We are delighted to draw your attention to the Vortex’s programme of gigs for November’s EFG London Jazz Festival. Our own “festival” is a self-contained series, celebrating our approach to this vibrant and dynamic music style. You don’t have to go anywhere else! We are looking forward to visits from Amsterdam from two ex-pat saxophonists, Alice Leggett and Sam Newboul, a Polish-Australian project including Joanna Duda, as well as our own NYJO, Nikki Yeoh and legendary bassist Gary Crosby in a new trio including Denys Baptiste.
There’s always a risk that the smaller venues like the Vortex get submerged by the big gigs at the South Bank, Barbican and so on. But a crucial element of the festival is that it is London wide, and, as well as the Vortex, there are lots of little festivals in many of the smaller venues, such as Green Note, 606 or similar.
You can get full details and book on our website, but here is a list so far:
14 November NYJO featuring Axel Kaner-Lidstrom (2 shows)
15 November Rick Simpson’s Future Myth
16 November Sunny Kim/Joanna Duda/Helen Svoboda
17 November Alice Leggett Quintet
18 November Celebrating Songwriters in Jazz feat. Fini Bearman, Michelle Willis
19 November Queer Jazz: B.H.A.M./Wabi Asisa
20 November Sam Newbould Quintet
21 November Gary Crosby’s Africa Space Programme
22 November Nikki Yeoh’s Infinitum
22 November (late) Hitchcock/Cohen/Heath-Ngugi/McCarthy
23 November Vortex Jam Session
But. before then, we have an unmissable gig of New York greats on 23 September, with cellist Tomeka Reid coming with an all-star quartet. Featuring Jason Roebke on bass, Tomas Fujiwara on drums, and fellow MacArthur Fellow Mary Halvorson on guitar. According to Jazzwise: “Reid’s thematic material is abundantly rich and her longstanding quartet is an exemplary vehicle for bringing it to life,” Two shows. Selling fast!
The next week’s gigs are unexceptionably great. So do come and savour the joys of the Vortex. Not just for the young bands such as that of Stan Brunt (3 September), but also for some of the greats of British jazz, whom we at the Vortex are proud to call our friends. Which means exceptional performances, as they take advantage of the welcoming atmosphere and our top quality acoustics and instruments, such as our Steinway piano. For example, this Saturday we have Jean Toussaint, while next Friday 5th there’s the equally adept saxophonist Julian Siegel. As well as vibes player Jonny Mansfield with Emanuel Michael (4th) and, on 6th, the exceptional supergroup playing Monk – co-led by pianist Hans Koller and superenergised alto playing of Tony Kofi. We look forward to seeing you!
29 LVDF – EP Release Show
Including some of our most forward-looking musicians from UK, Italy and New Zealand, and described as “virtuoso” by The Guardian, and all leaders in their own right, such as Alex Hitchcock and Maria Chiara Argiró.
29 (Downstairs late) Vortex Lates: Bone Folder + Welkin
Our late night weekend gigs extend the envelope of what might be considered “jazz”, being extended to include Cambridge-based heavy improv trio Welkin, with members Dominic Lash and NO Moore on guitars and Dave Fowler on drums and the sustained textural sounds of Bone Folder.
30 Jean Toussaint JT5
One of the true greats of the tenor sax and alumnus of Art Blakey’ Jazz Messengers and JazzFM Musician of the Year, each note of this band brings the history of the music well and truly into 2025 in a way that is imaginative but accessible.
31 (Downstairs afternoon) Vortex Collective Presents Future Standards & Downstairs Jam
Reimagining jazz repertoire for the 21st century.
31 (Evening) Vortex Jam Session with Riley Stone-Lonergan
The best jam in London! Free for members and participating musicians. This week led by charismatic tenor sax playing of Riley Stone-Lonergan.
3 September (Downstairs early) Stan Brunt Quartet
A new quartet, where guitarist Stan Brunt explores being the only chordal/harmonic member of the band, allowing him to leap between interplay with saxophone (the inimitable Sam Norris) and the rhythm section.
3 (Upstairs) Billy Pod Quartet
Drummer Billy Pod anchors and leads a superstar group, including Tom Ollendorff on guitar, Misha Mullov-Abbado on bass and John Turville on piano. “Refreshing, different and most welcome.” (Jazzwise)
4 Jonny Mansfield Quartet feat. Emmanuel Michael
Jonny’s special vibraphone skills are already known to us, and he is here adding New York based guitarist Emmanuel Michael, who brings together influences of East Africa as well as the special energy that New Yorkers have!
5 Julian Siegel Quartet
One of the true greats of British jazz, saxophonist Julian Siegel’s quartet is probably now the pre-eminent trailblazer for the jazz quartet, which takes the influence of smoe fo the jazz greats such as Wayne Shorter and makes them truly his own. Band includes Liam Noble on piano and Gene Calderazzo on drums.
6 Koller/Kofi/Gourlay/Ojumu
Hans Koller and Calum Gourlay were co-founders of the group Thelonious, which developed the repertoire of Thelonious Monk regularly at the Vortex for several years. Having built such an understanding, they return to revisit this music together with the effervescent Tony Kofi and hotshot drummer Noah Ojumu.