Jazz for Europe

The Brunswick, Hove

Thursday 29th August, 2019

Organised by percussionist and Jazzwise editor-in-chief Jon Newey together with Terry Seabrook and Julian Nicholas, this was an evening that brought together a diverse range of musicians from the jazz community, united in their desire for a united Europe.

The house band of saxophonist Julian Nicholas, trumpeter Dave Morgan were joined by a rhythm section consisting of pianist Terry Seabrook, bassist Nigel Thomas, percussionist Jon Newey and drummer Alex Eberhard. In the first of three sets the first guests were vocalist Imogen Ryall and Rod Hart who performed a slow, moving version of Ellington’s Mood Indigo.

Saxophonist Camilla George performed two contrasting Horace Silver tunes, an energetic version of Nica’s Dream that displayed her fluid soloing style followed by an absorbing rendition of the ballad Peace, which featured a beautiful solo from bassist Nigel Thomas.

Vocalist Sara Oschlag performed some superb and engaging scat solos on the Bobby Timmons classic Moanin’ and Horace Silver’s The Preacher.

Clarinettist Arun Ghosh gave an exciting performance of his tunes Aurora and Bondhu from his debut album Northern Namaste, together with a solo rendition of Beethoven’s Minuet in G. He brought his own energy to the stage, encouraging the other musicians as he built up the tension to a rousing climax and performed throughout with a flawless intonation and warm tone.

In a short, emotional speech he laid out his feelings: “I’ve been feeling very, very disillusioned and powerless over the past few years and although there’s a huge way to go, I don’t feel powerless anymore.”

Tom Eagle from the Musicians Union outlined the work that they are doing in preparation of Brexit to protect a musician’s right to travel, ensure copyright protections and arts funding, protect workers’ rights and the rights of EU citizens within the UK.

The third and final set of the evening featured vocalist Claire Martin with an upbeat version of Caravan, followed by an inspiring duet with Terry Seabrook on Turn Out The Stars by Bill Evans. Another highlight of the evening was when Martin invited Imogen Ryall back on stage to perform their version of It Could Happen to You, which included a vocalised version of Chet Baker’s trumpet solo using lyrics by Georgie Fame.

In the spirit of unity and co- operation, Claire Martin brought the musicians back on stage to perform the final number Let Me Love You Baby. The event raised hundreds of pounds for The People’s Vote campaign.

Words by Charlie Anderson

Photography by Lisa Wormsley