Exciting, playful and inventive; saxophonist Art Themen has been a beloved character of the British jazz scene for over 60 years, famously combining his role as a consultant orthopaedic surgeon with saxophone duties in the bands of Alexis Korner and Stan Tracey among many others. Described by The Observer as “One of the tiny handful of undeniably perfect jazz musicians”, he remains as brilliant and inimitable as ever.
Becca Wilkins’ latest project ‘rêverie’ is a collection of French Chanson, reimagined with her trio of Olly Chalk (piano), Sam Ingvorsen (bass) and Billy Pod (drums).
Stablefolk plays warm, tonal music, with a strong sense of home. This contemporary jazz band is fronted by James Pettinger, who draws sounds from folk, singer-songwriters, and music that falls between the cracks.
OWL Quartet is a new double trumpet group co-led by London-based Charlotte Keeffe and Norwich-based Chris Dowding.
Exceptionally no jam session this week due to football distractions, we’ll be back on Sunday 21st July. Tickets available soon.
Twice a month, join us on a journey to extend standard jazz repertoire for the 21st century.
An exciting organ jazz trio led by veteran, multi award-winning UK guitarist, Jim Mullen
Our monthly late-night series brings songwriters together to perform in the round, hosted by Matthew Herd. Tonight we welcome Sam Griffiths to the Dalston Song Club, Sam is one of the country’s most acclaimed songwriters and the genius behind The Howl & The Hum.
Described by Jazzwise as an “inexhaustable creative powerhouse” leading bassist and composer Ferg Ireland brings a new specially assembled Quartet to the Vortex for this debut performance.
Inner Space plays Jazz of a rare warmth and immediacy. Speyer’s compositions for the band create spaces for free playing where the group can explore new areas and discover where the music might GO – while drawing deeply on the Jazz tradition, all the way back to Bebop and New Orleans.
Curated by cellist Shirley Smart, Creations features a set by invited artists from the UKs vibrant free improvisation scene, followed by an acoustic jam session.
ONe_Orchestra New is a large group of improvising musicians brought together by Caroline Kraabel and made up of women and trans/non-binary people.
A weekly session on Sunday evenings, the jams will be hosted by four of London’s finest: drummer Jas Kayser, pianist Rick Simpson, tenor saxophonists Helena Kay and Riley Stone-Lonergan (+ a few guests), each one hosting one session on rotation.
More info coming soon
For this special night at the Vortex Jazz Club, Niklas Lukassen merges his talents as a composer, bassist and vocalist to debut some entirely new compositions in a line up that promise to reveal striking musical depths.
Coco Mbassi returns to the Vortex with a quartet featuring French and UK jazz musicians performing some of her latest songs!
Bassist John Williamson presents an all-star six-piece lineup to launch The Northern Sea, his first album as composer/bandleader, produced by Nikki Iles and set for release in July 2024. Advance copies of the album will be available to buy at the gig.
Dynamic saxophonist, composer and arranger, Asha Parkinson founded Kalpadruma in 2017 to explore exciting meeting points between Jazz, Contemporary Classical, Flamenco, Mediterranean, Arab and Indian musics.
Ackerley, Wallace and Ghezzi will present a concert featuring compositions by each artist in a song cycle woven with spontaneous interludes as an inquiry into causes and broader social issues such as climate change impact.
Intense and focussed improvisations from this new quintet. One set.
A weekly session on Sunday evenings, the jams will be hosted by four of London’s finest: drummer Jas Kayser, pianist Rick Simpson, tenor saxophonists Helena Kay and Riley Stone-Lonergan (+ a few guests), each one hosting one session on rotation.
CALLING ALL MUSICIANS ON 30th JUNE AT 4.30 PM, WE’RE DOING A PHOTO OF AS MANY OF YOU AS POSSIBLE IN GILLETT SQUARE OUTSIDE THE VORTEX. We did a similar…
Rewired is the new acoustic trio project from acclaimed composer, arranger and pianist, Janette Mason.
The Quintet’s growing repertoire includes originals by Gorodi and jazz compositions by Thelonious Monk, John Coltrane, Andrew Hill, Woody Shaw, Dizzy Gillespie, Eric Dolphy and many more.
This double bill is presented in partnership with Trinity Laban.
Sheldon Agwu is a Guitarist and has worked as a session musician for several years he has collaborated, performed, and shared the stage with artists such as Jordan Rakei, Tom Misch, Yussef Dayes, Bonobo, Jamie Woon, Ego Ella May, Hiatus Kaiyote Alfa Mist, Loyle Carner
London/New York based pianist and composer Noah Stoneman brings his trio back to the Vortex to perform brand new original material and compositions from the band’s first record.
Tereza Catarov is a musician born in Romania and based in London (UK), who is gifted with the talent of composition and the art of singing.
Welcoming and relaxed, come for a drink, sit back and enjoy the music, or bring your horns, sticks and strings to join in during the second set.
presented by the combined big band of the Royal Academy of Music and Frost School of Music, University of Miami. Featuring Norma Winstone, John Daversa, Nick Smart and James Copus.
A weekly session on Sunday evenings, the jams will be hosted by four of London’s finest: drummer Jas Kayser, pianist Rick Simpson, tenor saxophonists Helena Kay and Riley Stone-Lonergan (+ a few guests), each one hosting one session on rotation.
Cleveland Watkiss and Pete Churchill, both esteemed figures in the UK music scene, join forces to pay homage to Hendricks, widely regarded as one of the greatest jazz poets in history.
After two previous sell-out Vortex gigs, UK jazz super group, Out Front return to play original music in advance of their debut album, together with music by two of Jazz’s greatest ‘inside-outside’ masters: Booker Little and Andrew Hill.
Inspired by the dynamic relationship between composition and improvisation, Surface Tension explores different forms of musical storytelling – from large-scale journeys, to angular ritualistic loops, to multi-layered song forms.
The Matt Hurley Group is a contemporary chamber ensemble of young professional freelance musicians, graduates of the Guildhall School of Music and Royal Academy of Music combining nuanced compositions and melodic group improvisations.
Phil Robson, an award-winning, incredibly versatile and creative guitar player as well as celebrated composer, joins forces with the Hammond virtuoso Ross Stanley and the inspiring and powerful drummer Gene Calderazzo in this all-star band. The music is sensational, played with great energy and the incredible rapport between the three members is something that definitely sets this band apart.
Featuring: Alan Wilkinson (saxophone), Jamie Coleman (trumpet), Ed Lucas (trombone), Dave Tucker (guitar), Marcio Mattos (double bass) & Phillip Marks (drums)
You are invited to a celebration of composer Benjamin Oliver’s first portrait album TOO MANY SWEETS, released in April 2024 by Birmingham Record Company (distributed by NMC). The album features artists including Ensemble Saxologie (Montreal), Riot Ensemble, Clíodna Shanahan & Dorothy Chan (New York).
A weekly session on Sunday evenings, the jams will be hosted by four of London’s finest: drummer Jas Kayser, pianist Rick Simpson, tenor saxophonists Helena Kay and Riley Stone-Lonergan (+ a few guests), each one hosting one session on rotation.
Come & join us for another special Mopomoso featuring: Jamie Coleman (trumpet) & Ross Lambert (guitar) + Bark! ~ Rex Casswell (guitar), Paul Obermayer (electronics) & Philip Marks (drums) + mcddavid & Jörg Hufschmidt (guitars etc)
Calum Gourlay’s big band returns to the Vortex for the first time in 2024. Always featuring new music and arrangements and pieces crafted during the band’s past residency at the club.
Two songwriters join Matthew Herd to perform in the round as part of this intimate, late night series.
This month features lilo and Joseph Futak.
This one-off performance will feature London-affiliated musicians who have journeyed to Amsterdam and New York. This special reunion brings them together for a special evening, showcasing compositions primarily by Alice Leggett, complemented by works from other band members.
Multi-award winning pianist and composer Tom Cawley brings his new project to the Vortex for an intimate and absorbing night of improvisation and sonic adventure.
This exciting three-piece band, led by Portuguese-born, London-based pianist/composer Vicente Magalhães plays music with a mixed DNA. They explore and develop on the work of their European contemporaries and also honour the American tradition, with an equal mix of modern takes on standards and original compositions.
The Dave Storey Trio present brand new material for their up-coming fourth album featuring their signature quicksilver interplay honed over almost a decade of playing and touring together. The jazz tradition brought to life for the 21st century – communication with love, humour and fire.
SFQ is a new UK-Norway collaboration that draws together four of Europe’s leading improvisers. The quartet’s core repertoire is music written by saxophonist, composer and researcher Mike Fletcher to explore ideas about how melody and form influence free improvisation.
Steinway artist and BBC Jazz Award winner Richard Fairhurst presents “Inside Out” with his longstanding trio featuring Dave Whitford on double bass and Tim Giles on drums.
For the past year, the Whirlpool team, including Caius Williams on bass, Kasper Rietkerk on saxes, Alex Lockheart and Jakub Klimiuk on guitar and vocalists Rebecka Edlund and Marta Gornitzka.…
The Austrian Cultural Forum London are proud to present this years JazzExchange concert connecting cutting edge groups from Austria and the UK curated by Guido Spannocchi.