz Ramsey Lewis and Ahmad Jamal will join stars Cerys Matthews, Suggs and Courtney Pine on the red carpet at the Jazz FM Music Awards on Thursday 31st January 2013.
At an evening which celebrates the creativity, innovation and vision of the best in jazz, the ceremony will bring together a stunning range of talent, making it one of the most exciting nights in the showbiz calendar. Attending the evening will be international piano legends Ramsey Lewis and Ahmad Jamal plus plenty of new and home-grown talent.
The star studded night will also see Suggs from the band Madness and Courtney Pine presenting awards.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: And the Host is…Jazz FM’s Ian Shaw has been chosen to host the exclusive bash at One Marylebone on 31st January. The radio host and musician is also a nominee and set to perform.
About Ian
Award winning Jazz vocalist Ian Shaw has been an influential character on the jazz scene for over 3 decades. Named Best Jazz Vocalist by the BBC in 2004 and 2007, Ian has brought joy to his fans around the world through his music. The Brit Jazz legend presents The Ronnie Scott’s Radio Show every Saturday at 6pm on Jazz FM.
Band on the Wall is a not-for-profit venue run by registered charity Inner City Music. The venue exists to present the best music from around the world and support our main stage events with a dynamic education programme, which operates throughout the year – both in the venue and in the community and at local schools.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: Café Oto – Best UK Jazz Venue
Cafe OTO opened in April 2008 with the aim of providing a home for creative new music that exists outside of the mainstream. Cafe OTO is comprised of one large cafe/performance space open during the day as a cafe and hosting an evening programme of adventurous live music almost seven nights a week. In addition to managing and delivering the programme of live events at Cafe Oto most evenings, OTOProjects is also developing new strands including workshops, film screenings and salons that will run alongside the core programme.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: Ronnie Scott’s – Best UK Jazz Venue
Ever since his trips in the late 40s and early 50s to the jazz clubs of New York’s 52nd Street, Ronnie Scott had dreamed of opening his own London club. In 1959, the dream came true. Together with Pete King (a fellow tenor saxophonist and personal friend) Ronnie Scott’s club opened in Gerrard Street, in London’s Soho. Since the opening, the venue has featured most of the legendary and popular names in modern jazz and jazz fusion. Ronnie’s plan was simply to provide a place where British jazz musicians could jam. Pete and Ronnie quickly developed a reputation of bringing the best of British modern jazz musicians to the club. Soon, they would persuade the American federation of musicians to lift the blanket ban on American performers in the U.K., paving the way for many legendary performances. In 1965, Ronnie Scott’s moved to its current location in Frith Street, only a short walk from the ‘old place’. Ronnie Scott’s is now one of the oldest jazz clubs in the world. The club officially reopened on Monday 26th June 2006, after 3 months of refurbishment. We look forward to welcoming you to the new Ronnie Scott’s!
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: Phronesis – Live UK Shows of the YearScandinavian/British jazz trio (Jasper Høiby (Denmark) – double bass/ Ivo Neame (UK) – piano/ Anton Eger (Sweden) – drums) Phronesis have the ability to excite, inspire and move people in a way that few bands are able to do. Led by London-based Danish double-bass player Jasper Høiby, their charismatic live performances have captured the hearts and minds of audiences worldwide and prompted Jon Newey (Editor of Jazzwise Magazine) to describe them as “the most exciting and imaginative piano trio since EST”. In 2010 Phronesis developed a fierce reputation as one of the most formidable trios in the UK. They were nominated for ‘Best Jazz Ensemble’ in the Parliamentary Jazz Awards, featured on the front cover of Jazzwise Magazine and nominated for ‘Best Jazz Act’ at the prestigious 2010 MOBO Awards. The trio’s third album, Alive (Edition) was released in July 2010 to great critical acclaim and chosen as ‘Jazz Album of the Year’ by Jazzwise and MOJO Magazines. In 2012 the trio rose to the peak of their creative power with fourth album, Walking Dark (Edition). Earlier in the year, Jasper Høiby was awarded the Copenhagen Jazz Festival’s ‘Young Spirit Award’ and in June the trio won the ‘London Jazz Award’ at the London Awards for Art and Performance. With their “rare combination of solid jazz credentials and zeitgeist” (jazz journal), Phronesis have recently been chosen by the International Jazz Festivals Organisation, (as one of only six groups worldwide), for the IJFO new talent support programme, which includes performances for the trio at the 17 IJFO festivals over the coming two years.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: Gregory Porter – Live UK Shows of the YearBorn in Los Angeles, raised in Bakersfield, and now living in the Bedford-Stuyvesant area of Brooklyn, Gregory Porter has made the world his musical home. A frequent guest performer with the Jazz at Lincoln Centre Jazz Orchestra, Porter also maintains a residency at Smoke Jazz in New York. He appears on 2 tracks on the new Nicola Conte album, appeared on the Joules Holland BBC show in mid April. This year among the many festivals and events he will be on include the ElbJazz Festival in Hamburg, the North Sea Jazz Festival in Holland and the National Black Arts Festival in Atlanta. With a voice that can caress or confront, embrace or exhort, Grammy nominee, Gregory Porter exhibits such an incredible degree of vocal mastery that no less a jazz luminary than Wynton Marsalis had gone on record to call him: a fantastic young singer, which makes the face that Water is his recording debut more impressive.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: PB Underground – Live UK Shows of the Year
The PB Underground, led by star drummer Pete Ray Biggin, is the UK’s hottest funk sensation. Since forming in 2008 the band has been taking the UK funk scene by storm, building its loyal fan base and sweeping reviewers off their feet in a blitz of energy, showmanship and ferocious musical talent. The PBUG musicians are a who’s who of the hottest session players on the London scene. Regular singers include Daniel Pearce, Brendan Reilly, Imaani, Vanessa Haynes and Patrick Alan. The core rhythm section features Matt Cooper (keyboards), Ben Jones (guitar) and Alexei Elfenbein (bass), while Dan Carpenter (trumpet) heads up a stellar horn section together with Sean Freeman & Richard Beesley (saxes), and Alistair White (trombone). Pete Ray Biggin is the band’s MD and predominant songwriter – a drummer of cult status as a member of thedrummerworld.com elite, and a regular performer with bands including Level 42, Incognito, Amy Winehouse, Chaka Khan and Mark Ronson. Prior to sell-out 2012 shows across the major London jazz venues, the PBUG headlined at the Jazz Café in November 2011 as part of the London Jazz Festival, popping up en route at venues including Kensington Roof Gardens, the Pigalle Club, Cargo and Maya. Track back further and you’ll see the birth of the PB Underground in a couple of spontaneous late-night sessions at Abbey Road, establishing its reputation as a fireball of energy from the first beat… and they haven’t let up since!
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: Phil Robson – UK Vocalist of the YearPhil Robson is internationally regarded as a highly versatile and creative player who appears in all kinds of diverse settings, as well as being a renowned bandleader & composer. It is hard to categorise his style of playing & writing, as so many influences & experiences have gone into the melting pot. Earlier, prevailing influences such as Hendrix & Miles, Parker, Kessell etc. blend with many elements from the wider jazz world such as Ornette Coleman, Dave Holland, McCoy Tyner etc. as well as with dimensions from African & Brazilian music, 20th century composers & contemporary musicians of all kinds as well as maintaining a respect for the entire jazz tradition. Winner of ‘Best Jazz Musician Of The Year’ in the 2009 Parliamentary Jazz Awards, he has been commissioned several times to write music & put projects together by both Derby Jazz & Birmingham jazz.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: Ivo Neame – UK Instrumentalist of the Year
Ivo Neame (pianist with Phronesis)
Ivo Neame is a distinctive jazz musician in that he is equally at home on saxophone and piano. This double life has seen him make notable contributions to some of the finest jazz groups in the vanguard of the dynamic UK jazz scene. Ivo studied at the Royal Academy of Music, where he grappled with the hothouse music environment with varying degrees of success. Since leaving the Academy in 2003 he has reconnected more deeply with music, and has gone on to perform and record with highly esteemed musicians at home and abroad such as David Binney, Seamus Blake and Hermeto Pascoal. As a bandleader he has recorded two critically acclaimed albums and has toured in the UK and abroad with the Ivo Neame Quintet. His Edition Records release ‘Caught in the Light of Day’ was rated the 4th best jazz album of 2010 by MOJO magazine and received 4 star reviews from the Guardian and the Irish Times among others. Recently he has been lucky enough to receive various awards including a MOBO for best jazz act (Kairos Quartet), Album of the year 2010 in both Jazzwise and MOJO magazines (Phronesis) and winner of the Jazz category for the London Awards for Art and Performance 2012.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: Nathaniel Facey – UK Instrumentalist of the Year
Nathaniel Facey (saxophonist with Empirical)
Alto saxophonist Nathaniel Facey is best known for his work with the award-winning band Empirical, a group of brilliant young jazz musicians who combine a thoroughly contemporary approach with a deep seated love of the jazz tradition. Born in London in 1983 of Jamaican parents Facey is a graduate of the Royal Academy of Music and has played with an impressive array of musicians including Courtney Pine, Billy Jenkins and The Jazz Jamaica All Stars. A couple of nights before his appearance at Abergavenny he was seen on TV as a member of ex Specials leader Jerry Dammers’ Spatial AKA Orchestra on BBC 2’s “Later With Jools Holland” programme. Facey is an assured and confident performer who speaks well between tunes and plays with an effortless grace that makes complex musical ideas sound easy.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: Ian Shaw- UK Vocalist of the Year
Ian Shaw
Ian Shaw is a Welsh jazz singer, record producer, and stand up comedian. Born in St. Asaph, Wales, Shaw took his music degree at the University of London. His career in performance began in the 1980s on the Alternative Cabaret Circuit, alongside such performers as Julian Clary, Rory Bremner and Jo Brand. At the same time, he was playing in piano bars and at festivals in London and throughout Europe. In 1990, he toured Europe and recorded with fellow singer Carol Grimes. Since this time, Shaw has regularly worked in duo settings with other singers, including Claire Martin, Linda Lewis, Liane Carroll, and Sarah Jane Morris. By the mid-1990s, he was regularly performing at the Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club and in 1995 released two albums on the club’s Jazzhouse label – Ghosthouse and a tribute to Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart Taking It To Hart. In 1996, Shaw led his own ‘Very Big Band’ on a UK tour, and by the late 90s he was performing regularly in USA. In 1999 he released In A New York Minute the first of two albums on New York’s Milestone label. This and Soho Stories, released in 2001, featured many US musicians including Cedar Walton, Lew Soloff, and Eric Alexander. A World Still Turning from 2003 saw him working with Billy Childs and Peter Washington, and guest vocalist Mark Murphy. Shaw has continued to work regularly with singer Claire Martin, co-hosting the 2004 BBC Jazz Awards with her and appearing with her on the BBC Radio 2 show Big Band Special, a show that he has also presented. Shaw also presented a jazz show on BBC South with Charlie Crocker. He won in the Best Jazz Vocalist category at the BBC Jazz Awards in 2004 and 2007.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: Liane Carroll – UK Vocalist of the Year
Liane Carroll
Liane Carroll was born in London and raised in Hastings, where she currently lives with her husband, bassist Roger Carey. She started playing the piano at the age of three, but soon developed a deep passion for everything jazz, soul and beyond. Since 1993, Liane has appeared as a headline act at the legendary Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club, where she has also recorded two live CD’s for their Jazz House label. She continues to be a regular at the celebrated 606 Club, in Chelsea. In 2007, she continued a busy touring schedule with her trio as well as performing solo at the piano at many of the UK’s more intimate settings. In May, she picked up the award for ‘Best female jazz vocalist’ at the first ever Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Awards, and in June her trio make a head-line appearance at Glastonbury Festival, which went out live to over 300,000 listeners on BBC Radio 3. Her eagerly awaited second solo album, ‘Slow Down,’ was released in September the same year with Splashpoint Records, and launched to a sell-out audience at the 606 Club in London. It has since received superb reviews and was in December picked by the Sunday Times as one of their top five jazz albums of the year. A track from the album was also featured by Mojo Magazine in their ‘Mojo’s Top 10’ Playlist selection. In February 2008, Liane released her first DVD ‘Liane Carroll Trio LIVE,’ which featured a performance from the Brecon Jazz Festival originally broadcast as a documentary on BBC4. Liane went on to pick up the 2008 Parliamentary Jazz Award for ‘Musician Of The Year.’
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: Carleen Anderson – UK Vocalist of the Year
Carleen Anderson arrived in the UK in the late 1980s and quickly rose to stardom with her band the ‘Young Disciples’. After the band dissolved, she continued a successful career as a solo artist. Still one of the most powerful vocalists today, Carleen Anderson has been a favorite of audiences and fellow artists alike for over two decades. She has been quoted by as a major influence by many vocalists, like Amy Winehouse: “For live performances, you absolutely have to see Carleen Anderson – at least 3 times in your life!”
Carleen routinely sells out Ronnie Scott’s in London and her all new CARLEEN ANDERSON SOUL TRIO is quickly becoming a hot tip in the Jazz Festival Circuit.
Carleen was raised by her paternal grandparents who ran a gospel church in Houston, Texas. She is the daughter of the original James Brown revue’s Vicki Anderson, her stepfather was Bobby Byrd, James Brown’s right hand man, and James Brown was Carleen’s Godfather. Her Aunt Bettye Anderson, who largely contributed to Carleen’s musical education, was a classically trained vocalist and sang at Martin Luther King’s sermons.
Contact: 7 Bridges Inc. Management & Consulting
Michael Kirsch – 7bridges@radmusic.com
Berkeley, California 94712
Josh Arcoleo
Born into a musical family in 1989, Josh was lucky enough to start saxophone lessons with the legendary Pee Wee Ellis when he was 13. At 18, he gained a place on the renowned jazz course at the Royal Academy of Music where he graduated with a 1st class degree in 2011, that year, also winning a Yamaha Parliamentary Jazz Scholarship and the Kenny Wheeler Jazz Prize. The latter being a recording contract with Edition Records. Josh’s debut album ‘Beginnings’ was released in February 2012 to widespread critical acclaim. He has also received awards from the EMI Music Sound Foundation and MBF Young Talent, and was nominated for a 2012 London Jazz Award.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: Roller Trio – Best UK Newcomer
Roller Trio’s music is a fresh, visceral stew of conventional and experimental sounds that features stonking riffs, thrashy noise, evocative songs and electronic soundscapes. Incubated in mammoth improvisation sessions and honed in local gigs, their music is delivered with a captivating swagger and greedy energy that is utterly beguiling and packs a hook-laden punch. Roller Trio are James Mainwairing tenor sax and electronics, Luke Wynter guitar and Luke Reddin-Williams on drums, still in their early ’20s they met whilst studying at Leeds College of Music. Influenced by a wide range of music from Tim Berne, Chris Potter and Anthony Braxton to Queens of the Stone Age, Soundgarden, Slum Village, J Dilla and Flying Lotus as well as the vibrant Leeds scene they also name check contemporary bands such as Heernt, Trio VD, Animals as Leaders and Siriusmo. But their invigorating mix of rock riffs, angular drums, electronic loops and James powerful tone and use of circular breathing and multiphonics mark them out as a powerful new band in their own right and their use of electronics gives their music a muscular sonic edge and febrile funkiness that makes this music for the heart, head and feet!
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: There’s Still Time to VoteIf you haven’t cast your votes for UK Jazz Artist of the Year yet, there’s still time.
You can vote for the Neil Cowley Trio, Jamie Cullum or Troyka on the right hand side of the home page. Voting closes at 23:59 31st December 2012.
The awards take place on January 31st 2013 at One Marylebone and you can follow the action here and @jazzfm
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: BeatsnPieces – Best UK Newcomer
Recent winners of the Burghausen European Young Artists’ Jazz Award 2011, the BeatsnPieces Big Band are fast becoming one of the country’s most talked about jazz groups. Led by composer and conductor Ben Cottrell, its 14 members are drawn from some of the most exciting and in demand young musicians active in the UK today, all of whom met and began playing together whilst students in Manchester. Their debut album, Big Ideas, is released in March 2012 on Efpi Records. “BeatsnPieces dazzled with a glorious, full-bloodied set demonstrating all that’s good about big band jazz. The big band tradition is alive and well and living in Manchester.” Selwyn Harris, Jazzwise. The band’s founder and musical director, Ben Cottrell, was chosen as one of 8 young creative musicians from across the UK to participate in the 2010/11 edition of the prestigious Take Five professional development scheme, growing from an initial meeting in early 2008, the band were invited to open the Manchester Jazz Festival later that year on the strength of a two track demo recorded at that very first rehearsal. Since then, the band has performed across the UK to consistent audience and critical acclaim. The BeatsnPieces Big Band is grateful to the Musicians’ Benevolent Fund for its support for their recent trip to Germany through an Ensembles and Groups Award.
Ethan Iverson is one third of The Bad Plus and the proprietor of Do the Math. After moving to New York, he became music director of Mark Morris Dance Group in 1998 and was part of late ’90s indie jazz scene along with Bill McHenry, Jeff Williams, Reid Anderson and others, mainly documented on Fresh Sound New Talent, thanks to Jorge Rossy. The Bad Plus with Anderson and Dave King formed in 2001, the Billy Hart Quartet with Turner and Ben Street formed in 2003, Do the Math debuted in 2005, and in recent years Iverson has collaborated with Charlie Haden, Paul Motian, Bill Frisell, Tim Berne, Hank Roberts, Albert “Tootie” Heath, Larry Grenadier, Jorge Rossy, Lee Konitz, and Sam Newsome.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: Jazzwise – Jazz Media
Jazzwise, launched in 1997, is the UK’s biggest selling jazz monthly magazine. Jazzwise has a broad coverage, from the cutting edge of jazz, improv, bebop, spiritual jazz and jazz-rock to world music, soul jazz, jazz funk, M-BASE, acid jazz and prog jazz. It features news coverage, a national gig guide, gossip column, a jazz-on-film page, opinion column, in-depth features and a review section covering new CD releases, reissues, DVDs, books and live reviews. Breaking news stories feature on the Jazzwise magazine website. Jazzwise also mentors new jazz writers through its on-going intern scheme and the Write Stuff workshops held each November during the London Jazz Festival. In 2006 Jazzwise editor Jon Newey won journalist of the year at the Parliamentary Jazz Awards. In 2007 Jazzwise won two awards, best jazz publication at the Parliamentary Jazz Awards and best jazz publication at the Ronnie Scott’s awards. In 2009,Jazzwise writer Kevin Le Gendre won journalist of the year at the Parliamentary Jazz Awards, while in 2010 Jazzwise won best jazz publication at the Parliamentary Jazz Awards for the second time and gig guide editor Mike Flynn won journalist of the year, while CD reissues reviewer Alyn Shipton won broadcaster of the year.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: AllAboutJazz.com – Jazz Media
Founded by Michael Ricci in 1995, All About Jazz is a website maintained by a volunteer staff of writers, editors, and musicians, and provides coverage of all genres of jazz from independent to major record label releases. As an advocacy site, All About Jazz aims to raise the awareness of jazz music, its history and its players. It has been awarded “The Best Web-Site Concentrating On Jazz” eight times by the Jazz Journalists Association All About Jazz is a jazz music website for enthusiasts and industry professionals based in Philadelphia in the United States.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: Ryan Truesdell – Album of the Year
Ryan Truesdell apprenticed with arranger and composer Maria Schneider, who apprenticed with Gil Evans. That makes him, in effect, Gil Evans’ musical and spiritual grandson. He does his heritage proud, taking 10 previously unrecorded Evans arrangements from manuscript—or, in some cases, expanding Evans sketches—to performance by a superb collection of musicians. The scores go back as far as Evans’ Claude Thornhill period of the 1940s and up to 1971. This music is a reminder that 100 years after his birth and 24 following his death, Evans still shows the way. The sparkling cast of soloists includes Steve Wilson, Scott Robinson, Joe Locke and Luciana Souza. This new album, which is best described as the new old works of Gil Evans—as presented, preserved, completed and polished up by Ryan Truesdell. Centennial is part 100th birthday present/tribute to a sadly departed giant of jazz, but it’s also a gift to the world. It is also part archaeological unveiling and part career-spanning pastiche, with all three ideals adding up to a brilliant album. It doesn’t get any better than this.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: John Surman – Album of the Year
Born in Tavistock, Devon in 1944, composer/multi-instrumentalist John Surman is one of the key figures in a generation of European musicians who have crucially expanded the international horizons of jazz during the past thirty years or so. Long acknowledged as an improviser of world class, Surman has also composed a body of work, which extends far beyond the normal range of the jazz repertoire. Already, by the late 60s, it was clear that Surman was a phenomenon. He started out as a teenager playing the music of fellow Devonian Mike Westbrook, and then amazed the London establishment with displays of extravagant instrumental proficiency combined with a passionate, rumbustious imagination. John Surman is a perennial poll winner, and in 1989 received the Bird Award at the North Sea Jazz Festival and a Wire Award for services to jazz in Britain. He was awarded an Honorary Doctorate in Music by Plymouth University in 1997 and the BBC voted him ‘Instrumentalist of the Year’ in 2002.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: Gregory Porter – Album of the Year
Born in Los Angeles, raised in Bakersfield, and now living in the Bedford-Stuyvesant area of Brooklyn, Gregory Porter has made the world his musical home. A frequent guest performer with the Jazz at Lincoln Centre Jazz Orchestra, Porter also maintains a residency at Smoke Jazz in New York. He appears on 2 tracks on the new Nicola Conte album, appeared on the Joules Holland BBC show in mid April. This year among the many festivals and events he will be on include the ElbJazz Festival in Hamburg, the North Sea Jazz Festival in Holland and the National Black Arts Festival in Atlanta. With a voice that can caress or confront, embrace or exhort, Grammy nominee, Gregory Porter exhibits such an incredible degree of vocal mastery that no less a jazz luminary than Wynton Marsalis had gone on record to call him: a fantastic young singer, which makes the face that Water is his recording debut more impressive.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: Robert Glasper – Album of the Year
Grammy nominated Robert Glasper has long kept one foot planted firmly in jazz and the other in hip-hop and R&B. He’s worked extensively with Q-Tip, playing keyboards on the rapper’s 2008 album The Renaissance and co-writing the album single “Life Is Better” which featured his label mate Norah Jones. Glasper also serves as the music director in Yasiin Bey’s touring band, and has toured with the multi-platinum R&B singer Maxwell. The Los Angeles Times once wrote that “it’s a short list of jazz pianists who have the wherewithal to drop a J Dilla reference into a Thelonious Monk cover, but not many jazz pianists are Robert Glasper,” adding that “he’s equally comfortable in the worlds of hip-hop and jazz,” and praising the organic way in which he “builds a bridge between his two musical touchstones.” Glasper drove that point home with his last album, 2009’s Double-Booked, which was split neatly in half. The first part featured his acoustic Trio, which had gathered a great deal of acclaim in the jazz world and beyond over the course of two previous Blue Note albums. The second part featured his electric Experiment band and hinted at things to come, even earning the keyboardist his first GRAMMY nomination for “All Matter,” a collaboration with the singer Bilal that was among the contenders in the Best Urban/Alternative Performance category in 2010. Reflecting back, Glasper is rightly proud of Black Radio, but also humbled and grateful for the outpouring of support and talent that it took to bring the album into being. “Everyone just said yes, period, we’ll do it. It was smoother than I ever thought it would be to get all these great, amazing artists to come together and do this project.”
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: Pat Metheny – Album of the Year
Winner of 34 Grammy nominations, 19 Grammy awards, 3 Gold Records, and 37 recordings, Pat Metheny has had established himself in the music industry. However, with Metheny, you simply never know what is coming next. But among the many things that make this ever-changing artist so special is the consistent level of commitment and quality that he brings to everything he does. Pat Metheny, Chris Potter, Ben Williams, and Antonio Sanchez make up the Unity Band. After two consecutive yet wildly different solo recordings, (the innovative Orchestrion and last year’s Grammy-winning baritone guitar outing What’s It All About); Metheny returns with a quartet record, Unity Band. This band is a real manifestation of those big ideas as one singular sound. We are using all of the unique qualities available to us as individuals and as an ensemble and, we hope, creating a greater whole to make something true to itself.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: Keith Jarrett – Album of the Year
Keith Jarrett is an American pianist and composer who performs both jazz and classical music. Jarrett started his career with Art Blakey, moving on to play with Charles Lloyd and Miles Davis. Since the early 1970s, he has enjoyed a great deal of success in jazz, jazz-fusion, and classical music as a group leader and a solo performer. His improvisations draw not only from the traditions of jazz, but from other genres as well, especially Western classical music, gospel, blues, and ethnic folk music. In 2003, Jarrett received the Polar Music Prize He was the first, and to this day, the only recipient not to share the prize with a co-recipient. In 2004, he received the Léonie Sonning Music Prize. In 2008, he was inducted into the Down Beat Hall of Fame in the magazine’s 73rd Annual Readers’ Poll.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: Troyka – Cutting Edge Award for Jazz Innovation
Troyka are Chris Montague (guitars and loops), Joshua Blackmore (drums) and Kit Downes (organ), three young musicians based in London whose intense live shows have seen them hotly tipped to follow in the foot steps of Polar Bear and Portico Quartet and become the next young band to explode from the capital’s fertile jazz scene. A multi-textured trio with a febrile imagination where no role is pre-defined, their music twists and mutates in an on-going dialogue inspired by a shared love of Apex Twin, the angular world of iconclastic New York saxophonist Tim Berne and the blues-jazz-rock groove of legendary Steely Dan and Billy Cobham guitarist Wayne Krantz. With their visceral mash-up of rock, jazz and dance music, Trokya sound more like Tony William’s Lifetime remix by Burial than the classic Hammond organ trio. But then that’s the point, they’re part of a new generation of young musicians who refuse to be constrained by the old boundaries. To whom the old question of ‘what is it’ are replaced by is it any good? Who live in a post hip-hop world where you can take whatever source materials you like and do your own singular thing with it.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: Django Bates – Cutting Edge Award for Jazz Innovation
Django was born in a house near New Beckenham Station where a ropy, semitone flat D’Almaine Piano was the most fascinating toy in the house. Growing up, many family friends and vagrants passed through the home and many were artists or musicians who gave Django music lessons. A few were unknown to the Bates family, and it was a mystery what they were doing in the house at all. Django’s mother encouraged him to attend weird old folks’ houses for lessons on trumpet, piano, violin and guitar whilst his father played eccentric music from all genres at him from babyhood onwards. On leaving school in 1977, Django attended Morley College FTYM for two years. In 1979, he left the Royal College of Music after two weeks as the pianos had signs on them saying, “Not to be used for the playing of Jazz music”. Luckily he already had some teaching work at a school for reluctant Catholics, and a Friday night residency at the Waterside Theatre in Rotherhithe. In this romantic building, Jonny Edgecombe ran a jazz club at which Django and friends would provide the support act for John Stevens, Harry Beckett, John Taylor, Stan Tracey, Dudu Pukwana and many more great improvisers. “It was an education in how to make one’s music personal, and how to present it to drunk Dockland dwellers without being lynched”, recalls Django. As a result of this regular gig, Django was invited to play and tour with Dudu Pukwana’s Zila for several years.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: Robert Glasper – Cutting Edge Award for Jazz Innovation
Grammy nominated Robert Glasper has long kept one foot planted firmly in jazz and the other in hip-hop and R&B. He’s worked extensively with Q-Tip, playing keyboards on the rapper’s 2008 album The Renaissance and co-writing the album single “Life Is Better” which featured his label mate Norah Jones. Glasper also serves as the music director in Yasiin Bey’s touring band, and has toured with the multi-platinum R&B singer Maxwell. The Los Angeles Times once wrote that “it’s a short list of jazz pianists who have the wherewithal to drop a J Dilla reference into a Thelonious Monk cover, but not many jazz pianists are Robert Glasper,” adding that “he’s equally comfortable in the worlds of hip-hop and jazz,” and praising the organic way in which he “builds a bridge between his two musical touchstones.” Glasper drove that point home with his last album, 2009’s Double-Booked, which was split neatly in half. The first part featured his acoustic Trio, which had gathered a great deal of acclaim in the jazz world and beyond over the course of two previous Blue Note albums. The second part featured his electric Experiment band and hinted at things to come, even earning the keyboardist his first GRAMMY nomination for “All Matter,” a collaboration with the singer Bilal that was among the contenders in the Best Urban/Alternative Performance category in 2010. Reflecting back, Glasper is rightly proud of Black Radio, but also humbled and grateful for the outpouring of support and talent that it took to bring the album into being. “Everyone just said yes, period, we’ll do it. It was smoother than I ever thought it would be to get all these great, amazing artists to come together and do this project.”
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: Kurt Elling – nominated for International Jazz Artist
Grammy Award winner Kurt Elling is among the world’s foremost jazz vocalists. He has won every DownBeat Critics Poll for the last thirteen years and has been named “Male Singer of the Year” by the Jazz Journalists Association eight times in that same span. Every one of Elling’s nine albums has been nominated for a Grammy. Elling’s rich baritone spans four octaves and features both astonishing technical mastery and emotional depth. His repertoire includes original compositions and modern interpretations of standards, all of which are springboards for inspired improvisation, scatting, spoken word, and poetry. The New York Times declared, “Elling is the standout male vocalist of our time,” while the Washington Post added, “Since the mid-1990s, no singer in jazz has been as daring, dynamic or interesting as Kurt Elling. With his soaring vocal flights, his edgy lyrics and sense of being on a musical mission, he has come to embody the creative spirit in jazz.” Elling was the Artist-in-Residence for the Singapore and Monterey Jazz Festivals. He has also written multi-disciplinary works for The Steppenwolf Theatre and the City of Chicago. The Obama Administration’s first state dinner featured Elling in a command performance. Kurt Elling has toured vigorously throughout his career, thrilling audiences throughout the world and collaborating with the world’s finest orchestras.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: Sonny Rollins – nominated for International Jazz Artist
New York born Theodore Walter “Sonny” Rollins has had a big reputation from the start. With influences like Coleman Hawkins, Fats Waller and Louis Armstrong, Sonny started playing the saxophone at a young age. In the early fifties, he established a reputation first among musicians, then the public, as the most brash and creative young tenor on the scene. From New York to Chicago, “Newk” had soared in the music industry. His many awards are endless. In 2006, he was inducted into the Academy of Achievement, – and gave a solo performance – at the International Achievement Summit in Los Angeles. The event was hosted by George Lucas and Steven Spielberg and attended by world leaders as well as distinguished figures in the arts and sciences. Rollins was awarded the Austrian Cross of Honour for Science and Art, First Class, in November 2009. The award is one of Austria’s highest honours, given to leading international figures for distinguished achievements. The only other American artists who have received this recognition are Frank Sinatra and Jessye Norman. In 2010 on the eve of his 80th birthday, Sonny Rollins was one of 229 leaders in the sciences, social sciences, humanities, arts, business, and public affairs who have been elected members of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. In August 2010, Rollins was named the Edward MacDowell Medallist, the first jazz composer to be so honoured. The Medal has been awarded annually since 1960 to an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to his or her field. Yet another major award was bestowed on Rollins on March 2, 2011, when he received the Medal of Arts from President Barack Obama in a White House ceremony. Rollins accepted the award, the nation’s highest honour for artistic excellence, “on behalf of the gods of our music.” Since 2006, Rollins has been releasing his music on his own label, Doxy Records and continues to make musical history.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: Meet the Nominees: Brad Mehldau – nominated for International Jazz Artist
Jazz pianist Brad Mehldau has recorded and performed extensively since the early 1990s. Mehldau’s most consistent output over the years has taken place in the trio format. Starting in 1996, his group released a series of five records on Warner Bros. entitled The Art of the Trio (recently re-packaged and re-released as a box set by Nonesuch in late 2011). Mehldau has performed around the world at a steady pace since the mid-1990s, with his trio and as a solo pianist. His performances convey a wide range of expression. Mehldau was appointed as curator of an annual four-concert jazz series at London’s prestigious Wigmore Hall during its 2009-10 and 2010-11 seasons, with Mehldau appearing in at least two of the four annual concerts. In late January 2010, Carnegie Hall announced the 2010-11 season-long residency by Mehldau as holder of the Richard and Barbara Debs Composer’s Chair at Carnegie Hall—the first jazz artist to hold this position since it was established in 1995. Previous holders include Louis Andriessen (2009–2010), Elliott Carter (2008–2009), and John Adams (2003–2007).
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: And the Judges are…As you’d expect, competition for the inaugural Jazz FM Awards is fierce. 34 nominees were carefully chosen by a panel of experts.
For the final judging process, we’ve taken care to carefully select and balance the panel to ensure as robust and transparent a process as possible, and judges cannot vote for artists or nominations in which they have a professional interest .
Meet the Judges:
John Cumming (Serious)
Tony Dudley Evans (Artistic Adviser to Jazzlines)
Simon Cooke (Ronnie’s)
Jon Newey (Jazzwise)
Mike Vitti (Jazz FM)
Chris Phillips (Jazz FM)
Alex Webb
John Cumming is one of the directors of Serious and the London Jazz Festival. He has been programming festivals and tours since the 1970s, stretching back to the Bracknell Jazz Festival, and the first UK performances of Gil Evans in 1978. As a Serious producer he is responsible for concerts and tours throughout the UK. He is an associate Producer at the Barbican, and has received awards for Services to Jazz by the BBC and at the 2012 Parliamentary Jazz Awards.
Tony Dudley-Evans is Jazz Adviser to Town Hall/Symphony Hall and runs the Jazzlines programme with Mary Wakelam Sloan. As well as being Jazz Adviser, he is also Artistic Adviser to the Cheltenham Jazz Festival. He won the BBC Award for Contribution to Jazz in 2005.
Simon Cooke has racked up over 30 years in the music business. With experience ranging from night club management via rock star merchandising to jazz booker. Ex Director of Jazz FM, and co-founder of Hed Kandi Records, Simon has now been Managing Director of Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club since 2008.
Jon Newey is the editor and publisher of Jazzwise magazine. As editor and publisher, he was awarded Jazz Journalist of the Year at the Parliamentary Jazz Awards in 2006 and again in 2012. As a former professional touring and recording musician, Jon has now been working full time in the jazz and rock music press business for over 35 years.
Mike Vitti has been working full-time in radio since 1989 as the Programme Controller at Jazz FM as well as the presenter of Funky Sensation. ‘An unsuccessful drummer/percussionist’ as he says, Mike realised very early on there was more chance of him playing records rather than making them for a living so began his DJ career in Mallorca. Mike still DJs and can be seen playing around the country most weekends.
Chris Phillips has been a steady name on the London airways for 27 years playing Soul, R’n’B, hip-hop and jazz. He became one of the crew on Gilles Peterson’s BBC Radio London show in the mid-’80s. In 1988, Chris was broadcasting on DevonAir and Orchard FM in the West Country presenting everything from travel news to specialist show. He has previously worked with Kiss 100 and is a huge hands-on football fan, He continues to announce at Wimbledon on match days.
Currently a university lecturer in music and events management, Alex Webb has worked at the BBC World Service, BBC News Online and BBC Radio 3. He is also an acclaimed songwriter, musician, and political journalist for Alastair Stewart’s Sunday Programme on GMTV. Since the 1980s, Webb has played with numerous jazz, pop and reggae groups including Manchester’s Carmel and Harlem Spirit, as well as collaborating with many musicians and vocalists including Alexia Gardner.
The Jazz FM Awards 2013: And the Nominees are…Jamie Cullum, Sonny Rollins and Roller Trio
up for the inaugural Jazz FM Awards 2013
With three months to go until the first Jazz FM Awards Powered by Klipsch, the nominations have been announced today, revealing that 2013 see’s Jamie Cullum up for UK Jazz Artist of the Year and Sonny Rollins up for International Artist of the Year. Gregory Porter and Robert Glasper will go head to head in the Album of the Year Award.
The 34 nominations recognise and commend those who have made exceptional contributions to jazz this year. The awards see new talent and legends up for the coveted gongs and the public will have the opportunity to get involved too with a public vote for the UK Jazz Artist of the Year. The public voting will begin on 1st November 2012.
The nominations were chosen by a 13-strong panel of experts which included jazz journalists Clive Davis, Mike Hobart, Rob Adams, Stuart Nicholson and Seb Scotney; the live jazz promoters Steve Rubie (the 606 Club), Paul Pace (Ronnie Scott’s) and Ross Dines (Pizza Express); and international commentators including John Kelman (editor of AllAboutJazz .com), chair of the US Jazz Journalists Association Howard Mandel and Peter Schulze of the German jazz expo Jazzahead.
The winners will be named at the awards ceremony on January 31st at Number One Marylebone and will be selected by an expert panel of judges including: John Cumming, Director of Serious Productions, Tony Dudley-Evans, Artistic Director of Birmingham Jazz and of the Cheltenham Jazz Festival and Alex Webb, Songwriter, Musician and Journalist.
Judges have been selected based on their roles and contributions to the jazz industry, with the UK Jazz Artist of the Year Award up for public vote. Online voting opens on 1st November 2012, at www.jazzfmawards.com. Also, be sure to enter our online competition for the opportunity to win a pair of Klipsch headphones.
The Jazz FM Awards Nominees are…
VOTE NOW!
Enter your choice below for the UK Jazz Artist of the Year…
Voting closes 23:59 31st December 2012.
International Jazz Artist
Kurt Elling
Brad Mehldau
Sonny Rollins
Cutting Edge Award for Jazz Innovation
Django Bates
Robert Glasper
Troyka
Album Of The Year
Robert Glasper: Black Radio
Keith Jarrett: Sleeper
Pat Metheny: Unity Band
Gregory Porter: Be Good
John Surman: Saltash Bells
Ryan Truesdell: Centenial (Newly Discovered Works of Gil Evans)
Jazz Media
AllAboutJazz .com (website)
Do The Math (website of Ethan Iverson of The Bad Plus)
Jazzwise (magazine)
Best UK Newcomer
Beats & Pieces Big Band
Josh Arcoleo
Roller Trio
UK Vocalist of the year
Carleen Anderson
Liane Carroll
Ian Shaw
UK Instrumentalist of the year
Nathaniel Facey (saxophonist with Empirical)
Ivo Neame (pianist with Phronesis)
Phil Robson
Live UK shows of the year
Phronesis
Gregory Porter
PB Underground
Best UK Jazz Venue
Band on the Wall
Café Oto
Ronnie Scott’s
The event is invitation only and with fewer than 270 guests, the event is an exclusive and intimate celebration, but will be broadcast live on Jazz FM with video highlights of the awards and performances available online.
More information on the award categories can be found at www.jazzfmawards.com
The Nominations Panel:
Rob Adams (Freelance Journalist)
Mike Chadwick (Jazz FM / Manchester)
Clive Davis (The Times Jazz Writer)
Ross Dines (Pizza Express)
Alex Dutilh (Radio France Jazz Broadcaster, Journalist)
Mike Flynn (Jazzwise)
Nathan Graves (Consultant To Universal)
Mike Hobart (FT Jazz Writer)
John Kelman (Editor Allaboutjazz.Com, US)
Rosemary Laryea (Jazz FM)
Howard Mandel (Chair Of the US Jazz Journalists Association)
Helen Mayhew (Jazz FM)
Wulf Muller (All-In Music, Jazz Consultant To Sony/BMG)
Stuart Nicholson (Jazzwise)
Paul Pace (Promoter / Ronnie Scotts)
Steve Rubie (Promoter / 606)
Peter Schultze (Jazzahead, Germany)
Seb Scotney (London Jazz Blog)
Jazz FM has launched the Jazz FM Awards, sponsored by Klipsch, US – based leaders in audio technology. The new music awards will celebrate the work of jazz musicians, composers and contributors from across the globe.
The annual accolades will recognise and commend those who have made exceptional contributions to the jazz industry during the preceding twelve months. There will be particular emphasis on highlighting new, upcoming talent and nurturing the next generation of artists. In addition, the Jazz FM Awards will recognise legends of the genre with a Lifetime Achievement Award. The expert-judging panel, which will bring together a collection of the most senior figures from the world of jazz, will unveil the winners at the inaugural awards ceremony, which will take place in central London on the evening of 31st January 2013.
Richard Wheatly, chief executive of Jazz FM said: “We are delighted to be announcing the Jazz FM Awards, and are thrilled that Klipsch will be sponsoring the awards. The awards will celebrate everything that is great about jazz – past, present and future – is something we are hugely positive about. This annual event will help bring the music to a new audience and will create a focal point for the jazz community”
The new awards have received widespread support from both inside the jazz community and from farther afield, since the BBC discontinued their annual awards.
The event is certain to become a key annual date in the music industry’s calendar and will celebrate not only jazz’s rich heritage but also promote the careers of emerging artists from around the world.